This French bakery in Toronto has a secret weekend brunch
A French bakery on West Queen West is branching out from its main repertoire to venture into Toronto's favourite daytime activity, brunch!
Nord Lyon on West Queen West is best known for its 200 (and counting!) traditional French pastries and bread. Up until this point, that was the business' main focus.
Now, every weekend, the rear dining room of the bakery's sprawling space transforms into an all-you-can-eat brunch buffet between 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. For $39.99, up to 60 people who have scored a seat have two hours to feast on a wide continental breakfast spread filled with in-house bread and pastries.
The project "has been in the making for the past 3 year" when the business' owner, Richard Cici, who lived in Lyon, France for 43 years before moving to Canada, noticed the lack of French-style European brunch buffets (most lean American-style) in the city.
It's also the reason why you won't find hashbrowns or flapjack-style pancakes, but food items that use French ingredients whenever possible.
In addition to an all-you-can-eat salad bar, there are stations filled with cheese and charcuterie (yes, everything is halal), eggs, European yogurt with toppings including dried fruit and nuts, crepes, waffles, seasoned sausages, and more.
And, of course, there are plenty of freshly baked breads and viennoiseries including croissants, sandwiches, and mini pizzas, plus jams and dips to accompany them.
In addition to coffee and tea, there is a variety of wine and champagne, as well as brunch classics like mimosas, if you're feeling extra fancy.
Rest assured patisserie fans, there is no change in Nord Lyon's concept, which still operates in the front of the storefront. In fact, the weekend buffet is meant to complement the existing bakery.
Nord Lyon's weekend brunch buffet starts this weekend.
