Le Boulanger

The storefront of Christian Larroque’s boulangerie in Lauzerte, France is simple, weathered and old, and totally charming in a rustic way that only the French can pull off. Inside, the shelves and chairs are dusted heavy with decades of good baking. Much of the space is taken up by antique machinery, a huge mixing bowl, giant bags of local flour stacked to the ceiling, a well-used army of canvas “trays” that hang tiredly along the walls and over racks, and an ominous gurney-like contraption used to slide the pain de campagne in and out of the oven. (The entire place looks likes a perfect Hollywood recreation of the quintessential French bakery. Right down to the antique monogrammed linen towel hanging from the frosted window and the thick, beautifully spun cobwebs in the corners. Even French spiders have great style!) The bakery has been in Christian’s family for 60 years and it’s the best in town because it bakes only one kind of bread and it does it perfect. Lauzerte has three bakeries but everyone comes here for the bread. Even neighboring villagers drive in just to tuck the baguettes, flutes or gros pains under their arms to enjoy later. If you visit, you’ll be charmed by the simplicity of it all. No fancy packaging, no plastic to-go bags, no receipts and flyers, no merchandise you don’t need—just bread. Ahhh, isn’t that so refreshing?   

Sid the British Baker

Incidentally, the baker in the video is Sid, a British expat who’s been baking for Christian for 11 years. Baking bread is instinctual for Sid. He eyes measurements and knows when the bread is done by look and feel. He came to France more than two decades ago on a bike trip and never went back. His life is simple and stress-free. He rides his bike in early, bakes and is done by noon. The rest of the day is spent walking his dogs, reading books and drinking tea. Life is good when you can enjoy the simple things.   
 

Daily Tip: Pick one thing and do it really, really well.