Maison de la Truffe: Truffle Excellence Since 1932

Paris, 1932. Truffle merchants from Carpentras decided to sell directly to Parisians. They opened a shop on Place de la Madeleine, just a stone’s throw from the capital’s leading gourmet food stores. The idea is simple: to offer the best truffles in France without a middleman, selected at the markets of Vaucluse by people who have known the product for generations. Nearly a century later, Maison de la Truffe is still there—in the same location, with the same high standards.

Real estate agents from Carpentras to Paris

The story of Maison de la Truffe doesn’t begin in a Parisian kitchen. It begins in the markets of Carpentras and Richerenches, in the Vaucluse—the historic heart of the black truffle trade in France.

Back then, the supply chain was long. Truffles went from diggers to brokers, from brokers to wholesalers, and from wholesalers to grocers. At each stage, the product aged, the price rose, and the quality declined. The brokers from Carpentras who founded the Maison de la Truffe in 1932 cut out the middleman. They brought the truffles directly to Paris, selected that morning at the Provençal markets and delivered within the following days.

The choice of Place de la Madeleine is no accident. By 1932, this neighborhood was already the heart of Parisian fine dining—Fauchon, Hédiard, and other renowned brands had set up shop there. Opening a shop entirely dedicated to truffles in this context was a bold move. Truffles are a seasonal, unpredictable product that cannot be standardized. But it is precisely this specialization that sets us apart: no one else offers such a high level of expertise on a single product.

19 Place de la Madeleine

The address at 19 Place de la Madeleine has become synonymous with truffles in Paris. The shop on the ground floor operates as a gourmet deli entirely dedicated to the black truffle and its white cousin from Alba.

You can find fresh truffles there when they're in season — the Melanosporum black truffle from December to March, the summer truffle from May to September, the Burgundy truffle in the fall, and the white truffle from Alba during those magical few weeks in October and November. But also everything you need to cook with truffles at home: black truffle olive oil, white truffle oil, black truffle shavings, black truffle purée, truffle juice — the entire arsenal of the passionate cook.

Upstairs, there’s a restaurant. Not the kind of restaurant that serves truffles as a garnish on a complex dish. A restaurant where the truffle is the dish. Scrambled eggs with truffles, pasta with fresh truffles shaved at the table, truffle risotto—dishes of such simplicity that they put the ingredient front and center. It is this philosophy that has, for decades, attracted a clientele that returns for the truffle itself, not for the presentation.

1978: Guy Monier and the Transformation

During its early decades, La Maison de la Truffe remained primarily a retail shop. The turning point came in 1978, when Guy Monier took over the business.

Monier is a trained chef. He understands that truffles don’t sell like ordinary products—you have to let people taste them, help them appreciate them, and create a special experience around them. He is transforming the Maison de la Truffe in two ways at once.

First, he created a tasting area—a counter where customers can sit down, sample a fresh truffle, enjoy a truffle-infused dish, and learn the difference between a Melanosporum and a summer truffle. This move—taking the truffle from the sales counter to the plate—changes the very nature of the shop. It becomes a place of experience, not just a retail outlet.

Next, he develops a line of related products that allow people to enjoy the taste of truffles even when they’re out of season. Oils, sauces, condiments—all ways to extend the pleasure when fresh truffles are no longer available. The Périgueux sauce with truffles, the black truffle mustard, the acacia honey with truffles — these products, which are now classics of the brand, trace their origins back to this period.

Under Monier’s leadership, Maison de la Truffe has evolved from a specialty shop into a full-fledged luxury food store—the «jeweler of the culinary diamond,» as it describes itself.

2007: Meeting Kaspia

In 2007, a merger changed the company’s course. The Caviar Kaspia Group—founded in 1927, just two doors down at 17 Place de la Madeleine—acquired Maison de la Truffe.

The partnership makes perfect sense. Kaspia is to caviar what La Maison de la Truffe is to truffles: an absolute specialist, established in the same location for decades, with the same philosophy of serving the raw product in its purest form. The two establishments share a clientele, a location, and a conviction—that the world’s finest products don’t need to be complicated to be extraordinary.

Joining the Kaspia Group has given Maison de la Truffe a new foundation. The distribution network is expanding, sourcing is becoming more professional, and the product range is growing. But the essentials remain the same: the truffle remains at the heart of it all, the selection remains rigorous, and the counter at Place de la Madeleine remains the starting point for everything.

To discover the parallel history of Kaspia, our article on the history of Kaspia caviar traces the history of the sister company since 1927.

Truffles: The Art of Selection

Like Kaspia with caviar, Maison de la Truffe is not a producer. It is a selector. And in the world of truffles, selection makes all the difference.

A black Melanosporum truffle can be exceptional or disappointing—even when harvested on the same day, from the same terroir. It all depends on the truffle’s ripeness, size, aromatic intensity, and firmness of the flesh. Buyers at Maison de la Truffe evaluate each batch by smell, touch, and cut. Only truffles that meet the company’s criteria bear its name.

Our selection of fresh truffles reflects this commitment to quality:

Visit Melanosporum black truffle — Tuber melanosporum — is the queen. Harvested in southeastern France between December and March, it offers a powerful aroma of forest floor, musk, and damp earth. It is the truffle for special occasions, the one that transforms a simple dish into a memorable moment. For those who want to discover it without breaking the bank, the black truffle shavings and the truffle peelings offer the same fragrance at a more affordable price.

