Le Fromentier

Le Fromentier is a beautiful and somewhat hidden bakery on Laurier Est, just east of the park. We definitely enjoyed some tasty flaky breakfast pastries from this shop. The highlight was the chestnut (marron) pastry.
Looks like they carry a great selection of savoury and traditional breads as well. I would rate the quality as high but not excellent. Their puff pastry doesn’t have the delicious buttery pop that one finds in the very nicest puff pastries.
Prices are quite reasonable, and it appears there’s a combo cheese shop adjacent. Bread and cheese sounds like the perfect combo for a picnic in the park.
Pay attention to the address, it’s down in a basement and very easy to miss.

This is a decent bakery for bread, but their croissants and chocolatines were barely edible, dry and stale.

A friend recommended that I check this place out, and I’m glad I did. It’s tucked away on Laurier, down a side staircase to a lower level, but you can see everything that goes on inside if you look through the vitrine/​skylight windows at street level.
The owner of the bakery part of the store (I believe it’s a partnership between a bakery and a fromagerie) is so sweet and personable. We’ve bought bread from him two or three times now and each time, he comes and greets us personally, asks where we’re from, jokes and tells us a little bit about himself. He’s half Quebeçois and half Anglo, so he switches easily and willingly between the two languages, without batting an eye. I just adore him. A real people person. It really does make the bread taste better, too, not that it needs any help — it’s beautiful bread, fancily prepared with different crust patterns and wholesome ingredients.
So glad I found this place! Tasty, high quality bread, AND I feel like I made a new friend.

Found this place on a tip from a friend. I don’t think we could have found it if we weren’t looking for it! It’s not overly obvious from the street!
OMG… what a bakery! Everything was so flaky and just perfection. The bread was delicious. The croissants were delicious. The other pastries were delicious. And all of it was very reasonably priced. Unbelievable for the quality.
The service was friendly and helpful even though we didn’t know French.
I would make a point of hitting this bakery for something — anything — if I were within 10 blocks… Yum!

I never thought I would ever say this: I have found croissants that are equal to, or perhaps even better then those I’ve had in Paris. My thoughts cry impossible, but my taste buds love the butter! Plus the lovely staff were helpful and welcoming. Yes! Go here!

Les employes sympathiques, une bonne boulangerie et fromagerie.
J’y vais pour les sandwiches sont bons, pas chers, pour la pizza pâte fine, les fromages et les variétés de pains spéciaux selon le jour où on y va

Cozy little place down some stairs. Not much parking around. Wanted to try their great bread I kept hearing so much about. I also wanted to try one of those berry things with white chocolate. They didn’t have the berry thing, but they had a fair selection of breads. The girl working there kept touching the bread loaves with her bare hands then touching peoples’ money. Only when putting the bread in the bag would she use the plastic glove. I should have just walked out since I am germ-​phobic, but I got a loaf and tried some at home, toasting it till it was black. Also scooped out some of the inside of the loaf to try the doughy part raw. It was good, but maybe I had too great an expectation or maybe it was my mistake to get something that was whole wheat. Whatever the case, I’m not going out of my way to come here again. If I happen to be walking around the area, I’ll try it again since I sometimes believe in 2^nd chances.

C’est dans ce local moche, beaucoup trop grand et caché dans un sous-​sol qu’on trouve, selon moi, le meilleur pain à Montréal. La variété est grande, la qualité est excellente, il y a toujours des pains sans blé et au levain, et la sélection change de jour en jour. Honnêtement, quand on a commencé à acheter son pain-​là, il est très difficile de revenir à celui des autres boulangeries.
En plus, le local abrite aussi une fromagerie /​charcuterie qui offre une excellente sélection de fromages d’ici et une de meilleures saucisses que j’ai jamais mangée!

Une merveille cette boulangerie. Le pain est excellent avec beaucoup de choix. Les viennoiseries sont parfaites.
Nous sommes chanceux d’habiter dans le quartier car c’est devenu notre boulangerie et on la recommande sans hésitation.

