Opéra

The story of the Opéra cake begins in 1955, with Cyriaque Gavillon.

Cyriaque Gavillon's father was the pastry chef at the Ritz.
Meanwhile, his son ran the Dalloyau house, one of the oldest in France.

Cyriaque was an artisan in modernising the cakes of the time.
In other words, he revolutionises the codes of confectionery: no more round, large and extravagant cakes.

In short: he worked on his new creation (the Opéra) by superimposing different layers, in order to create an exquisite dessert in which all the flavors could be enjoyed in one go.

Meanwhile, his wife (Andrée), named the creation after the dancers at the Opéra Garnier in Paris, who frequented the store.

At the time, this cake was seen as avant-garde, not only because of its shape, but also because of the ingredients used.
So to summarize: Gavillon reduces the sugar, removes the alcohol and gives it a rectangular shape.

But five years later, Gaston Lenôtre created his own Opera House and claimed paternity.
Only in 1988 did the newspaper Le Monde, decide to do justice and attribute paternity of the Opéra to the Dalloyau house!