The French Oven Bakery, a Scripps Ranch-based cafe with a rich family history, is preparing to expand for the first time with a new location in Del Mar at 11988 El Camino Real.
The company’s second location is set to move into the ground floor of Del Mar Gateway, which is a high-rise, high-visibility Class A workplace, according to a recent submission to the City of San Diego. Joe Anderson, the Senior Director at Cushman & Wakefield, tells What Now San Diego that The French Oven Bakery is expected to open in March 2025. This is a massive accomplishment for the ownership team, which consists of Yves Fournier, the 5th generation of bakers in his family, and his wife, Susie.
Chef Yves grew up in France, in a small village at the base of the French Alps called Veyrier du Lac. To honor his long history of family history of bakers, he has put up an old family bakery sign from 1840 hanging on the wall of The French Oven. It belonged to his great, great grandfather, Jean-Baptiste Fournier. It was shipped from France to San Diego in 2017. They began the pop-up bakery business from their home in the fall of 2016, offering their neighbors croissants and other delicious treats. With unbelievable support and encouragement from friends and neighbors in the community, they decided to open their boulangerie and patisserie, hoping to bring a little slice of Veyrier du Lac home to San Diego.
“Chef Yves has been working in the baking and pastry industry for more than 30 years,” according to the company’s website. “He first learned the art of baking from his father, who was in their family bakery. Later, he graduated with a Certificate of Professional Application from Boulanger in 1987 and Patissier Chocolatier Glacier Confiseur in 1988. He immigrated to San Diego in 1992 to work for the prestigious Le Meridien Hotel in Coronado. Since then, he has worked for several 5-star hotels in San Diego, Palm Springs, and San Francisco. Most recently, he worked as the Executive Baking and Pastry Chef Instructor for the San Diego Culinary Institute, where he was able to share his passion for baking and pastry with his students.”