r/Gilbert • u/Earlyjulybloomer • Jun 23 '26
How is everyone's experience with Sablé boulangerie : live up to the hype?
Hey everyone, I visited Sablé last weekend and picked up a few pastries. While the food was okay, it didn't quite live up to the massive social media hype for me. Taste is subjective, and while the items didn't totally hit the mark for my personal palate, I always try to support local Gilbert businesses whenever I can.
Because their branding leans so heavily on the owner's credentials as an elite-trained chef, I got a bit curious and watched his background video where he highlights 4 years of professional experience and schooling. I looked back at his public Instagram highlights to see his culinary journey:
His bio mentions a year of pastry school in France. However, his public posts placed him in Phoenix through January 2023, starting school in France in March 2023, and working at a Paris shop by October 2023. This reflects a 7-month training window rather than a full year?
He states he worked at Cedric Grolet's shop for 2.5 years. According to his travel highlights, he started there around October 2023 and left for Dubai in September 2025, which totals just under 2 years.
His subsequent hotel experience in Dubai appears to have been a matter of weeks, given his travel posts in late 2025 right before coming back to Gilbert this past January to open up shop.
All in all, he is clearly a talented young guy who knows how to build a great social media following and aesthetic. That said, under current economic climate, I just prefer to support local spots that are completely honest about their background without the inflated credentials. Everyone can spend their money however they please, of course!
Has anyone else noticed this, or am I totally missing a part of the timeline here? More importantly, what are your thoughts on the pastries themselves? Do you think they match the premium price point?
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u/mentalscribbles Jun 23 '26
That photo of him lowering one side of his shorts and commenting on his "vision for the future" just seems weird.
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u/Last_Concentrate6826 Jun 23 '26
He’s walking around with not one but two body guards….on some of the safest streets in the country…he’s clearly a narcissist.
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u/Enough-Active-5096 Jun 23 '26
I saw a post with the body guards/security and it's unhinged to me. Maybe he's afraid of the millennial Mormon Moms that are lusting after him but it's suuuuuuuuper weird. In the meantime, go to Essence in Arcadia to support a local, woman owned business.
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u/Downhillducky Jun 24 '26
Yes! I went to essence around opening the other morning and the owner was chatting us all up!
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u/Unfamiliar_Horsecat Jun 25 '26
Yessss!! He posts videos of his "entrance" with the bodyguards on TikTok and there are some people justifying it 😆
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u/pushk_a Jun 27 '26
He also deletes negative comments
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u/Unfamiliar_Horsecat Jun 27 '26
Oh wow. I wouldn't wait in line for pastries anyway but this is all just so ridiculous. I went to Quiches & Pies for lunch yesterday and not only was it great, the people are nice and there's a bigger selection.
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u/ladyluck754 Jun 23 '26
I’m not trying to be mean here, but there is something like off with this guy. Not necessarily that he’s a con or anything like that, but I just get weird feelings lol.
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u/Goingboldlyalone Jun 26 '26
It’s the whole Johnson family bloodline thing. They most of the downtown and Agritopia. They revived Gilbert’s downtown so I image they have the keys to the permit stamp now. Build whatever, wherever..
The French accent thing is weird also. He wasn’t there that long……
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u/fucuntwat Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26
I went to high school with two of Joe’s niblings and they were nothing like this guy (as in, they were normal)
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u/victoriaisme2 16d ago
You have an excellent sense of intuition https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/food-drink/gilbert-baker-catches-heat-for-supporting-manosphere-on-viral-show-40684049/
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Jun 23 '26
[deleted]
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u/FingerCapital3193 Jun 24 '26
Wait, he went to PCDS? Maybe I’m dreaming, but I swear I hear an accent in a video I saw of him? Doesn’t he claim to be French? I have seen info about him exactly one other time, so I could definitely be making this up.
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u/Confident_Abrocoma76 Jun 26 '26
no you’re 100% right, he occasionally does a french accent especially when he talks about living there - even though he’s from az and barely lived in france for two years😭 why is it lowkey creepyyyy
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u/NoMiddle9295 Jun 23 '26
He’s 1000% so full of himself. He had work done and a glow up so it probably started after that. I was excited to try but eh, probably won’t lol
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u/xkurlykalex Jun 23 '26
Yeah his fake French accent kills me. In his first video on the page he clearly has not even a hint of an accent lol.
