Voila-Merci French bakery and bistro to open in Indian Shores next month

Voila-merci french bakery and bistro will open in indian shores in january 2025 | photo provided

A new French bakery and cafe is bringing authentic French pastries, cakes, croissants, and more to Indian Shores next month.

Voila-Merci French Bakery and Bistro will be located inside the bright pink building at 19525 Gulf Boulevard in front of the Dolphin Key Condominiums.

The 2,680-square-foot space was previously home to the Original Pizza Restaurant, a longtime family-operated staple with Sicilian-style pies.

“My wife [Claire] and I owned two bakeries in Lyon, France for 20 years, but we sold them in 2023. We just obtained work visas to open our first bakery in the United States,” Philippe Monnet said to St. Pete Rising.

The new bakeshop will have tarts, danishes, eclairs, and many other authentic french pastries | photo provided

“The first time we came to this area was in 2013. We noticed all of the condos, the snowbirds from up north, and others traveling here and wanted to open a shop here,” Philippe said. “It can be difficult in France to do business with rising taxes and costs.”

The bakery name Voila-Merci translates to "thank you very much and goodbye.”

The bakery case will be filled with an assortment of croissants, danishes, tarts (including flavors like lemon, strawberry, and caramel chocolate), eclairs (with flavors such as raspberry blitz, vanilla caramel pecan, and cappuccino), and cakes such as the Monaco, made with pistachio and vanilla cream with strawberry coulis on a vanilla biscuit.

The cakes can be purchased whole or by the slice.

One of the many cakes voila-merci’s | photo provided

Voila-Merci will make its own rich and smooth chocolates by mixing dark chocolate with milk and real cream.

The 60-seat bakery will also offer French ice cream, which is more decadent with a thick and custardy consistency, and espresso drinks with the family's special blend of beans from local roaster Kahwa Coffee.

Voila-Merci will also serve breakfast and lunch, offering things like omelettes, sandwiches, soups, quiches, savory and sweet crepes, salads, and a daily special French meal like coq au vin, a traditional French chicken dish cooked in a red wine sauce.

While a few family members will helm the kitchen, Philippe is hiring additional staff to assist. At his former bakeries, he and his wife manned the storefronts when they initially opened, but eventually employed over 30 workers.

“We have taught our sons traditional French baking and will make everything ourselves,” Philippe said. “But I also want to train young aspiring bakers. I’ve traveled to 27 countries teaching people how to cook and I would love to continue teaching here.”

Inside the new bakeshop that has a long bar and ample seating | photo provided

The new bakery represents a major career milestone for the family that executed a lease for the building in July, several months before Hurricane Helene made landfall in late September as a Category 4 hurricane, causing significant wind and water-related damage along the coast.

“The freezer, fridge, and ovens were all damaged. We spent 15 days cleaning the store and had to buy all new appliances and install new flooring,” Philippe said.

Despite the setback, the family has completed a full renovation of the restaurant space that will be ready to serve customers in early January 2025.

“This is my life. It's a joy to bake a cake for someone celebrating a birthday or wedding. You become a part of that story. It's a personal exchange,” Philippe said.