If your coffee routine could use a little je ne sais quoi, head to Time Out Market Boston. PRB Boulangerie is opening Tuesday, July 16, at the Fenway food hall with espresso, croissants and more from the team behind some of the city’s best French restaurants.
PRB Boulangerie, which has existing (and awesome) bakeries in Somerville, Cambridge and Boston, produces all the breads and pastries served at a trio of restaurants owned by Loic Le Garrec. A veteran of the area's French dining scene, Le Garrec cofounded Petit Robert Bistro in the South End about 20 years ago, and now owns it along with Batifol, a brasserie in Kendall Square; Marseille, which specializes in southern French cuisine and is located near SoWa; and the bakeries.
“You can judge the quality of a French restaurant in the States by the bread,” says Adrien Jean, who also moved to Boston from France and joined the company about two years ago.
Le Garrec previously imported French bread for his restaurants, but PRB Boulangerie now supplies them all more efficiently and with fresher product. And the baguettes, croissants and other pastries are no less authentic, according to Jean. The company’s head baker, François Jomain, trained at the prestigious French trade school Les Compagnons du Devoir and joined the growing company last year. He uses European ingredients, from Swiss chocolate to French butter, along with seasonal fruit and flavors to offer a range of tempting treats daily.
“We really want guests to be transported to our home country the moment they indulge in one of our pastries,” Le Garrec says.
At Time Out Market, PRB Boulangerie is open daily starting July 16 from 8:30am-10pm, with a selection including croissants, pain Suisse (brioche filled with pastry cream and chocolate), fresh baguettes and croque monsieur for lunch, plus coffee, espresso and other beverages. Look for seasonal specials like a matcha latte with lavender cold foam, a raspberry cream cruffin and a chocolate-passion fruit duo, as well as rotating viennoiserie (breakfast pastries) on weekends.
Weekends at Time Out Market will also feature PRB Boulangerie’s version of the crookie: a viral sensation cookie-croissant that started in Paris, which bakes a chocolate chip cookie inside buttery layers of pastry.
You can order at the PRB Boulangerie counter inside Time Out Market, or via online ordering for dine-in, pickup or takeout. (Maybe there will be a secret menu item there soon? There’s only one way to find out.)
Time Out Market is dedicated to showcasing an ever-evolving selection of Boston’s best eats under one roof. Updating the coffee offerings with the city’s French finery? Oui, chef.