Pain au Levain
Our signature sourdough. A long, slow ferment gives an open, tender crumb and a deep, burnished crust.
SourdoughSignature
Edinburgh · Artisan French bakery since 2000Bread with
Bread with
nothing to hide
Slowly fermented loaves, hand-laminated croissants and French pastries, baked in Edinburgh from flour, water, salt and natural leaven. Nothing more.
Au Gourmand
A French bakery, quietly at work in Edinburgh
Since 2000 we have baked the traditional French way — the slow way. Around twenty different breads come out of our oven, each one given the time it needs to develop flavour and character. We are not a shop on the high street; we are a working bakery that supplies the city's delis, restaurants and markets.
Signature
The things we are known for
A handful of the breads and pastries our regulars come back for. See the full range.
Croissant au Beurre
Pure butter croissant, layered and folded by hand. Flaky, honeycombed inside, deeply caramelised outside.
Signature
Canelé de Bordeaux
A small fluted cake with a dark, caramelised shell and a soft, custardy centre scented with vanilla.
Tarte aux Pommes
Thinly sliced apple fanned over a crisp butter pastry, glazed and gently caramelised.
The craft
Time is the only ingredient we add
Good bread cannot be hurried. Our method is old and simple: a living leaven, a long ferment, and four honest ingredients.
01
Natural leaven
Every loaf rises on our own natural leaven — a living culture kept alive day after day. No commercial yeast, no shortcuts.
02
Slow fermentation
We give the dough the time it needs, often a full day or more. Slow fermentation builds flavour, structure and a crumb that keeps.
03
Four ingredients
Flour, water, salt and leaven. That is all our bread asks for. The craft is in the hands and the timing, not the additives.
04
Baked by hand
Shaped, scored and baked by bakers, not machines. Around twenty breads come out of the oven this way, every baking day.
Our story
French heritage, Edinburgh hands
What began as a small French bakery has spent more than two decades feeding the city — one slowly fermented loaf at a time.
We have stayed deliberately small and deliberately traditional. The recipes are French; the flour, the water and the people are Edinburgh. That meeting of heritage and place is what you taste in every loaf.
Fresh this week
Featured breads and pastries
From the classic baguette de tradition to a seasonal galette — a rotating look at what is coming out of the oven.
Baguette de Tradition
Made the traditional French way — crisp, crackling crust and a light, airy interior. Best eaten the day it is baked.
Classic
Pain au Chocolat
The same laminated butter dough wrapped around two batons of dark chocolate.
Éclair au Chocolat
Choux pastry filled with chocolate crème pâtissière and finished with a glossy chocolate fondant.
Galette des Rois
Our January galette — puff pastry filled with almond frangipane, hiding a single fève. Made for Epiphany.
January
Provenance
Made in Edinburgh, found across the city
You will not find a queue outside our door — you will find our bread on the city's best tables and stalls instead.
From Stockbridge on a Sunday morning to Leith and the Grassmarket on a Saturday, and on the shelves of independent delis in between, Au Gourmand is woven into the way Edinburgh eats. We bake; the city does the rest.
Where to buy
Catch us at the markets
We trade across Edinburgh every weekend. Bring a bag — the best loaves go early.
Stockbridge Market
10am – 5pm
Saunders Street, Stockbridge
Our Sunday stall in Stockbridge — fresh bread, croissants and pastries through the morning. Come early for the full range.
Get directionsLeith Market
10am – 4pm
Dock Place, Leith
By the water in Leith every Saturday, with loaves baked that morning alongside the weekend's viennoiserie.
Get directionsGrassmarket Market
10am – 5pm
Grassmarket, Old Town
Beneath the castle in the Old Town, a Saturday fixture for bread, pastries and a long-standing crowd of regulars.
Get directionsStockists
Or find us at a deli near you
Independent delis, shops and restaurants across the city carry our bread and pastries. See the full list of stockists and markets.
Delis & Shops
- Local Deli, StockbridgeStockbridgeDaily bread and a rotating selection of viennoiserie.
- Leith ProvisionsLeithSourdough and country loaves through the week.
- New Town Fine FoodsNew TownCroissants and pastries each morning.
- Marchmont LarderMarchmontBread to order and weekend pastries.
Restaurants & Cafés
- Old Town BistroOld TownOur baguettes and pain de campagne on the table.
- Waterfront KitchenLeithBread supplied daily for the kitchen.
- Bruntsfield Coffee HouseBruntsfieldCroissants and almond croissants at the counter.
Get in touch
Bread, pastries and wholesale enquiries
Looking to stock Au Gourmand, order for an event, or simply find out where to buy this weekend? We would love to hear from you.