Guillaume
Bakery · Mile End ·
Freshly baked French breads, almond croissants, and sweet treats
Freshly baked French breads, almond croissants, and sweet treats
"With his sourdough loaves, olive ciabatta, and fig-cheddar buns, Guillaume Vaillant is a frontrunner on the Montreal bread circuit. But the apple turnovers and “Reine Elizabeth” (a small date cupcake with a coconut-caramel topping) at his eponymously named shop easily satisfy those with a sweet tooth, too." - Daniel Bromberg
"This spot on St. Laurent between Laurier and Fairmount is a mecca for bread in the area; walk around and you’ll see many a Mile Ender toting a baguette in its signature yellow bread bag. The selection is vast and it opens from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily (except for Sundays), so you’ve got a full 12 hours to get your fix." - Mallory Frayn
"I note that the exceedingly popular Mile End bakery Guillaume is enlarging its bread- and pastry-making facility to take over its entire existing locale at 5134 St-Laurent while moving the customer-facing retail a couple of doors up to 5170 St-Laurent; the new retail space is being designed with COVID-19 social-distancing measures so it can safely accommodate more patrons and will house a kitchen on an upper level where the bakery’s lunch and dinner offerings will be prepared. The workshop, to be known as “L’Atelier Guillaume,” will absorb the former sales counter at the current address to give workers more room to spread out while making everything from beloved buttery croissants to cheese-filled fig baguettes, and bakers will be positioned on a wide-windowed ground floor so passersby can stop and be mesmerized from the adjacent public square. Since the start of the pandemic I’ve seen a major surge in demand for their breads and baked goods, with many Montreal restaurants — including Tinc Set in Outremont and Mouton Vert in Monkland Village, as well as others off the island — acting as drop-off points, though Vaillant stresses that their priority remains the Mile End and that expanding production in the current locale is the best way to meet growing appetite without compromising quality or worker safety. Ownership has also broadened beyond founder Guillaume Vaillant and co-founder Valérianne Lamirande-Gauvin to integrate employees who are now partners, including chef baker Rémi Delpino and directors Théo Sadozai, Janis Bouchard, and Cristian Alexis Leon, and Vaillant says their visions will increasingly come to the fore. A fire that Vaillant posted about to Instagram on January 5 delayed the expansion by about two months, but he says the project is now on track for an expected opening at the end of the summer." - Valerie Silva
"I noted that Guillaume bakery resumed operations after a fire on January 5, with its oven running at about 75 percent capacity and the team offering a deliberately “conservative” quantity of breads as they ramp back up; best to call ahead." - Valerie Silva
"I read that Guillaume bakery, a favourite in the city known for its buttery croissants, cheddar and fig baguettes, and dark chocolate sourdough loaves, suffered damage in a fire early yesterday morning; no one was injured. The blaze, first reported by Journal Métro, originated in the bakery’s ventilation system before spreading and damaging the kitchen and oven, which are no longer functional, and a call was placed to the fire department at around 6:15 a.m. Owner and founder Guillaume Vaillant confirmed on the bakery’s Instagram that the Saint-Laurent shop between Fairmount and Laurier East will be closed for an indefinite period — “closed until at least next Tuesday — if not longer” — depending on the availability of parts and construction workers, though he also shared that the bakery is undergoing an unspecified expansion." - Valerie Silva