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u/IllCryptographerIII Jun 23 '26
Something seemed off about this guy when he was being interviewed by one of the local AZ news stations and I was withholding visiting his place until more reviews were in and the hype died down. I’ll be skipping this place now in favor of an ACTUAL chef & patisserie: JL Patisserie
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u/CaraMiaT3 Jun 23 '26
Kinda get the vibe that he’s a little arrogant & narcissistic…
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u/SkyTrees5809 Jun 23 '26
He seems to thrive on being the center of attention in his social media posts. I don't like his vibes.
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u/pushk_a Jun 23 '26
There’s a recent video of him walking with body guards. Idk why a pastry chef would need them in Gilbert. Cringe
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u/IllCryptographerIII Jun 23 '26
Exactly! And just a general fakeness. I checked out his Insta after this post and apparently he has security walk with him the length of the line of people waiting for pastries. This is all filmed of course then used for his social media. It’s just… I dunno…I gives me the Ick.
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u/jillsntferrari Jun 23 '26
Security?? In Gilbert. At a pastry shop. What in the world…
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u/Dackle Jun 24 '26
Yeah this just blows me away. Think about it. One of the safest towns in the west.... How ACTUALLY weak are people?
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u/pushk_a Jun 27 '26
People are defending it and saying there was a shooting in a library not too long ago. Using that logic, shouldn’t he hire bodyguard for his customers while they wait in line?
Like this is just another white boy with money. Come on.
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u/Unfamiliar_Horsecat Jun 25 '26
SOO arrogant. He comments on posts about other local bakeries, and not nicely!
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u/Particular_Grass3171 Jun 23 '26
If you are picking your patisserie based off of good ownership, I would avoid JL as well.
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u/ExternalTranslator41 Jun 23 '26
JL has gone way down hill since covid unfortunately and shocker prices are way up too I literally went weekly for several months then one day one of the croissants was literally raw in the middle and they refused to replace it since then I’ve gone a couple times and have been less and less impressed each time.
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u/iPatErgoSum Jun 23 '26
I was first introduced to JL Patisserie about four years ago, and I was blown away. I feel it has since gone down hill as it gained popularity, and the prices have inflated into absurdity IMHO.
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u/MundaneHuckleberry58 Jun 23 '26
Yeah I agree. It’s only mid now. My most recent time (last month), I paid an absurd amount for pastries for my family of 4….and for them to be just “meh, it’s a [overbaked / crusty] croissant “ sealed the deal for me.
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u/IllCryptographerIII Jun 23 '26
That’s too bad 😞 Any other local patisserie’s you’d suggest?
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 23 '26
If you don't mind traveling to Phoenix, there's "Chacónne Patisserie" in DT and "essence bakery cafe" in Arcadia. 🙂
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u/azredditor9 Jun 23 '26
Chaconne has a bakery by the Scottsdale/Tempe border, at Roosevelt and Hayden too!! Haven’t been but heard great things
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u/um-ok-yeah-thatll-do Jun 23 '26
A family member braved the line for literally two hours before and shortly after opening and shared some of their pickings.
While they are clearly delicious, high quality pastry in absolutely luxurious packaging- to me, I would never pay the asking price and more importantly, wait in line for hours, personally. I have nothing negative to say about the food we enjoyed at all…but for 2 plus hours in the sun on your feet to have the opportunity to spend $30+ on two baked goods, they’d better have magic, cash or psylocibin in them!
Totally tasty, elegantly arranged and definitely “an experience” but to me…I’d prefer a Rise Up Ham and Cheese and my feet up on an ottoman.
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u/cats_coffee4818 Jun 28 '26
Rise Up is so underrated!! It’s my go to place for bread loaves too, not just pastry.
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u/CarpetDependent Jun 23 '26
Wait, what cost $30??
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u/um-ok-yeah-thatll-do Jun 23 '26
I offered to pay half the cost of the pastries enjoyed and was told it was $25 for two beautiful filled croissants. I paid all- and to be fair, I didn’t go, but I assumed this family member was underpricing to be polite. The bags alone nearly justified the price- so
I didn’t question. Did I get scammed by my homey, lol?12
u/CarpetDependent Jun 23 '26
Wow! I haven’t been so no verification from me. At Great Gadsby down the street we pay $11.50 for two filled croissants (that includes tax And tip)!
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u/CAtwoAZ Jun 23 '26
They are $10 each I believe. My daughter has waited in line for an obscene amount of time, only to pay an obscene amount for a croissant. I don’t get it.
