You have until the end of summer to treat yourself to the sublime pastries of Patrice Demers. The pastry chef and his partner, sommelier Marie-Josée Beaudoin, announced on Tuesday the upcoming closure of the sign in the Petite-Bourgogne district.
Posted at 2:01 p.m.
It is not because business is bad that Patrice Pâtissier will cease its operations. On the contrary, “it has never been so good,” says the renowned pastry chef. The closure of the dining rooms has allowed the company to focus solely on offering pastries at the counter. The introduction of an online store has ensured that the company has done very well for two years.
But the pandemic has also been an opportunity for partners in life and in business to reflect on their future. “It had never happened to us to be at home like that doing nothing. Normally, we take one or two weeks of vacation per year, and the same evening, we are on a plane. We were closed for three weeks at the start of the pandemic… We slept a lot! “says Marie-Josée Beaudoin.
We are clearly not closing because of the pandemic. But thanks to the pandemic, we were able to start thinking about our future.
Patrice Demers
The first years following the opening in 2014 were particularly difficult. Entrepreneurs had to make a lot of sacrifices, both personal and professional. With a lease coming to an end, they realized that they wanted, while they are both in their early forties, to take time to… simply live.
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, THE PRESS
Patrice Demers wishes to devote himself to other projects.
“The style of desserts I create require a lot of supervision, which leaves me little time for anything else. For the past few years, I’ve been turning down a lot of consulting, television, teaching, events, travel projects because I want to make sure I’m here, of quality. While we are still old enough to do it, we want to take advantage of it, ”explains Patrice Demers, who also participated as a judge on the new show. Wall of Bakerswhich airs on Food Network Canada starting March 28.
“Patrice still loves creating desserts and I still love taking care of customers. But when you’re the owner, you take care of the leaky pipe, the account to pay, the forms to fill out… We feel like going back to basics,” adds Marie-Josée Beaudoin.
Two different universes
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, THE PRESS
Marie-Josée Beaudoin and Patrice Demers.
“We were quite naive. We had decided to leave the restaurant to have a quality of life, more time for us! recalls Marie-Josée Beaudoin, speaking of their decision to open a counter rather than a restaurant eight years ago. “I had never worked in a shop counter, not even a day! adds Patrice Demers.
Reality quickly caught up with them: operating a counter and a restaurant are far from being the same thing. The workload is colossal, especially since in the beginning, Patrice Pâtissier also wanted to be a wine bar, offering a savory menu, lunches and even a catering service. Over time, activities were concentrated on the boutique side, and the production volume of desserts was greatly increased in order to meet the great demand.
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, THE PRESS
A cream puff, a must on Patrice Pâtissier’s menu.
Patrice Demers, who admits to being a “control freak”, is really in control, and supervises everything. The pastry chef arrives at work at 5 am, only to leave at the end of the day, or even at the beginning of the evening when he gives workshops.
“The shop has a more routine side than the restaurant. With the volume we do, everything has to be planned in advance. I can’t decide tomorrow to change a dessert”, explains the pastry chef, who would like to find this more spontaneous side in the creation of desserts.
Choose yourself
“We honestly miss catering,” adds the sommelier. But it is not tomorrow the day before that the duo intends to get back into business. Rather, it is the call for freedom that resounds. “The fact of being an entrepreneur, for the moment, I put a cross on that, affirms Patrice Demers. In five years, will an opportunity arise, with a partner I know, who will make me change my mind? We’ll see. »
In the end, the couple decided to choose each other, a decision that takes a lot of courage. And this, even if he knows that he will create a huge disappointment with his loyal customers. “The next few months, we really want to have fun, to enjoy it with the wonderful team I have in the kitchen, to make super beautiful desserts and to continue to have fun”, concludes the chef. pastry cook. And we bet that many customers will follow them to the end of this crazy adventure.
Read this weekend The Press : Patrice Demers talks about his decision, his vision of pastry and his ambitions in our Cookbook section.