Maxime Francis is the Interactive Marketing Manager of Global Web Services for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
Everything is going up in price and candy and chocolates are no exception! If you are searching for the perfect hostess gift, the most unique wedding favor or just the right surprise for your loved one, look no further than a series of new boutique bakeries, all with excellent websites and extraordinary presents under a hundred dollars.
Indulge in Parisian macaroons, a milk-based snack containing almonds and other nuts that are available in 13 flavors, including apricot, almond, coffee and raspberry at L'Epicerie. ($72 for 48 cookies)
Getting married soon? Consider writing personalized fortunes on the inside of dark or white chocolate coated Giant Wedding Fortune Cookies; they come with white, gold or silver sprinkles. Fortunate Biscuits creates them for $100.
Of course, as a native New Yorker, my favorite place to indulge (and at $75 for a stack, it's quite a rare indulgence) is Eleni's for a gift box of Butterflies in Nature cookies. These big, beautiful hand iced sugar biscuits come in all sorts of colors. Sometimes I feel so guilty for eating them as they look like little works of art. But boy are they good! Eleni's is a little over a mile away from the W New York - Union Square. If you visit after 6 pm each day, enjoy their half off sale on freshly baked treats!
