La Boulangerie Poilâne in Saint-Germain-des-Prés is a beloved Parisian gem, serving iconic sourdough and heavenly pastries since 1932, infused with irresistible charm.
"We forgive you if you assumed Poilâne was a tourist trap, given the branded bags, dishtowels, and bread knives scattered among the viennoiseries and sablés. But this institution founded in 1932 is worth a visit—and not just for the avant-garde Salvador Dalí bread chandelier in the back room at the original Saint-Germain location. The massive sourdough miches packed into tight rows behind the counter are deserving of the fame, with a mild lactic sourness and a dense, close crumb that makes them perfect for croques and grilled cheese. Don’t overlook the apple chaussons—which here look more like turnovers—filled with not-too-sweet applesauce." - sara lieberman, emily monaco
"We forgive you if you assumed Poilâne was a tourist trap, given the branded bags, dishtowels, and bread knives scattered among the viennoiseries and sablés. But this institution founded in 1932 is worth a visit—and not just for the avant-garde Salvador Dalí bread chandelier in the back room at the original Saint-Germain location. The massive sourdough miches packed into tight rows behind the counter are deserving of the fame, with a mild lactic sourness and a dense, close crumb that makes them perfect for croques and grilled cheese. Don’t overlook the apple chaussons—which here look more like turnovers—filled with not-too-sweet applesauce. photo credit: Gabe Bergado" - Emily Monaco
"The very first location of Poilâne, this historic shop opened in 1923 with traditional country breads, and those have been the signature ever since. As of 2012, Poilâne was producing about 3 percent of all the bread sold in Paris; the company's miche bread, a wheel of sourdough called pain de campagne, or country bread, is stocked in supermarkets, specialty stores, and restaurants. You'll find it in the shop, as well, along with beautiful croissants and a host of other breakfast pastries and specialty loaves. Punitions, Poilâne's signature shortbread cookies, are legendary." - Lindsey Tramuta
"You’d be hard-pressed to find a visitor to Paris who isn’t heading to Poilâne at some point during their trip. That’s because the bakery has been making delicious sourdough wheat loaves for almost 100 years. You’ll recognize a Poilâne miche by the signature swoopy “P” scored into the bread before baking, as well as its brown color imparted by the proportion of stone-ground whole wheat in the dough. Looking to make sandwiches with jambon de Paris? The loaves can be sliced to order." - Dayna Evans
"This mini-chainlet is now three Paris locations strong (with two outposts in London), which makes a lot of sense: The bread really is distinguishably excellent, which in a place like Paris, says a lot. Though the sourdough loaves fly off the shelves, we love their nut breads—along with the fact that you can purchase by the half or quarter loaf if you can't take down the entire thing. There's usually a line, and while there's nothing to be done about that, you can always duck into La Cuisine de Bar instead. It's a sandwich shop next to the location in the 6th, where they make sandwiches from Poilâne bread. Other locations: Eiffel Tower district and the Marais."
