Kelly Kenoyer
A taste of Champs Elysées is coming to Main Street.
Sweet Home will soon have its very own French patisserie, located right inside Sweet Things Boutique, at 1045 Main St.
Lebanon-based Colette Bakery and Bistro is opening a pop-up shop inside Sweet Things Boutique, scheduled for unveiling on Thursday, Oct. 22. The opening coincides with new, longer hours at the shop so visitors can get some breakfast.
“It’s a French bakery, so it’s going to bring something totally different to Sweet Home than what we already have,” said Sweet Things owner Cassie Richey. “She has sweet and savory so she has some things that are more like for lunch kind of a thing and they’re really good.”
Bakery owner Chelly Bouferrache plans to sell everything from flaky, buttery croissants to hazelnut eclairs, along with savory danishes: ham and cheese or margherita. Everything is baked fresh that day at the bakery in Lebanon before being brought to the Sweet Home shop.
“Anything we don’t sell we’ll take to the fire department or the Police Department,” she said. “We don’t sell day-olds.”
Bouferrache’s business partner, Moni Shuttlesworth, said the shop will also offer coffee and tea. Dough for the pastries comes from La Provénce, a genuine French bakery in Portland. The dough is thawed and allowed to rise overnight, then the pastries are cut and formed with locally made fresh fillings.
“I had a French TV crew say it tastes just like home,” Bouferrache said.
“Our apple turnovers are from fresh apples,” Shuttlesworth added. “We use fresh berries, fresh tomatoes, fresh basil.” For croissants, there are chocolate, almond, chocolate-almond, and plain options.
Richey plans to staff the patisserie for Bouferrache, at least in the short term.
“It’s easy to step behind the counter and serve people,” she said, though Collette Bakery may hire an employee if the demand is high enough.
The boutique will also add a seating area, along with the new butcherblock counter that will serve as the pop-up bistro. There will be comfy couches around a fireplace and some bistro tables, Richey said.
“We’re super excited. Her place in Lebanon is super fun. And we’re excited to offer something else,” she said.
If the bakery is a success, it may even someday expand to its own location in town, Shuttlesworth said.
“We’re testing it out to see what the market will hold in Sweet Home,” she added. “We’re looking to expand in Prineville anyway.”
Prices for pastries run from $3.50 to $6.50, and the Boutique’s new hours are 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Pastries arrive at 8:30 a.m. and are available until they run out.