Our
story

A dream of adventure and a two-week journey aboard the Georgic brought Roland and Odette Étienne to Montreal in 1951.

After a challenging start in America, life, new encounters and perseverance eventually brought Roland and Odette Étienne and their young children to Montreal’s Rosemont neighborhood. With the support of Montreal’s Basque community, the couple purchased a bakery on Marquette Street in 1956, equipped with two Mignolet ovens.

Au Pain Doré was born.

In its early days, the bakery seduced restaurant owners with its golden baguettes and French breads. It was not until 1983 that the first Au Pain Doré store opened in a former garage converted into a business, allowing people in the neighborhood to enjoy the quality of real French bread.

The success of the Marquette Street bakery paved the way for Au Pain Doré’s continued expansion across Montreal. A new location opened on Saint-Denis Street in 1991, followed by Peel Street and Laurier Avenue in 1992. In 1995, three more locations joined the network, on McGill Street, Mont-Royal Avenue and in Côte-des-Neiges.

As demand for its breads, pastries, sandwiches, desserts and other products continued to grow, Au Pain Doré needed to rethink its production and delivery operations. In 1997, the Atelier Boulanger opened its doors on de Rouen Street. There, bread is shaped by hand in an environment designed to combine baking expertise with technology.

Building on this growth, the family business went on to open six new locations across Montreal and Laval.

In 2008, Au Pain Doré caught the attention of Groupe Le Duff, a global bakery and restaurant group. The company then joined the Group, sharing the same ambition as the generations of the Étienne family who shaped its history: to pursue excellence and celebrate the French baking tradition in Montreal.