Orléans has a new spot to stop for a croissant, and it comes with a pedigree. Les Moulins La Fayette, the French artisan bakery chain that’s been serving pastries, bread and other freshly baked goods in Quebec since 1999, has opened at 2548 St. Joseph Boulevard, in the Heart of Orléans BIA. The location is run by Mohamed Saadouni and Mahfoud Saadouni. We stopped in on a sunny fall afternoon, ordered more than we probably should have, and came away with a new favourite dessert
THE LOCATION
You’ll find the bakery / coffee shop in a standalone building along St. Joseph, right beside Saadé Plaza, with plenty of parking out front. On our visit the entrance was dressed for the season with corn stalks, a hay bale, pumpkins and potted mums, which made for a welcoming first impression.
Inside, the look is clean and modern: black walls, warm wood panelling, black track lighting and a row of slim white pendant lights hanging over the pastry counter. The standout is a large mural behind the seating area showing hands kneading dough, with a heart drawn into the flour beside it. It’s a nice touch that tells you what the place is about before you’ve tasted anything.
Seating is a mix of white marble-look tables and black upholstered chairs, with big windows letting in lots of natural light. It’s relaxed enough to linger over a coffee or work on a laptop (which during our visit, plenty of university students were partaking in). Fresh loaves line wooden shelves along one wall, and the glass display cases run nearly the full length of the counter. Ordering is done at the cash, with bilingual signage to point you there.
THE MENU
The menu leans heavily toward French bakery classics, and the display cases are where you’ll want to spend some time. On the pastry side you’ll find almond and chocolate croissants, danishes topped with custard, raspberry and pistachio, and apricot pastries. Individual desserts include tiramisu ($6.50), a chocolate-caramel dome ($6.25) and a torched-meringue lemon tartlet ($6.50), alongside pecan pie slices, muffins like hazelnut praline and pumpkin ($3.75), cookies and walnut brownies.
For lunch, there are quiches and prepared sandwiches, including a salmon and cream cheese croissant ($9.50). The bread wall offers loaves like miche blanche, olive bread and multigrain options, mostly in the $6 to $8 range.
There’s also a retail section stocked with branded take-home treats: mini palmiers and cheese straws ($7.95 each), lemon and vanilla mini meringues ($11.50 and $10.95), mendiants ($8.95), chocolate bars ($7.50) and an assorted rocher box ($21.50). These would make an easy hostess gift.
The coffee menu covers the basics at reasonable prices. A regular coffee runs $2.75 Americanos are $2.95 to $3.65, and lattes, cappuccinos, mochaccinos and flat whites are $4.25 to $5.25 depending on size. Specialty drinks include a matcha latte ($6.25), London Fog ($5.25) and hot chocolate ($5.50), and in the cold category there’s an iced latte, iced Americano, affogato and iced hibiscus tea. Oat, almond and lactose-free milk are 50 cents extra.
THE FOOD
🍫 Chocolate Macaron (individual) – ⭐️ 4.9/5
This was the star of the visit. It’s a supersized macaron: a plain macaron filled with chocolate custard and chocolate mousseline, with a dome of chocolate custard in the centre ringed by piped mousseline, and the top shell dusted with cocoa and finished with a little chocolate square bearing the bakery’s logo. The shell held together well, the filling was rich without being heavy, and it looked almost too good to eat. Almost. If you only order one thing, make it this.
🥐 Chocolate Almond Croissant – ⭐️ 4.5/5
A generous croissant topped with sliced almonds and a snowfall of icing sugar, with a layer of almond filling and a strip of chocolate running through the centre. I have tried many variations of this treat across various establishments in Orléans, and this ranks as one of the better ones. There’s a real generous amount of chocolate inside for a change! The exterior had a nice golden bake and plenty of flake. It was a solid pastry, though it didn’t quite reach the heights of the macaron.
🥐 Smoked Salmon Croissant – ⭐️ 4.2/5
This croissant is a large, glossy, deeply laminated beast, filled with smoked salmon and cream cheese. It makes a satisfying light lunch, and the pastry held up well to the filling.
🥪 Smoked Meat BLT – ⭐️ 4.6/5
Our favourite of the savoury items. It comes on a long seeded loaf packed with smoked meat, ripe tomato slices, leafy lettuce and a grainy mustard. The bread was hearty with a good chew, and the smoked meat gave the classic BLT format a nice Montreal-style twist. It’s a filling sandwich that could easily carry you through the afternoon.
THE ORLÉANS CONNECT OVERALL RATING
⭐️ 4.5 stars out of 5
Les Moulins La Fayette is a welcome addition to St. Joseph Boulevard. The space is bright and comfortable, the coffee prices are fair (in our new high-food-cost inflationary environment), and the display cases are stocked with enough variety to justify more than one visit. Go for a coffee and a pastry, stay for lunch, and grab a bag of meringues on your way out.