Visit white truffle from Alba — Tuber magnatum pico — is the absolute gem. Harvested in Italy between October and December, it isn’t cooked: it’s grated raw, right at the table, over fresh pasta, risotto, or a fried egg. Its aroma—garlic, honey, cut hay—is so fleeting that it cannot withstand cooking or waiting.

Visit summer truffle — Tuber aestivum — is the starting point. Milder and more subtle, it is perfect for carpaccio dishes and salads. And the Burgundy truffle, harvested in the fall, bridges the gap between the summer truffle and the Melanosporum, with notes of hazelnut and the forest floor.

To understand the differences between these varieties in detail, our Guide: Black Truffles vs. White Truffles compare flavor profiles, culinary uses, and prices.

The Gourmet Shop: Truffles for Every Day

What sets La Maison de la Truffe apart from other specialty food stores is the breadth of its truffle product line. Not just a dozen items—but dozens, covering every culinary use.

Oils and condiments. L’black truffle olive oil and the’white truffle oil are the essentials—a drizzle over pasta, pizza, or a salad, and the dish takes on a whole new dimension. The balsamic vinegar with truffle juice, the black truffle salt flakes, the soy sauce with truffle juice — Each condiment opens the door to a different use.

Pasta and risotto. Visit Tagliatelle with summer truffles, the Tagliolini with truffles and risottos — Summer Truffle Risotto, Alba White Truffle Risotto Kit — are complete meals ready in 15 minutes.

Sauces. Visit Périgueux sauce is a classic of French cuisine. The truffle cacio e pepe sauce, the Truffle Carbonara and the truffled gorgonzola sauce reinterpret Italian classics with a touch of truffle.

Cheeses. Visit Brillat-Savarin with black truffles, the Brie de Meaux with truffles, the Gouda with summer truffles and the Saint-Marcellin with Truffles — Truffles and cheese are a natural pairing that Maison de la Truffe masterfully showcases.

For practical ideas on how to use them, check out our 10 Easy Truffle Recipes show how these products turn an ordinary dinner into a memorable meal.

Gift Sets and the Art of Giving

Truffles are one of those treats that are just as much a gift for others as they are for yourself. La Maison de la Truffe has long understood this, and its selection of gift sets is designed for every occasion.

Visit La Truffe Gift Set brings together household essentials—oil, condiments, truffle salt—in a set that lets you explore the world of truffles without having to choose between products. The Maison de la Truffe x Opinel Gift Set pairs an Opinel knife with truffle-infused products—a gift that appeals to both cooks and connoisseurs of fine things. The champagne and truffle set marries a Champagne Brut Prestige Maison de la Truffe with truffle-infused products—a festive and approachable pairing.

For more information, the exclusive gift sets — such as the A trip to Alba to discover white truffles or the An exceptional journey around the black truffle — are comprehensive experiences that tell the story of the truffle through a selection of products.

Truffle Grower's Supplies

Truffles require special tools. Not out of snobbery—but out of necessity. A mandoline that’s too thick ruins the slices. An unsuitable brush damages the surface. A poor-quality knife crushes rather than slices.

Visit olive wood truffle slicer produces thin, even slices—the kind that melt on a hot plate. The stainless steel mandolines are more precise for restaurant cuts. The beechwood truffle brush cleans fresh truffles without damaging their skin. And the Complete truffle service includes everything you need in one set—a mandoline, a brush, and a knife—for those who want to be fully equipped with a single purchase.

Visit white truffle powder seasoning deserves a special mention: it’s more of a finishing touch than a condiment—a fine powder to sprinkle on at the last minute to add a hint of white truffle without having to break out the mandoline.

From La Madeleine to your table

For decades, anyone wanting to sample the products from Maison de la Truffe had to go to Place de la Madeleine. That is no longer the case.

Gourmandise de Luxe — the online store that sells products from Maison de la Truffe and Kaspia — offers access to the entire catalog. Fresh truffles in season, oils, sauces, condiments, truffle-infused cheeses, gift sets, and accessories—everything available in the physical store is available for delivery, with the same cold chain maintained for fresh products.

The entire collection of truffle-infused products is organized to make it easier to choose: by product type, by use (appetizers, cooking, gifts), and by truffle variety. And for those new to the world of truffles, the starter sets let you sample several products without having to choose them one by one.

What hasn't changed since 1932

The truffle brokers from Carpentras who founded the Maison de la Truffe might not recognize the shop as it is today—the restaurant upstairs, the range of a hundred truffle-related products, the online store that ships throughout France. But they would recognize what matters most.

Each truffle is always selected individually, assessed by smell and touch. The connection to the terroirs—Vaucluse, Périgord, Italy—remains intact. The refusal to compromise on quality remains the same. And the founding conviction—that the truffle deserves a house entirely dedicated to it, a place where it is not just one ingredient among many but the main focus—has not shifted an inch in nearly a century.

The truffle remains a wild, capricious product that is impossible to truly industrialize. That is why it fascinates us. And that is why the Maison de la Truffe, with its exacting standards for selection and its obsession with the product, remains exactly where it belongs after nine decades—in the heart of the Madeleine, in the heart of the truffle.