Pandor Artisan Boulangerie & Cafe is set to open within the next few weeks in Newport Beach, California. RTR Bakery, the bakery’s wholesale counterpart, introduced the freshly baked artisan breads to Orange County eateries in September 2011 with the help of accounts like Restaurant & Wine Bar, Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine & Cocktails – Irvine Conscious, Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, St. Regis Monarch Beach, and the Balboa Bay Club. Since then, the bakery has become one of the leading wholesale bread suppliers in the area.
The bakery is small and family-owned, founded by husband and wife, Raffi and Tiffany Sepetijian. The name stems from the French word “Pain d’Or,” meaning golden bread. The Sepetijians are also owners of Via Havana, the largest privately owned cigar retailer in California. They decided to open up their own Cafe after visiting France multiple times, where they developed an appreciation for the art of French baking.
“My husband and I have always loved to travel, and France has been a favorite destination of ours,” says Tiffany Sepetijian. “Now, with three children, we find it hard to go to Europe to satiate our desire for authentic French baked goods. Our goal is to create a distinct brand that revolves around – at its core – producing great bread. The artisan bread takes center stage – with traditional offerings such as French Galette Bressane, or, at Pandor, Le Saint Maxine – as a full cafe comes together around it.”
In order to produce bread using the traditional baking-processes of France, the couple has hired French Master Baker, Julien Pietravalle; French Pastry Chef, Serge Bertrand; and LA-based French Chef, Eric Cuenin.
The restaurant will be open 7:00am – 8:00pm daily and will partner with companies such as Costa Mesa’s Portola Coffee Lab in order to provide diners with quality, fresh-roasted coffee.
