Author: PalenQ
Date: 05/09/2007, 10:44 am
NPR radio carried an interesting report last night about one of the most famous Parisian bakeries - Poh-lan was how it was pronounced and is at St Germain-des-Pres.

Anyway i looking for those who can tell me more about it - is it a retail store or commercial bakery?

Said it started 75 years ago when a guy started making sourdough bread there. Now the bakery is so famous that it sends bread to restaurants around the world.

It uses all French ingredient, from sea salt to flour.

Interestingly its CEO is a 22-year old Harvard student who commutes back to her Paris home to run the place on breaks - her grandfather i think started the bakery. She plans to become full-time boss in the near future after graduation.

So it is worth ferreting out? merci!

Poilâne is what you are looking for.
http://www.poilane.fr/

It's Poilâne, and that's not the correct pronounciation, and yes, it's definitely worth a visit. The owner died a couple of years ago in an airplane or helicopter crash, so he's no longer there, but the bread's still amazing.

Yes I managed to get of that bread!
Her father crashed in a heliocopter I believe,

Hi PQ,

Poilâne's original bakery is at 8, rue du cherche-midi, about 1 km from the Hotel Bonaparte.

Terrific bread. Lovely morning pastries. Very pleasant staff.

Thanks for posting this, my husband told me last night, he heard something on NPR about a bakery in Paris and we have to go there on our next trip. Now I know where we are going. Thanks

PQ - on the subject of Paris bakeries, you might knead to read this thread
.. the best for this year...
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34977567

It's his daughter who runs the operation now. He was an interesting man.
An important Art Collector and member of an exclusive chocolate society.Many years ago I bought his book for a friend (in French) that had that day went for sale in the shop and he signed it.

You will see some restaurants advertise that they serve Poilane bread. I know there is one store here in Toronto that flies in bread from them every day.

Interesting. A lot of people must have read that article. Yesterday, a man stopped me on the street and asked (in French, although it wasn't his first language) and asked me for a bakery on that street. I mentioned that there were several close by, and he said, "No, no, I want the one that is known around the world."