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The last four weeks have been “intense” for Maison Alyzée CEO Laurent Pellet, he said.
On March 3, a fire broke out at his French patisserie and cafe in downtown Mountain View, causing extensive smoke damage. While no one was injured, the bakery remained closed as Pellet and his team restored furniture, repainted the walls and redid “the entire store from top to bottom,” Pellet said. Now, he plans to reopen Maison Alyzée Saturday, returning to normal operating hours.
“Imagine you have to redo your home in four weeks,” he said.
Despite the damage, Pellet said he was “very lucky,” explaining that the lithium-ion battery that caused the fire happened to be located under the water heater. The heat of the battery explosion broke the pipe sitting on top of the water heater, he said, which extinguished the fire.
“It could have been much, much worse,” Pellet said. “If the (battery) would have been with our paper or carton boxes, then I think the building would be gone.”
He said he did what he could to ensure his employees weren’t affected by the aftermath of the fire.
“I took from my own pocket to support my team,” he said. “They cannot be without pay for four or five weeks.”
Maison Alyzée’s new small Easter cake with cacao biscuit, hazelnut praline crunch, dark chocolate mousse and banana, mango and passion fruit confit. Courtesy Maison Alyzée. 
Maison Alyzée will launch its Easter chocolates Saturday. Courtesy Maison Alyzée. 
Maison Alyzée’s new large Easter cake with cacao biscuit, hazelnut praline crunch, dark chocolate mousse and banana, mango and passion fruit confit. Courtesy Maison Alyzée. 
Maison Alyzée’s Easter chocolates come in the shapes of eggs, chickens and rabbits and the option of white, milk or dark chocolate. Courtesy Maison Alyzée.
For those who don’t want to wait until Saturday to enjoy Maison Alyzée’s signature cakes, viennoiseries, breads and macarons, customers can now order online for pickup at the Mountain View store the following day.
Expect business as usual on Saturday, with Maison Alyzée’s full lineup of treats plus new items, including cereal bread with sunflower, sesame and brown flax seeds; brioche bread; glazed cinnamon roll with pecans; “St. Barth” cheesecake made with passion fruit crémeux and organic mango gelée; mille-feuille with Madagascar vanilla cream and raspberry confit; Easter cake with banana, mango and passion fruit confit; and Easter chocolates in shapes like rabbits, eggs and chickens.
Maison Alyzée, 212 Castro St., Mountain View; 650-960-1212, Instagram: @maisonalyzee. Beginning Saturday, open Monday from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Tuesday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
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