After ten years living, studying bread and pastry techniques and working in bakeries in Normandy, France, a couple who met at the University of Guadalajara have returned and established a bakery, Oh La La!
Now, after only little more than a year of existence, it has won the hearts and palates of a core of happy customers.
“They tell me, ‘Now that we’ve tried your bread, we can’t go back to eating other bread,’” says Damien Rault, a 30-something, earnest-faced man from Brittany.
Rault and his wife Dalila Ascencio rise at 3 a.m. to begin work in the ample bakery situated below their apartment on a residential street in Zapopan, a 15-minute walk from Plaza Galerias and Costco (at Avenidas Vallarta and Rafael Sanzio).
“In France there are many, many bakeries like ours, where they make artisanal bread,” continues Rault. “Typically, French breadmakers live like we do, in homes that are also bakeries, because of the demanding schedule they keep.”
But Oh La La! is the only truly French bakery in the Guadalajara area, as far as Rault and his wife know, although there are some in other cities, such as Mexico City, Puebla, Queretaro and Ensenada.
“We search out top quality ingredients,” Ascencio says. “If we can get local products, we prefer them.”The bakers get butter and cheese for pastries such as brioche, croissants and scones from Mennonite dairies in Chihuahua and other local producers. But they use Belgian chocolate, her husband notes, because of its outstanding quality.
“For bread, the ingredients are a lot more basic, but the techniques more demanding than for pastries,” Rault says. One of Oh La La’s specialties is sourdough bread, which uses a mother dough that requires a lot of care and time. And techniques of breadmaking vary with the season, he adds.
“When you buy our bread, it won’t turn into a rock by the evening,” he says, raising his eyebrows.
Surprisingly, Oh La La’s products are not expensive, in comparison with producers of similar products, such as Walmart. “At Costco, two baguettes are 48 pesos. At Superama, they cost at least 20 pesos each,” he said, pointing at a basket of his baguettes that go for 15 pesos each.
Ascencio recounted how the couple dreamed of opening a bakery in Mexico while they were in France. “We spent years economizing,” she says. “Some of our equipment was very expensive, like our stone oven.”
Their bread and pastries are already sold at establishments in the Providencia, Country Club and Valle Real neighborhoods, as well as near the U.S. consulate. And a few people who belong to a group of French speakers in the Chapala area, Amities Francophones, now make a weekly trip to Oh La La! to pick up products for themselves and other members.
Now established with base clientele, the couple say they are planning to open other branches in the metropolitan area.
Oh-La-La! Panaderia Francesa, Juan Sebastian Bach 5074, between Miguel Angel and Goya. Tel: (33) 1562 6995, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Open Mon–Fri. 9 a.m.–7 p.m. (until 7:30 in the summer), Sat 9–6. Closed Sunday.