Ordering macarons

We gave French macarons as a favor. However, we had them made by a local bakery. They were made fresh the morning of the wedding. My concern with ordering online is lack of freshness. they would likely be made too far in advance and could easily taste dried out or stale. Macarons are definitely better fresh.

I would order a few first to test them before committing.

They are not cheap. Ours were $3 PER macaron and we gave 3 as a favor (= $9 per favor). I have heard others on here order them for $1.50-$2 per macaron though.

This place (Pistacia Vera) is local in Columbus and has a lot of good reviews online for their macarons. They have some favor options on their website, but if those don't work for what you're wanting, you could always get your own packaging and order in bulk from them. They might put them in your packaging, or you might need to diy that part. Either way, getting them locally would be a much fresher option that ordering online, I would think.

http://www.pistaciavera.com/favors/

This looks like it may be an option for you, too. The prices seem to be the same as Pistacia Vera. http://patisserielallier.com/5.html

We used a local bakery in NYC for ours and picked up day before wedding. I have ordered online here and shipped to family before, and everyone has reported they arrived fresh and delicious. Cannot say they are tremendously inexpensive however. I think they could work out a bulk deal.

www.macaronparlour.com

I wouldn't order online, that's like ordering your cake online. Any upscale local bakery should be able to make them fresh. I love macarons and would love them as a favor.

Where are you located? And I agree with one of the PP, macarons are expensive. They usually range from $1.50 to $3.00 and you should at least give 2 as favors. Depending on your guest list, that can get pretty expensive quickly. Consider your budget. What is not horribly expensive?

We order from Dana's Bakery all the time and they are absolutely incredible, every single time!

Our local grocery store sells them in the bakery area and is making our order. I'd check with some of higher end grocery stores.

Shop around first at your local bakeries. I ordered some for our dessert table and picked them up the day before.

You can sometimes get them at Sams or Costco

How long do they last?

I would price out local bakery's, order in bulk and the package them up yourself.

Please keep in mind macarons are expensive because of the quality of ingredients that must be used and the precision it takes to make them correctly. It will be difficult to find inexpensive ones. Also, they must be refrigerated! And they do not last long even with refrigeration--the shells get stale after a day or two. Personally I'd recommend putting out a macaron tray for dessert, not giving them out as favors.

I would order from some place nearby that makes them fresh.

This is an old post now, but in case it helps anyone - Trader Joe's! Their macarons are delicious and cheap. We paid under $150 for approximately 350 macarons.