Last Wednesday, we opened the shop for walk-ins in the morning for the first time. We were happily surprised about the amount of customers who showed up. With very little communication about it, the initiative has been welcomed by many of you and various neighbours. It will most likely become a new normal until the proper opening of the pastry shop.
On Saturday, unlike the other days, the pick-up experience was not as smooth as the usual (for both customers and ourselves). A higher number of customers and a similar pick up time slot for 2/3 of you, created a rush. I have to admit that I was also not ready with all the items at the opening.
We then explored a couple of options : stop pre-orders on viennoiserie, working only with walk-ins, or start baking earlier in the morning. That last option was not really one. Baking the products too early would compromise their quality, and that is something we do not want to do. The other two would help us spend less time using Shopify but could bring more frustration on your side.
The final decision will then be the following : - Pre-order remains a must for Saturdays, - Only 1 drop this week, with all the items available (no restock on Friday) - If we manage to produce more, they will be available on the counter on Saturday, - If you have ordered pastries (cakes and tarts of the week), pick-up will be available from 10:00. - If you only have viennoiserie and epicerie (madeleine...) you can come from 9:00.
These recommendations will probably won't prevent a line to be created outside of the shop, but we trust you to respect social distancing while waiting, and we will make our best to serve you as well as possible to limit that wait.
This week, you will be able to get your hands on a Paris-Brest, a very French classic, which idea got inspired by one of our favourite regular customer. Then will come April and Easter, which also means more fruity options. I know many of you have seen strawberries in other shops these past month, but I am still not convinced about the quality of products from Dutch greenhouses (I am open for discussion though).
To resume : - Pre-order your treats for Saturday (there will be no restock) - Tomorrow, we will be open for walk-ins (from 8:00 to 12:00, or until we sell out) for epicierie and viennoiseries (classics and some new products). - Saturday, make sure you come at the right time based on what you ordered, as long as you come before 16:00. - More products will be available on the counter such as Sourdough brioches, large Layered brioches, Kouin Amaan (classic and peanut version) and more croissants of many kinds.
See you tomorrow and/or Saturday then !
|