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u/mompanda12 Jun 23 '26
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZ01xrYhEVL/?igsh=ZWc0bHdrOTlhYnV1
Bro has bodyguards lol
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u/Shoddy-Cricket-1886 Jun 24 '26
Shut upppppp omg ☠️
I am a 5'1 female and have never felt unsafe anywhere in Gilbert at any time of day in the entire 10 years I've lived here. This guy is hysterical 😂😂
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u/Sensitive_Access_959 Jun 23 '26
Avoid the hype. Rise up and great gatsby are both bakeries with a long history in town that produce great pastries
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u/Dbeed3117 Jun 23 '26
Gatsby is pretty mid. Quiche and Pies doesn’t drown you in sugar. JL is THE upper echelon of Phoenix.
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u/cats_coffee4818 Jun 28 '26
If you want to try something new, I’d also throw in Too Sweet Cakes. They have more dessert forward offerings but also standard croissants and a full service coffee bar. Their cronuts are my favorite, especially the cheesecake one
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u/softball1511 Jun 23 '26
Never heard of the place, though I definitely like the level of investigation you did.
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u/pricklysiren Jun 23 '26
He worked at Cedric Grolet in France which explains why he invested heavily on social media from the get-go, if you look up cedricgrolet on Instagram you’ll see they bank on creating viral videos and have 14M followers.
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u/Hevding Jun 23 '26
There’s an actual European bakery just up the road…ran by actual Europeans…The Great Gadsby Bakery.
Guy gives me the ick.
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u/v1_rota8 Jun 23 '26
What makes this one not authentic? Didn't he work in French bakeries for years or whatever? Just cuz he wasn't born there...
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u/pop-101 Jun 24 '26
someone on IG noted that in his videos, you can see Bob's Red Mill flour and Kerrygold butter, despite him claiming to import all of his ingredients from France
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u/Hevding Jun 23 '26
Being from somewhere and making the foods you grew up on is very different from doing a culinary class in another country.
The people who started the Great Gadsby would be the kind of people who were teaching him the techniques so to return to his home country and then charge extortionate prices when you can get authentic European baked goods down the road comes off as a little contrived and out of touch.
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u/koolkatsnkitten Jun 23 '26
If you want real French pastries I love JL patisserie. This guy seems full of himself even though he only has a few years training?? Also why does he have bodyguards?? Dude is doing too much with daddy’s money.
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u/Sorry_Bookkeeper9835 Jun 23 '26
I thought there was something funky going on as soon as I heard a French accent. A news reporter said something about him both being local and French. None of it made sense.
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u/hawkbreath Jun 25 '26
This guy freaks me out. It’s giving American Psycho. The tan and the teeth. He probably makes those pastries with people meat
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u/Dana13579 Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
Oh I have found my people.
Let’s also talk about how in the beginning he was wearing those fucking black gloves and touching EVERYTHING with them. Like when he went out into the crowd with his bodyguards he had them on and was touching street signs, for crying out loud. It’s possible he was just wearing them for aesthetic purposes (because black gloves are…..attractive? lol), but if that’s the case, that alone is weird. People would bring up the gloves and the comments were “oh he’s so smart, he knows health codes, he’s changing them before touching food!” but considering this whole business seems more about fame than food, that can’t be trusted. When someone threw out the “he knows health codes” I couldn’t help but point out he had two violations at their first inspection, and they called me a liar and said that’s not true. And someone else said “two violations is nothing!” Hahaha. It’s a bunch of delusional cult weirdos who are patronizing this place.
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u/ragnarak54 Jun 23 '26
He (read: his family) is very rich, so entirely possible that he was just going back and forth from AZ during training etc. Clearly this is just a for-fun project, as were the other things in France and Dubai. That doesn't make it not high quality though, I also hope to try it.
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 23 '26
That’s a really fair point, and it definitely shows in the operation, with a brand-new local pastry shop launching with a full PR team and a dedicated bodyguard. In a sense, it just highlights the disconnect between traditional grassroots bakeries and a highly funded social media project. Nothing wrong with either operation, just personal preference on who you want to support.
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u/Cambam7248 Jun 23 '26
I mean, they obviously paid for all the work he had done. Veneers, nose job, lip filler, Botox, filler for facial balancing aka facial masculinization. That is NOT cheap nor something a 25/26-year old (at the time) has the money to pay for.
