Gregoire Michaud on How Bakehouse HK Came Up with Their Viral Egg Tarts
When asked about how he got into culinary, Gregoire Michaud – founder of the viral Bakehouse bakery in Hong Kong – laughed and simply put that it’s “because I’m fat.”
But jokes aside, the smiling Swiss baker does indeed have something of a sweet tooth. “However, when I was young, my parents [rarely ever] gave me any money for candy,” he recalled. “But since I lived on a farm [growing up], we always had flour, eggs, sugar, and milk.” Funnily enough, the young Gregoire had found a loophole that he realized could fulfill his cravings.
As the Michaud family had settled in a French-speaking quarter of Switzerland, it had made sense for the young Gregoire to begin his gustatory journey with the humble crepe. Drizzled with lemon juice and sprinkled with sugar, the young boy’s dedication to the French dessert soon blossomed into a curiosity that had him experimenting with cakes, chocolates – and soon enough, with sourdough.
By the age of 15, Gregoire had already begun a professional career. Dropping out of school to focus on work, Gregoire has been trained in both military barracks and Michelin-starred kitchens.
“Working in the kitchen is like working in the army,” Gregoire said. “The resilience, the hardship, and the team spirit are very much alive in both.” Having learned discipline and a healthy respect for authority, Gregoire then found himself drawn to the intensity of Hong Kong. He’s settled into the city since then.
Today, he owns a successful bakery, which has expanded to multiple locations and carries an impressive array of pastries. Of course, its flagship product remains to be the egg tart. Beloved by locals, Hong Kong’s culinary linchpin has many variations. You can find egg tarts in mom-and-pop stores, local diners, and high-end restaurants, and now, at Gregoire’s own artisanal bakery.
Needless to say, there are many variations of this delightful dessert – crusts can be made crumbly or flaky, and custard fillings as sweet or subtle as their maker chooses. Truth be told, Gregoire and his team hadn’t set out to create a viral egg tart recipe. It just sort of happened.
When they first opened, Bakehouse’s flagship product was the croissant. While still popular today, it’s since taken a backseat to the egg tart. “When you make croissants, you have to cut [a triangle shape from the] dough,” Gregoire explained. “And when you cut the dough, you end up with a lot leftover. After six months, we ended up with so much extra dough in the freezer because we didn’t want to throw any of it away.”
Then came the brilliant idea to use that dough to make egg tarts. Today, this once-overlooked ingredient has transformed into an integral part of the flaky Bakehouse snack that has both tourists and locals lining up outside Wan Chai, Central, Causeway Bay, and Tsim Sha Tsui.
As the Hong Kong palate grows ever more sophisticated, it becomes Gregoire’s main priority to keep up with clientele. Having settled in Asia for over two decades, Gregoire has observed how Hong Kongers have become more aware and open to different taste profiles.
“People here are very up-to-date with trends,” he observed. “And we surf these trends. There are artisanal bakeries in Tokyo, Sydney, and LA – and we wanted to bring that to Hong Kong as well.”
Of course, Hong Kongers aren’t the only ones craving Gregoire’s creations. As attested by the lines outside his bakeries, tourists have been wanting a taste or two of Bakehouse as well. Ultimately, Gregoire believes it’s because of how comforting bread can be. “During times of emotional distress, we search for comfort food,” Gregoire noted. “And comfort food is staple food.” This is perhaps why the businessman chose to make a few counterintuitive moves – opening four branches of Bakehouse during the pandemic.
Today, Gregoire and his team are in discussion to bring Bakehouse to the New Territories and other countries in Asia and the Pacific. Yes, Bakehouse may very well come to your city very soon. While nothing is set in stone, Gregoire is seriously considering where he can build his next Bakehouse.
“We have a lot of analysis to do in terms of cost, legal regulations, and manpower,” Gregoire mused. “If I opened a branch in the countryside of Laos, I might not be very successful,” he added with a laugh. “But if I open in the financial district of Singapore, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, or Manila, that might be a different story.”
Bakehouse HK is located at Wan Chai, Soho, Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui, and Stanley
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