My experience at Ile de Pain..........10-07-2011

While we were staying in Knysna for the Oyster Festival we were looking for a cute little place to go and have some wholesome breakfast at. A friend of ours told us about this awesome spot in Thesen Island that also sells breads. They said that whenever they go to Knysna they buy quite a few loafs of bread from this place and then freeze it at home. That is how good it is! Ile de Pain is co-owned by Liezie Mulder and Markus Farbinger and is the first artisan wood fired oven bakery in South Africa.

So after our friend’s recommendation, we found ourselves taking a drive towards Thesen Island looking for Ile de Pain, which is French for Island of bread. When we arrived there were tons of people. I wasn’t feeling very confident that we would get a table anytime soon as there were already people queuing for tables. It felt like I was queuing outside this popular club trying to get in! J One thing that counted in our favour was that we were only 4 people and most of the people waiting in front of us were much larger groups.

Initially they told us it would take 45 minutes to be seated and while we were still deciding if we were going to stay they called my name! For a second I thought they meant someone else with the same name but I wasn’t going to argue with the women!!

We got a table inside against the window. The interior of this place is so cutely decorated. I felt like a little kid in a candy store just staring around at everything! They have decorated the ceiling with branches and in between there are lights hanging at different levels, alongside dangling ribbons with baking aids and fake (well we decided it is fake although it looked very much real) bread rolls from them.   

While we were waiting for our friends to arrive we played the game “try matching the food being served with its description on the menu”. Initially when I read the menu is saw their Brioche French toast with berry compote and mascarpone cream and not too much later I saw a few fly by me to another table! I was literally drooling!! But my healthy living nagging fairy was sitting on my shoulder that morning saying, “You can’t have that for breakfast, it is more like dessert!” Seeing as I had done a freaking half marathon the previous day and could hardly walk from my calves being in so much pain I should have back handed that bloody fairy right off my shoulder and treated myself, because ever since then I have been dreaming about that bloody meal!! Next time I go to Knysna I am running straight to Ile de Pain to have my bloody French toast! :-)

I ordered the Green Envy – Whole grain bread, lightly toasted with soft scrambled eggs, basil pesto, rocket, shaved parmesan, drizzled with pumpkin seed oil, my partner had the Companio – poached eggs, spinach and bacon on companion toast with tomato relish and a friend of ours had the Max Deluxe – toasted ham and cheese, poached egg, cherry tomatoes and mushroom sauce. Out of those three meals I think the Max Deluxe was the winner. My scrambled egg part of my Green Envy was good but I was extremely upset that the bread that came with it looked so dull and thin in comparison to the breads that I saw coming with all the other meals. But it is totally my fault though; I didn’t read the menu properly and ordered the wrong thing. I had order envy!! How ironic that my meal was called green envy but I was the one being envious of the other people’s meals and not them of mine! J

They also had homemade lemonade on the menu which was extremely refreshing! We wanted to buy some bread to take home seeing as it was so amazing but they were sold out already and they only make one batch and they are closed on Mondays. Seeing as there were no bread to buy I still felt the need to buy something, so with my face pressed up against the glass window drooling over all the little tarts I settled for an oatmeal and raisin cookie, which was amazing!!!

Overall it was a very nice experience and I will definitely go back there again next time I am in Knysna (to hunt down my French toast)! J

They also have a sister restaurant in just opposite from the Waterfront called Mon Petit Pain (044-302 5767). Their set up works a bit different to Ile de Pain’s. They mainly have sandwiches and you order at the counter and then find a table to sit down at, if you want to sit down. Their motto is, “Think slow food served fast.”

Yours in fun & French toast cravings,

Elly D

Thesen Island, Long Street
Knysna, Garden Route
044-3025707
office@iledepain.co.za
www.iledepain.co.za