NEW ORLEANS — Bon Appétit magazine has included Ayu Bakehouse (801 Frenchmen Street) on a list of nine bakeries nationwide that are “helping to reshape baking in America, pushing back against rigid expectations of authenticity, and incorporating their lived experiences into their work.”
Partners Samantha Weiss and Kelly Jacques opened the bakery cafe in 2022 in a building across Frenchmen Street from Washington Square that once housed Santa Fe restaurant. Farouki Farouki led the redesign.
Ayu has earned its fair share of acclaim and media attention in the two years since its debut. In addition to the Bon Appétit mention, a recent plug on the “Today” show on NBC also has raised its profile.
In the Bon Appétit article, contributor Kate Kassin wrote that Ayu is “sleek and modern, with a display of pastries that deftly nod to local flavors and pull from those of New York, Southeast Asia, and beyond.” She said the bakery’s flavor “combinations might not be traditional to New Orleans, but they make perfect sense in one of America’s most diverse and thriving food cities.”
Ayu also has introduced nationwide shipping. Weiss and Jacques are taking pre-orders now for the Ayu Tasting Box, which will begin shipping in April. It features coconut pandan custard-filled kaya buns, jalapeno cornbread cookies, coconut blueberry ayu granola, and cherry- and walnut-studded zucchini bread loaf.
Ayu will begin offering baking classes in May.
