Like all the best food retail outlets, Odette — situated in the Al-Rawdah district of Jeddah — is not part of an impersonal franchise, but a passion project. When French owner Frederic Berthy was a child, his grandmother — an accomplished pastry chef — would bake for friends and family in her small kitchen, the store’s website explains. Her specialty was cream puffs, and Berthy says he never forgot the “exquisite taste” of her creations, which gave him “the drive and passion to open his first store in Paris in January 2013.” Her name, as you may have guessed, was Odette. And Berthy’s store is a fitting tribute to her cream puff talents. Having experimented with various fillings and flavors at his successful outlet in Paris, Berthy decided to branch out to Saudi Arabia. The vibe remains Parisian, thanks to the cozy black-and-beige interior with a small first-floor window. There are numerous flavors of cream puffs to choose from, including passion fruit, chocolate, berries, lemon, vanilla, praline and pistachio. Berthy’s excellent cream puffs are well worth sampling. Grandma Odette would be proud.