Photos: @Delphine Michalak

Although Christophe Michalak is a pastry chef, he always had the desire to dedicate himself more to bread and viennoiserie. A dream that he fulfilled at the age of 27 when Alain Ducasse proposed him to be a pastry chef at the Hôtel Plaza Athénee in Paris and he was able to work on a completely new range of small breads and pastries; specifically in kouglofs, cakes, and stuffed brioches that continue to appear on the menu of the famous palace.

Now, the French chef goes a step further by opening Kopain at 60 rue du Faubourg Poiddonnière in Paris, a bakery where he seeks to reproduce the emotions he felt when going with his grandmother to the bakery in his town. He describes this project as an ultra gourmet neighborhood establishment with good, simple, rustic products and minimal packaging. Here the preparations are presented ready to taste and are made with first-class ingredients (organic flours, PDO butter, natural sourdoughs, organic eggs, among others.). Michalak does not want to propose a new concept, much less revolutionize the world of bakery; he simply hopes to fulfill a long-standing desire and go further in this field.

Among his creations, three exclusive breads to share stand out: Kopain with homemade sourdough, ancient grain flour, soft kneading, and long fermentation; a lightly toasted cereal bread, and a fruit, fig, apricot, hazelnut, and blueberry bread. Likewise, customers will also find bretzel, kouign-amann croissants, madeleines, macarons, financiers, and pastry products such as cheesecake or meringue.

And why the name Kopain? “Simply because bread symbolizes sharing and friendship. What could be better than a name that mixes these lovely sounds together? And the K is a little nod to the K of Michalak! ”, he says.