My Bakeries in Angers

I am officially back in the United States. My feelings on this will be made clear in a later post. Before that, I have one last post regarding life in Angers. Soak it in. Soak it in.

What is a culinary cheapskate to do? I can’t spend every meal in lavishly expensive restaurants eating only the finest food France has to offer. That will come in a few years. On the other hand, to miss out on the French culinary world would be a shame. Compromise: bakeries. They are a staple in French culture and are relatively inexpensive.

Whatever your preconceived notion of France and bakeries is, it is probably right. 1) They are everywhere. (Except in Paris. There are no bakeries in Paris.) 2) The French eat bread every day. It’s not an uncommon sight to see a baguette under a man’s arm on his way home for lunch and/or dinner. Nor is it uncommon to see the same baguette in the reusable grocery bag of a woman on her way back from the market or grocery store.

Before we start, you need to know three words:

~Boulangerie- this means bread: baguettes, pain tradition, pain aux cereals, etc.
~Patisserie- this is the sweets and pastries. You have to go to school to be a real pastry chef in France. Common things you’ll find in a patisserie: fruit tarts, chocolate cakes/tarts, macarons, little cakes, mille feuilles, etc.
~Viennoiserie- this is a special dough that is leavened with yeast. Familiar things on the menu: croissants, pain au chocolat, pain aux raisins, brioche, chausson aux pommes, etc.

More often than not, you’ll find some combination of the three. So go in hungry. Also, the cakes in France are simple, single layer circles (or squares) that may have a simple decoration on top. None of this Ace of Cakes nonsense.

On my last days in Angers, I went on a little tour to visit my favorite bakeries one last time. I couldn’t leave without getting one more taste of the pastries/breads/viennoiseries that I’ve fondly grown accustomed to in the past months. There were also a couple chocolate shops thrown in there for good measure. Ok. So I did all of this in one day. Don’t judge me.

Doréenne.

Doréenne is about a 5-minute walk from the University at which I was studying all this time. I’d often stop in for a snack during the day or on my way home (it wasn’t on the way, but I made a little detour). There are three ladies that work the counter at different times of the day. They are all really sweet. Like their relatively cheap pastries (between 2 and 3 euros).

La Gringotine

This one is just down the road from Doréenne. It has really cheap croissants and pain au chocolat (.55 and .70 euros, respectively). It also has some pretty fine sandwiches and panini for lunch. My favorite was the Poulet Complet.

Another two minutes down the road is Benoit.

Benoit is a pretty good chocolatier in Angers. They have a chocolate boutique and a café in separate buildings. On the boutique side: I really enjoyed the dark chocolate ganache and almond praliné. Also of note, their hot chocolate is on of the best in the city (and it comes with a macaron).

Over by the post office is the Jardin des Saveurs.

I didn’t get there often, but when I did, I always got a pain au chocolat (1 euro). It was my favorite in the city. Also, they have free samples of different breads and whatnot inside. So I filled up on those too.

Not far from the Cathedral is Petit.

This is a small (petit) pastry shop. It is the one to see and be seen at in Angers. Their pastries are on the expensive side (4 euros), but they are worth it. I had a chocolate cake there on the last day that was unbelievable. They have good macarons there, too.

Au Petit Moulin is by St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.

I went to St. Joseph’s many a Sunday morning. Conveniently enough, Au Petit Moulin is open until 1PM. After church, about half the congregation would head on over to get bread or, in my case, a pastry (there is a good business model for you). I really liked their “religieuse”: a small cream puff on top of a larger one to create a two-balled snowman-like figure flavored with either coffee or chocolate (note: religieuse means nun).

Speaking of chocolate: Louvigny.

Louvigny is over at the Place de la Madeleine. It’s a good ten-minute walk from the University in the opposite direction of my house, but it is worth it. Louvigney is easily the best chocolatier in town. His chocolates are all made in house by either him or his Japanese wife. My favorites were the Earl Grey Tea, Sesame, Java, and dark chocolate from Madagascar. The macarons at Louvigny are wonderful. My favorites: coffee, dark chocolate, and yuzu (Japanese lemon).

Over by the train station: Le Grenier à Pain.

Le Grenier has one of the best Baguette Paysanne (1 euro, .50 euros for half) in town. Also, the croissants (.95 euros) are the best in Angers. It is the perfect balance of flaky and buttery with a nice crispy exterior and soft interior. Perhaps even better than the bread and croissants, it is open all day on Sunday.

Two doors down from Le Grenier: La Boulangerie de la Gare (Gare means train station).

I didn’t get here as much as I would have liked, but their brioche is heavenly. They also have some pretty nice looking pastries, but I never indulged.

And finally:

This bakery doesn’t have a name. It’s a little boulangerie exactly one minute from my house (I timed it). She had terrific pain tradition (1 euro, .50 euros for half) and pain aux céréales (bread with grains) that I would dine on a couple times a week (or more).

So those are my favorite spots in Angers. I’m sure there are others that I missed or looked over, but these ones kept my happy through the four months. And most of them were also relatively cheap (except where noted).

Should I ever return to Angers, I’ll be sure to visit some, if not all, of the bakeries I lived off of these past four months. For now, I have the memories and pictures. Unfortunately, I’m starting to get hungry…