Another day, another bakery, but this time somewhat less successful than Kouign Amann would be Le Fromentier. Having visited the day prior only to find them out of everything but a few loaves of bread plus various sandwich fixings and charcuterie we returned early morning a few days later to find a larger selection with some interesting pies and tartes plus two croissants I had to try, one almond and one maple… of course bearing in mind the large market style layout of Le Fromentier ordering these two pastries was easier said than done since the bakers were at work and the cashier had apparently ‘stepped out for a moment,’ but after a short wait my items were bagged and ready to go.
Having spent time browsing the sandwiches, charcuterie, foie gras, and unique beverages at Le Fromentier I was excited to try the baked goods and with each item shaped more like a traditional butter croissant than like an almond or filled croissant the texture too was unexpected as the almond seemed the dantier of the two but was actually filled with far too much slightly artificial tasting flavor creating a sticky mouthfeel while the maple was graced with a thin smear of cream both inside and out creating a sort of ‘frosted’ butter croissant. With the exterior crackling and the interior of each appropriately buttery with good separation between the layers I think it is simply a case of personal preference that the texture was a little too wet for me, even if the maple cream version was quite subtle and pleasant. I wager a simple butter croissant would have been quite good, particularly if it were warm — perhaps even with a bit of maple cream on the side as opposed to being added and allowed to sit.

J’adore le pain, mais je suis très difficile côté qualité. Bien sûr, Montréal regorge de boulanges de toutes sortes. Cependant, ma boulangerie préférée reste Le Fromentier.
Le pain est succulent et il y a énormément de choix (au levain, avec des noix, du chocolat noir, des olives, etc.) Le propriétaire qui a démarré l’entreprise vit maintenant en France dans une petite ville et son pain est meilleur que celui des autres boulanges environnantes! Il faut le faire, quand même! (article vu dans
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On peut également acheter de l’huile d’olive en vrac de bonne qualité, des pizzas, des sandwichs, du café et des viennoiseries.
Les prix sont tout à fait raisonnables et en proportion avec la qualité. Petit truc pour économiser: j’achète les pains de la veille et je les congèle. Ainsi, j’ai toujours du pain sous la main, juste à dégeler une miche. Il y a un rabais de 1 $ par pain de la veille. Attention! Il faut arriver tôt, sinon, il né reste plus rien!
Bonne chasse!

This place has, by far, the best bread I have ever tasted in Montréal. I had tasted their breads a few times before when I had meals at some of my friends places. Every time I would vow to go and get my breads there but never made it until this week.
It was early afternoon, the place smelled amazing as they were still baking. You can see the bakers at work as it’s an open area. The bread counters are close to the ovens.
We tried a few breads including the kamut one and a Grand blond. They were both mind blowing delicious. The crusts were perfect and the insides even better!
Their croissants were very good but only second best to the ones at Aux copains d’abord.
They also have an excellent selection at their cheese counter. Their prices are similar to Hamel.
I also saw some nice jams and other preserves as well as fowl and game meat pies. I will try one next time.

Went late in the day and the baguettes were still awesome. THis is how bread should taste. They open at 7am, so going as late as I did was’t a good idea. I’ll be going tomorrow at 7am to get fresh croissant. This place is on the lower level under a large video store and half of the location is a cheese shop. This is a must go for foodies with taste!

Baguettes just like in France! Crispy on the outside, soft, airy, chewy inside. What a beautiful thing! I have yet to try their galette des rois or croissants but will do so very soon.

Must qualify this review by saying I’m not a bread expert. We got a baguette, a couple of chocolate croissants, and a chestnut pastry. The bread had a nice crisp crust, and the inside was light and chewy. Croissants were light and buttery with just the right amount of chocolate. The chestnut pastry was similar to the croissant, awesome.
Bottom line: I can’t recall having bread of this quality in a long time. Americans need to improve their bread IQ.

One of the best artisans bakery in Montréal. We always get our bread there or at their other location on Mont-​Royal ave

A great bakery selling common bread (i.e. baguettes and croissants) as well as specialty bread. We got a chocolate croissant that was flaky and buttery with good chocolate inside (none of the dry kind), a berry danish that was just fresh and sweet, and l’irrestible, bread with sesame, walnuts (I think?), raisins, and chocolate. Oh my goodness, that bread was delicious! It was savory (little sweet/​little salty) and had a great texture.
They also sell cheeses. This seems like a great place to stock up for a nice picnic in the park.