What’s Old Is New at Miel

Longtime loyalists of Miel Patisserie, the pastry shop with outposts in Cherry Hill and Center City, noticed something amiss in late 2007. Prices were rising, service was plummeting, and the menu seemed to be stagnating. The decline started after the August 2007 sale of the business. Miel’s original owner, Marshall Weinerman, decided to retire and sold the shop to a group of investors called AR Cakes & Pastries. The two stores still operated under the Miel name, but customers knew it wasn’t the same. In fact, business got so bad that AR Cakes & Pastries went under, putting Miel up for sale again this past December.

Luckily, when Weinerman heard his old shops were for sale, he stepped out of retirement, reassembled the MVPs of his old team, including general manager Willard Weislogel and head pastry chef Sandy Valentine. After closing both stores briefly last month for a cosmetic facelift and overall of the equipment, the old Miel is back. The pastry menu has been retooled to reflect food trends (think pastry creams infused with fresh ginger), and prices have been rolled back, too. No breakfast item costs more than $2, whole cakes top out $25, and a cup of coffee is just $1.