Artisanal treats at La Montee

A small 12-seat bakery with a red facade and floor-length windows, La Montee crafts tasty loaves and pastries from its quiet spot near Ttukseom Resort Station.

The 5-month-old boulangerie-patisserie, with its marigold walls and chestnut-hued floors, exudes the vibe of a welcoming gathering spot, a good stop for a spot of coffee and a pastry or two.

On any given day, one can find customers chatting while nibbling on moist pineapple-coconut croissants and other freshly baked treats as others slip in and out for bread-to-go. 

“A bakery is a place where one can sit down, enjoy dessert and relax,” owner-chef Jang Eun-chul said of his desire to create a space that encouraged regulars to draw up a seat and rest.

Jang, who trained at L’Institut National de la Boulangerie Patisserie in France, brought his mastery of French bread and pastries back home to Seoul.

After amassing experience as the grand chef of a Seoul-based bakery, Jang opened La Montee in his hometown this February.

“Since this is where I was born, I want this bakery to be the first, the flagship store,” Jang, 30, said of the shop’s Jayang-dong location, adding that he plans to expand in the future.

Even now, Jang is busy revamping La Montee. Come August to September, the shop will undergo renovations to provide more seating for customers.

When the renewal is complete, more items will be added to La Montee’s lineup of French breads and pastries. Given the quality of La Montee’s loaves and sweets, the newcomers will have something to look forward to.

For the moment, customers can snack on La Montee’s current repertoire of savory and sweet breads and pastries, like the shop’s 500 won a pop chouquette.

The bite-sized morsel is a relatively simple snack, a cream puff minus the cream, liberally sprinkled with pearl sugar on top. When paired with a cup of the bakery’s coffee it makes for a great wallet-friendly pick-me-up.

The crisp, sweet crunch of those large white orbs of sugar, the airy hollow of the choux pastry and the bend and soft give of the shell all mingle with the bitter depth of the hot brew for a delightful midday munch. 

Long after the last bit of sugar has melted away, leaving behind a lingering sweet trace of its former self, the coffee, a blend of domestically roasted beans sourced from Africa, continues to play off that remaining bit of sweetness with its round richness.

The coffee, in short, is equally good, solid as an Americano and creamy yet potent as an iced cafe latte.

“Customers want it all, good bread and good coffee,” Jang said of why he not only paid careful attention to the beans but also brought in two veteran baristas to spin out La Montee’s brews.

The whole combination makes it ideal to enjoy everything in-house, from bread like the fragrant olive and herb fougasse ― a savory snack that begs to be nibbled, each nutty, airy slice after slice ― to the soft and slightly sweet chocolate chip-studded pain viennois.

La Montee

61, Neungdongro 4-gil, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul/ (02) 6406-6919

Open 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, from 10 a.m. Saturdays, closed Sundays

Bread and pastries cost around 500 won to 20,000 won, coffee-based drinks range from 3,000 won to 4,800 won

By Jean Oh (oh_jean@heraldcorp.com)