Can you recall some of your first food memories that had a lasting impression on you?

My grandmother's food. She was a really great chef and when we went to her house for the holidays, she was always preparing traditional Korean pastries. I remember helping her in the kitchen.

What led you to become a pastry chef?

Since I was young, I really liked making things—drawing and art—I was always creating something. As a hobby, I started baking for my friends and family, tarts, cookies, and cakes. When I saw their faces it made me really happy. When I was 15, I saw pastry chefs on TV, it was mind-blowing how beautiful their creations were. People taste visually first, and the pastries help to heal the stress in their life. I wanted to make people happier with my pastries.

Above Chef Eunji Lee with her show-stopping Pluot Tart, which consists of pluot jam and oolong tea cremeux.

Lysée is such a unique concept to open in New York, since it’s part bakery/restaurant/and gallery. What inspired the concept?

My inspiration for opening Lysée was to combine my Korean heritage, French training, and New York City’s flavors. For me, each of these places have shaped who I am and I wanted the menu and pastries to reflect that. You’ll notice Korean ingredients like yuja and toasted brown rice alongside classic French pastries with a New York style to it.

Above A range of pastry on display including the most popular confection, Corn, which consists of a corn sablé and is filled with grilled corn cream.

Lysée has been such a hit with New Yorkers and visitors, so you must be busy. What does a typical day look like for you?

My husband and I arrive at Lysée at 6 a.m. and we start baking and hand piping the desserts to be ready for the opening. Just before noon, I prep our team for opening. At noon, I go outside and welcome the first customers of the day, greeting everyone. We have service for take away and dine in guests from noon until 5 p.m. I am also in the kitchen preparing online orders for pickup and prepping for the next day during service. Around 8 or 9 p.m., my husband and I finish up and head home.

You are also the mastermind behind the impeccable design of the space. What mood did you want to capture for guests?

I have always been inspired by pastries as edible art. The concept was to create a dessert gallery upstairs, highlighting the pastries like art in a museum, so guests can walk around and decide what they would like to order. The downstairs is the sit-down dining room, providing a more upscale experience with table service while upstairs is to go only.

Above The cool minimal interiors designed by the Chef.

You serve so many inventive pastries, where do you go to get your flavor combinations and ideas from?

Among some of the Korean ingredients featured on the menu are brown rice, toasted buckwheat, yuja, and calamansi, which is an ingredient from Southeast Asia. The French techniques I learned in Paris, along with high-quality ingredients, such as butter, flour, vanilla beans, and chocolate, are still a part of my inspiration. I love the New York flavors of cookie dough combined with the best local ingredients in New York and the U.S. like pecans, hazelnuts, and honey.

Above The gallery space where guests can peruse pastry offerings.

What has been the most popular pastry?

Corn and Lysée.

What are you most proud of since opening?

Everything about Lysée makes me proud including the space, the kitchen, our silverware, glassware, packaging, and our pastries. I am very happy when people talk about the details in the interior design and menu. I am proud of all the little details. If people recognize the small details, it makes me very happy and proud because it was a lot of work and thinking about the design and project, testing different materials, and brainstorming.

A Few Moments With Lysée Founder and Pastry Chef Eunji Lee