It all started at McMahon’s Prime Steakhouse.
Daniel Martinez was spearheading the dessert program there, eventually hiring Noelle Jamison-Martinez to help out with his full plate.
One day, the duo decided to check out a pastry spot for inspiration, looking for new ideas for their dessert menu.
As time went on, McMahon’s Prime Steakhouse shut down and the now couple continued to work at other big restaurants around town. They later found themselves both without jobs, daydreaming about buying a bakery and working for themselves.
The couple took a leap of faith in 2019 and decided to buy a local bakery that was up for sale. As they walked up to their new bakery, they realized the spot they were taking over was the same bakery they went years before to look for inspiration.
It was meant to be.
For the past three years, Daniel and Noelle have been crafting flaky, buttery croissants and other French-inspired pastries at Café Francais, located at 7831 E. Wrightstown Road, incorporating sweet and savory flavors into their creations.
Noelle (left) and Daniel (right) are the masterminds behind Café Francais.
Noelle first started baking after her grandparents took her in about 11 years ago in order to help her get back on her feet after some hardship. It was there she discovered her love for baking, later getting her degree in baking and pastry.
“I kind of discovered this love for baking,” Noelle said. “That was kind of like an instant joy, because when you mess up, there's a lot of things that take time to correct and this was something that I could instantly do to bring happiness.”
When Noelle met Daniel at the now-closed steakhouse, he had years of restaurant experience under his belt. When people in the industry told him he had to choose between savory or pastry, he decided to prove them wrong, working in all kinds of restaurants doing all kinds of jobs.
“Me being the defiant person that I am, I was like, 'Well, screw you. I'm going to do both then,'” Daniel said.
When the couple took over Café Francais, it was the French baking that really intrigued Daniel. Making a croissant isn’t the same as baking a dozen cupcakes or chocolate chip cookies, there is a particular science behind it. One wrong move and your croissant will end up with a flat, doughy mess.
“It keeps my interest a whole lot more than any of the other things because you use steam. You use natural things,” Daniel said. “It’s steam that leavens puff pastry, or it's the working of the steam with the butter and the yeast when it comes to croissant or brioche or what have you.”
Thankfully, Daniel is a mastermind when it comes to perfecting intricate recipes. Noelle said he is able to dissect and tweak whatever recipe she needs him to recreate. He doesn’t need Google or a TikTok video to show him how it's done, he’ll figure it out and make sure it's delicious.
“It's really cool to watch his brain's ability to create recipes. It blows my mind,” Noelle said.
While their spot may be on the smaller size, it packs a punch. There’s no better way to describe the atmosphere than cozy. You feel at home as soon as you step in. Colorful pictures of cacti and desert landscapes fill the walls and Noelle’s smiling face is usually manning the cash register.
Most importantly, glass cases of the prettiest pastries you’ll ever see are front and center. Colorful French macarons, glazed cinnamon rolls the size of your head, chocolate eclairs and of course croissants fill the shelves, calling your name as soon as you approach the register.
You can always count on seeing a variety of classic croissant flavors like chocolate and almond, a ham and cheese croissant, kouign-amanns, eclairs, French macarons and sourdough French bread at their store. But the real party starts when they drop their weekly special menus.
Every Wednesday, Café Francais will head onto Instagram to show users what kinds of new flavors they whipped up for the week. When you see the pictures and read the descriptions, you can’t help but shed tears of happiness.
This black croissant was one of their Halloween weekly specials, complete with a raspberry coulis and Bavarian cream filling.
Pumpkin cardamom maple cream cheese croll, banana foster kouign-amann, chai spiced brioche roll with vanilla icing and black croissants filled with raspberry coulis and Bavarian cream are just a few of the flavorful concoctions the couple comes up with every week.
Even though she specializes in creating treats that help satisfy our sweet tooths, Noelle isn’t a huge fan of desserts. So, she started to incorporate some savory flavors into the weekly menus.
Their flaky croissant dough has been used to create savory specials like green chile carnitas crolls, Sonoran dogs with croissant buns, birria French dips and a caramelized onion, spinach and goat cheese croissant Danish topped with rainbow micro greens.
Along with their sweet flavors, Café Francais also has savory specials like their Sonoran dogs.
“I always want to have a savory treat and I love that we can just change it up all the time, something different, not always just the ham and cheese,” Noelle said.
It’s hard not to fall in love with their croissants. They are fluffy, buttery and FILLED (you’re not getting just a dollop of cream here) with a sweet cream that always adds a bright flavor to the pastry. But my world was rocked as soon as I tried their crookie.
For months, TikTok was filled with videos of people combining cookie dough and croissants together, many of them just plopping a heap of cookie dough onto a croissant, baking it and calling it a day.
Not at Café Francais.
Daniel wanted to make sure the cookie dough wouldn’t weigh down or comprise the integrity of the croissant dough. Instead, he used a technique where he rolls the two doughs together, much like a cinnamon roll.
For their crookies, Daniel Martinez rolls with cookie dough and croissant dough together, so you can taste each flavor with every bite.
The end result is truly heaven. Thanks to the technique Daniel uses, the cookie dough is baked into the croissant layers, which means you get a taste of gooey chocolate chip cookie and butter croissant with every bite. The flavors melt in your mouth, making you want to dance around as soon as the massive crookie touches your lips.
This week, they are introducing their dookies, a chocolate chip cookie baked in croissant dough and topped with chocolate ganache and chocolate chip cookie Bavarian cream.
Café Francais is truly one of the east side’s best-kept secrets. There is nothing better than strolling up on a chilly Friday morning, staring into the glass case and picking out a delicious croissant ... and then speeding home to finally enjoy your flaky treat.
Daniel and Noelle are a dream team and you won’t want to miss out on what they create next.
“The most fun part is working together, collaborating and going through the hard parts and having fun with the fun parts,” Daniel said.
