FR – Whilst La Petite Boulangerie, opposite Uzès Town Hall, is a well-established fixture on the high street, it is also the worthy successor to the bakery run by Françoise and Didier, who were mainstays of Uzès’s commercial life for so many years.
Today, it is Ingrid and Hervé who are working together to breathe new life into the bakery, whilst honouring the legacy of their predecessors and showcasing local produce, thereby bringing their own personal touch to the establishment.
A Gourmet encounter
Hello Ingrid, Hervé,
Could you tell us what led you to take over the bakery from Françoise and Didier, who have delighted us for so many years? How did the handover go?
Well, it’s above all a true crush. Before taking over, we were customers of this bakery. Hervé has always known and loved it. For him, it was this one and no other. It was a real dream for him to one day work in this bakery. The handover with Françoise and Didier happened naturally and was very emotional.
Is this a career change, or have you always been bakers?
It’s a mix of long-standing passion and a fresh start. For Hervé, it’s his life’s work: he did his apprenticeship right here in Uzès, 30 years ago. Returning to his hometown, where he learnt the trade, is deeply symbolic for him.
As for me, I’m the daughter and granddaughter of a baker. I used to be a special needs teacher and chose to leave my job to follow Hervé on this adventure. It’s a joint venture where our family roots come together.
Why did you choose Uzès as your base?
Settling in Uzès was a true life project, a deep-seated desire to return to our roots. Buying the bakery simply brought this project forward. We love this town for its friendliness and its soul. In fact, we’ll be making this dream a reality very soon, as we’re officially moving to Uzès in June.
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The organic flours, carefully selected and synonymous with quality, bring out the very best in the various breads on offer: sourdough bread, spelt bread, corn bread, country bread, rye bread... You’ll be more than tempted to have a bite as soon as possible!
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What is your approach to baking, your unique identity?
We have chosen to prioritise a rigorous selection of quality ingredients.
Our approach is based on a commitment to traceability as well as health. We work with the Moulin de Sauret, located in the Hérault. It is a historic mill that guarantees us local expertise and impeccable quality.
For all our speciality breads, we have chosen to use only organic flours. For us, organic is a guarantee of respect for the land and for our customers’ health, whilst offering superior nutritional qualities.
Your selection of bread varies from day to day… A speciality, perhaps?
To be honest, we don’t really have a single ‘speciality’ as such, as we believe every loaf deserves the same attention.
For us, the essence of bread-making rests on a golden rule: simplicity. To make good bread, we need just four ingredients: flour, water, salt and the natural sourdough starter made by Hervé.
It is then hard work and patience that do the rest. We do, however, really enjoy making speciality breads. Whilst Hervé particularly appreciates einkorn wheat for its nutritional qualities, my favourite remains the ‘Pain Gourmand’.
How do you go about developing your new recipes? Do you follow the seasons, or your personal favourites?
We’re guided by a love of the product and our craft. We have loads of ideas, but we don’t want to lose our way. Our aim is really to get back to the basics of baking as it used to be. We focus on authentic flavour and local sourcing.
Aside from our breads, we also love pastries! You’ll find all the classics here: butter croissants, pains au chocolat and chocolate croissants. Personally, I have a soft spot for brioche: it’s comforting, convivial and a bit nostalgic; it instantly brings back childhood memories. Hervé, as a true-blue Uzétien, remains a great fan of fougasse.
Do you have any favourite recipes? Do you plan to offer specialities for the big occasions of the year, such as Christmas and Easter?
We’ll operate in tune with the seasons and traditions, but always on our own scale. As there are just the two of us in the bakery and in the shop, we choose quality over quantity.
For Epiphany, we will of course be offering our galettes and couronnes. For Christmas, we are keen to create a ‘signature’ Yule log, but it will be available in limited quantities to ensure it is 100% handmade. However, we will not be making chocolates for Easter, preferring to focus on our core business.
We also like the idea of marking the occasion during annual events in Uzès and the surrounding area, or during key moments such as Saint-Honoré (the bakers’ festival). This will be an opportunity for us to organise small, friendly events to share our passion with our customers.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
We’d like to extend our warmest thanks to the inhabitants of Uzès, the local residents and the neighbourhood shopkeepers for their invaluable and warm welcome. It is precisely to foster this sense of community that we chose to call the shop ‘La Petite Boulangerie’, a name that seemed the obvious choice to us.
It is a small bakery, certainly, but one driven by a great history of passion and sharing.
Many thanks to Ingrid and Hervé for their contribution to the blog’s Terroir section.
The address: La Petite Boulangerie, 12 Place Albert 1er, Uzès. Open Monday to Friday from 6am to 1pm and from 4pm to 7pm. Saturdays from 6am to 1pm. Open on public holidays from 7am to 1pm. Find La Petite Boulangerie on Instagram.