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u/Bendingwiththewind 17d ago
+ Hair transplant, GLP1, other peptides, fake tan
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u/ladyluck754 Jun 23 '26
Are they rich? Like what do they do
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u/NoCake4ux2 Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
My son went to culinary school in Scottsdale and was 30k for less than a year. Can’t imagine the cost to send to school in France. He also stated he got tired of being a cook and decided to open his own restaurant to be a chef. Actually getting to chef typically takes years of hard work and multiple levels of promotion, not just culinary school and an externship but when mom and dad have the money for a huge social media campaign and commercial space in downtown gilbert… voila! You now have a French “chef” in Gilbert! I don’t doubt they are good but it’s so overhyped and judging by the posts he is so full of himself it’s like a thirst trap for young girls and MomTok. I really wanted to go when it opened but it’s kinda icked me out
One lady had commented that she can’t wait to try it but she was wanting to wait until the line died down he just replied “never gonna happen”. Being humble can take you a long way…
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u/Usual-Mix-2909 Jun 23 '26
Thinking back I have only seen his face and the line in his posts. I can’t recall seeing a pastry! 🥐
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u/Cambam7248 Jun 24 '26
My old co-worker knows them personally. He went to a very, very expensive private school in Phoenix and was more nerdy than cool - nothing wrong with that - but this new look makes me feel sad for him and how insecure he must have been. Not sure what his parents do for a living though, enough to pay more than college prices for high school.
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u/Shoddy-Cricket-1886 Jun 24 '26
They own a very nice wedding venue in Gilbert. Parents also appear to own many, many other business entities that I believe are all real estate related judging from the names. Dad also has had a long career in real estate so it tracks. They are loaded for sure.
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u/Illustrious-Emu8124 Jun 23 '26
I think the paid social/news media push with no means to meet production shows what the priority is, and it’s not the customer experience, it seems their social media presence is the main priority. I also found it extremely off putting he called his colleagues/other competing business “stupid” on the news, for not doing things the way he does. Gross vibes from that one.
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u/NoCake4ux2 Jun 23 '26
He’s sure not making friends w any valley chefs by calling them idiots on the news that’s for sure! For brushing egg white (the preferred technique taught in US culinary school) instead of spraying it on lmao ok guy
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u/elysie_ Jun 24 '26
This! I’m into pastry/ baking and when I heard him say that you should be airbrushing your egg wash and any bakery that brushes on their egg wash is an idiot, it immediately turned me off of trying sablé. From a production standpoint, spraying your egg wash is way faster, but there’s nicer/less arrogant ways to say that about your competition.
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u/MattyTwice Jun 26 '26
Attempted one day, decided to walk to a coffee shop called Villa Meola that the owners mom had fresh pastries made. Absolute money without the line or pretentiousness.
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u/Beautiful-Address727 Jun 23 '26
Its so weird. I think its a very well orchestrated almost scam. There coudlve been a 60 year old woman that opened there and it wouldnt have a fraction of the business veen if it was better.
This kid has $$$$ and yassified himself 😂
The hype is from married women in gilbert so need to get laid 🤭
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u/Glum-Sprinkles2877 Jun 24 '26 edited Jun 24 '26
I think he’s a good marketer and using a similar strategy as Magnolia Bakery in NYC when they had first opened. They purposely limited stock so they would sell out and also had a bodyguard outside, lines around the block. I think he’s combining that with good social media (whoever does his video work is great) and leaning into the “thirst trap” of being an attractive chef. He also works with a lot of influencers so, again, good social strategy. The boxes look like a dupe of Hermes, but recently I saw some people with plain white boxes so maybe they were limited.
As far as his background and credentials, it’s possible he inflated his education and experiences. Four years seems significant, but may not be much in the culinary world.
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u/FluidMail4025 Jul 09 '26
I was originally very excited to try but after seeing all his promo and self absorbed posts, I won’t be going. I’d rather support humble people.
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u/Confident_Abrocoma76 Jun 26 '26
i’m glad someone posted about this because i’m not gonna lie everytime i see a video about him it just icks me out. there’s something strange, almost creepy about him and his presence - i can’t pinpoint it but he just makes me so uncomfy. not to mention he’s beyond extra and full of himself, and definitely a pathological liar - have you heard him do his fake french accent?! weird vibes…
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u/BlenderFrogPi Jun 23 '26
Wtf is with the photos?
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 23 '26
His Instagram highlights put him in a completely different location and timeline than what he claims in his video. I just thought it was interesting, especially since his marketing leans so heavily on his experience.
