Ooh La La and Macaron by Patisse both sell the majority of their macarons to women. O'Donnell says her clientele ranges from women in college to those in their 40s. Rajani says 60 percent to 70 percent of her customers are women, but she is noticing an increase in male customers.

"They [men] don't know much about it, but once they try it, they definitely become regulars," Rajani says. "Our age demographic ranges. I mean, we have high school kids to the elderly who come in, so I think average age is probably in their 30s. We also have little kids, like right now [during the interview] we have a little two-year-old who comes in every week and asks for a cookie. So we have the toddlers, we have the elderly; it's a broad range."

O'Donnell and Rajani both credit the increase in the macaron's popularity over other treats (e.g., cupcakes) to consumers' lack of guilt when they eat one (or two) French cookies, compared to eating a whole cupcake.

"When you eat a cupcake, you feel guilty because they are heavy and calorically dense," Rajani says. "Macarons — our macarons, at least, because I can only tell you the nutrition of ours — are 50 calories each, plus or minus size. About seven of those would equal a cupcake, like an average cupcake. And so people don't feel as guilty. So when they come by for their couple of macarons, they are like, 'Oh, this is my little 100-calorie treat for the day.'"

Rajani explains that traditional macarons are made with almond meal, pistachio meal or hazelnut meal, making them excellent treats for the gluten-intolerant.

"Ours are 100 percent gluten-free, and so we do have a lot of clients who come here specifically to get their celiac friends/family gifts," she says. "And we get that question all the time, like on a daily basis — 'Are these all 100 percent gluten free?' So those who are sensitive are definitely seeking them out."

But just because macarons are lighter dessert options doesn't mean they don't taste good. That's one of the main reasons these two bakers love macarons.

"I like the flavor because you use almond meal in it. So, to me, I love the flavor combination," O'Donnell says. "Like we have a cherry one that I love. So I guess for me it would be the almond meal because of the flavor, and then it has the perfect bite; so it is crunchy on the shell and then on the inside it is chewy."

Rajani makes macarons every day, eats quite a few every day and still enjoys them.

"I just love them. I love everything about them. I love that they are — at least ours are — all made with natural ingredients — it's almond meal; it's not heavy; it's not dense; the flavors are light," she says. "I've been working here for a while and making macarons for a while, and I probably still eat like ten a day, so I'm still not sick of them, which is kind of hard to say about things you are around so much."
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Keep on Truckin'

The Modular Food Truck Is Back
And it's better than ever.

Kaitlin Steinberg

Though incredibly popular and well received by critics,The Modularfood truck (actually a trailer) had a surprisingly short run. It opened in 2011, helmed by Joshua Martinez and Lyle Bento. At the time, Martinez was fresh off a stint as general manager of Kata Robata, and Bento was an up-and-coming chef who'd recently left Feast. Bento eventually moved to Underbelly, and Martinez made the slow transition from food-truck owner to restaurant owner when he openedGoro & Gunin early 2013. The move was gradual, with the truck still coming out to play at events every now and then, though Martinez was focusing most of his attention on Goro & Gun. Then one day The Modular returned to the commissary, where it remained for far longer than anyone would have liked.

Now that Goro & Gun is thriving, Martinez doesn't need to be there as frequently, so he's brought The Modular back to life, along with help from Mark Parmley and a motley crew of guest chefs. The trailer, which was previously referred to as the "Tin Can" due to some unfortunate metal siding, has been replaced with a truck that's been completely revamped and now features a bright new paint job by Houston graffiti artist Daniel Anguilu. And it's now called the "Goro & Gun Modular Unit," since it incorporates menu items from both eateries.