Eight bakeries from Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia took part in the first edition of Best Baguette Washington, a competition aimed at rewarding the best baguette in the DC area. With mouths full of bread and hands busy with glasses of wine, more than 800 people came to savor the baguettes from various bakers this Monday, October 21, at the Maison Française. For this first edition, sponsored by Paris Gourmet and Beurremont, two different juries voted for the Best Baguette and the Lafayette Prize for Best Traditional Bread.
Ellē, Bread Alley, and Fresh Baguette Won Big
Of the eight finalists (Bread Alley, Dog Tag Bakery, Ellē, Fresh Baguette, Gustave Boulangerie, Manifest Bread, Seylou, Sunday Morning Bakehouse), five were awarded prizes. Ellē’s baker Daniel Ramirez won the main prize for Best Baguette. He didn’t hide his surprise when he heard his name, and let his joy explode on stage.
“Feeding people is what I love most of all, so it’s an honor,” the baker confided before the awards ceremony, adding that ”usually, as a baker, you’re in the background, so it was nice to be able to meet tonight’s audience.”
Fresh Baguette, founded by Florent De Felcourt in 2013, received two awards: the Fan Prize, and the second place award for Best Baguette. Florent De Felcourt explained at the award ceremony that this distinction “is a great achievement; it’s important, it shows the passion and hard work of our team.”
A Split Jury Decision
Separated by just two points, Ellē (98 points) and Fresh Baguette (96 points) divided the jury of professionals and influencers. Patrick Vanas, Chef Ahmed Ibrahim, Maria Kopsidas, Jason Fisher, Sandie Soman, and Chef Hugues Cossard rated their favorite breads from 1 to 5 in a blind tasting, and were unable to come to a clear consensus.
A former scientist and content creator, Sandie Soman points out that the jury “looked at the smell, the aromas, the texture, the presentation – it was a great experience.” At the award ceremony, Maria Kopsidas slipped in a smile to say that second-place winner Fresh Baguette was the big victor in her eyes.
Winners of the Best Baguette Award
1- Ellē
2- Fresh Baguette
3- Bread Alley
Located in a space dating back to the 1920s, Ellē is the brainchild of Lizzy Evelyn and Nick Pimentel, who have transformed their small neighborhood bakery into a gourmet restaurant that people have really been talking about. Even more surprisingly, Grand Prize winner Daniel Ramirez joined their team just six months ago.
Winners of the Lafayette Bread Award
1- Bread Alley
2- Dog Tag Bakery
3- Seylou
Bread Alley began as a project in the kitchen of the restaurant Le Diplomate before becoming a fully-fledged bakery. They were this year’s winner of the Specialty Bread award, which has been renamed the Lafayette Bread Award in honor of the bicentenary of the Marquis de Lafayette’s historic tour of America. Sam Cooper, one of the bakers present, explained that he had selected his harissa bread in honor of the Marquis and “his rebellious, spicy side”. The award was presented by jury member and historian Mark Schneider.
Fan Prize
After tasting breads from all eight bakeries, the public also had their say. Unlike the professional jury, baked goods enthusiasts clearly favored Fresh Baguette, who received a thunderous round of applause when Caroline Monvoisin announced the winner. Jane Williams, an American participant, explained that she loved baking, “So I started making my own bread. I’m here for my personal research, and it was interesting to see that each bakery had its own interpretation of the same recipe.”
An event organized by French Morning, sponsored by Paris Gourmet and Beurremont
This article was originally published in French on French Morning. It has been translated by Catherine Rickman.
