Hardly anybody knows where Edmonton is and those who do all asked me what the hell could be interesting in that Canadian city in the middle of nowhere? As a foodie it was not hard to find my favourite place there right away: The Duchess Bake Shop. I was lucky to get a personal tour by one of the owners, Garner Beggs, who together with his ex-wife Giselle Courteau and a third partner, Jacob Pelletier, has built that splendid café and bakery from scratch. And it does not get boring to listen to their story: Garner and Giselle lived for a few years in Japan, where they tried to save the needed money while teaching English. At the same time they learned from cookbooks how to create pastries and did their best while using a toaster oven in their tiny apartment. Coming back to Edmonton they felt it would be the right time to fill that gap in the market and even with little money and by building most by themselves, they succeeded in offering their French-inspired pastries: Blackberry Rhubarb Pie, Brioche Pépin, the Tart Amélie or the Macaron Gâteau are just to die for.

What made them even more famous was the Duchess cookbook, that no publisher around was keen to support, but which they decided in the end to self-publish by taking a credit from the bank – within six weeks 5’000 copies were sold from their shop. Today it is so successful that it is available via online bookshop Chapter.

From day one there was no lack of customers and by now, after almost 7 years, the Duchess Bake shop has become an institution in town. So if ever you make it to Edmonton, make sure to indulge in this outstanding find: 10718-124 Street NW, Edmonton AB T5 M 0H1, www.duchessbakeshop.com