'People will love it': International bakery chain expanding to North Quincy this spring

QUINCY − An international chain of bakeries is set to open its second Massachusetts location this spring in Quincy, the first of five new eateries Paris Baguette franchisees hope to bring to the state.

"Essentially, it's a bakery café. We have a lot of different items focused on pastries made fresh in the café every day, as well as salads and sandwiches," Mark Mele, chief development officer, said. "The U.S. had a rich bakery landscape that has faded, and Paris Baguette is bringing that back. We offer literally hundreds of items every day, including fresh baguettes, of course."

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The new bakery will be part of the ongoing development at the North Quincy T station. Mele said it will be about 3,000 square feet and operate on a "self-service" model, where most pastries, sandwiches, salads and other items can be picked up by the customers straight from their cases. For larger items, like entire cakes, "bakers, cakers and sandwich-makers" will be available to help.

'It's really a cool-looking café," Mele said. "The sights, the sounds, the smells when you walk in are really neat. I think people will love it. You're putting delicious, fresh-baked goods on your tray and building a pyramid of delicacies."

Construction at the North Quincy location is "well underway," Mele said, and an April opening is expected. The bakery will be at 189 Hancock St. and will include a visible pastry kitchen for customers to watch how the goods are made. Paris Baguette serves Lavazza coffee, an Italian brand.

"Our product is very high end. Our parent company is a dough-producing company. We've been baking for 75 years," Mele said. "We were born out of a love for feeding the masses with high-quality breads and croissants. We're using fresh cream in our cakes, fresh fruits for toppings. You can go to your favorite grocery store for fresh bread, but it's not a full-service bakery."

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Paris Baguette is a South Korean company that opened is first location in Seoul almost 40 years ago. It has since expanded to more than 3,600 worldwide locations and has almost 100 in the United States. The only existing Massachusetts location is inside the HMart, an Asian grocery store, in Cambridge.

Mele said Paris Baguette put 121 locations under agreement in 2021 in the United States, and 125 in 2022. The company has opened 36 cafés in the last two years and 70 are under construction, including in North Quincy.

"It's really taking off for us," he said. "The cafés we've opened up to date are having a tremendous reaction from our guests. Suburbia is getting a lot of traction. Prospective franchisees want to be in these areas."

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Reach Mary Whitfill at mwhitfill@patriotledger.com.