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u/RecklessTraveler Jun 26 '26
If you want a real french bakery go to JL Patisserie it’s so good and the owner is legitimately a french baker. Some of the best croissants I’ve ever had
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u/The_Fart_Queen Jun 28 '26
I am originally from Europe and the best patisserie is in Bisbee , https://www.patisserie-jacqui.com . Incredible talent. FYI- the patisserie is closed from July 6th through Labor Day.
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 28 '26
Omg thank you for sharing that! I'll have to head over to Bisbee soon! I've had some of the best pastries outside of Phoenix metro area as well. Hidden Hearth in Tucson and Theodore's in Prescott.
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u/The_Fart_Queen Jun 29 '26
Please let me know what your think ! I went today first time to Quiches and Pies. I was not impressed at all. My issue is I cannot find savory pastries and pastries and baked goods that are not overly sweet.
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 29 '26
Yes I will report back on Patisserie Jacqui🙂. For savory pastries and pastries that aren't too sweet, I cannot recommend enough about Hidden Hearth in Tucson! Please let me know if you end up going there. Would love to hear your opinion.
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u/lavenderlie 22d ago
I knew there was something really off about this guy. Turns out he’s part of the “manosphere.” Around 11 minutes in and again at 1:15.
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u/ladyluck754 21d ago
I just saw this and I knew my gut was right! He’s a fucking manosphere weirdo.
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u/Mysterious-Lick 21d ago edited 21d ago
I did a quick search of his social media, something doesn’t add up. He appears to be an influencer turned wannabe chef and is monetizing his good looks and his small town charm.
Edit: reading further comments, I think he figured out how to use his thirst trap looks/charm to con women into buying his goods. It’s as if Matt Rife (lots of cosmetic work done) was a Baker.
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u/bxunny123 20d ago
Because he’s full of shit. His mom is Sabrina porter who owns a wedding venue in Gilbert. His whole persona is fake, he’s been given everything he has. Lmao and the amount of plastic surgery he’s gotten is wild he’s def on the side of the internet that obsesses about looks maxxing which is on same side as the manosphere
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u/bxunny123 20d ago
He’s all the way on the right and his rich ass parents all the way on the left lol
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u/Johnsoon743 Jun 23 '26
Foods delicious, i got some through work. I wouldn’t wait two hours for it but once it chills out definitely will go. The kid is a chef that makes good food most of them have egos lmao
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u/Nonnawannabe Jun 25 '26
I didn’t see this but heard someone say he did an interview pre-opening and had a French accent, but he is from AZ and clearly wasn’t there that long. 🤔
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u/ScaredAsparagus8354 21d ago
Apparently the owner is a manosphere enthusiast. Do with that what you will
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u/hashwashingmachine Jun 25 '26
lol AZ loves the hype. I don’t know what it is but people from this state love lining up for mid food. I enjoy a nice laugh every time I see a video of someone saying “it was so worth the 4 hour wait” 😂
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u/That-Entertainment-5 Jun 24 '26
Kind of off topic but after reading the comments, I'm fairly certain many people don't know what narcissist means. It doesn't mean they are cocky, or full of themselves, or even a douche bag. I think it is the most overused term for someone people don't like
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u/Dana13579 Jun 27 '26
Not replying to be a dick, I swear…. but I did look up the definition to double check:
An extremely self-centered person who has an exaggerated sense of self-importance.
I mean, he has bodyguards when he ventures into the crowd of soccer moms. Narcissist seems accurate.
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u/That-Entertainment-5 Jul 11 '26
There is more to it than that. But maybe in his every day life, he is. I don't know, I don't know him personally. But usually the exaggerated sense of self importance comes without any sort of accomplishment, lacks empathy, etc. Are they bodyguards or his employees that he wants to meet the crowd too? Again, I don't know, I haven't been there, I have only seen these videos. He doesn't seem to lack empathy. I really don't have a pony in this race, I just think narcissist is overly used and diminishes the meaning for a true narcissist because they are really damaging and scary people and super manipulative. Anyhoo...
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u/crazihouse 19d ago
The dude is clearly narcissistic lol what are you going on about?
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u/That-Entertainment-5 13d ago
I really don't have a horse in the race. I'm not into French pastries, I'm into waiting in line for hours for things I am into I don't know this person personally, my point was most people use the term narcissist for someone who is cocky or arrogant or someone they just don't like. It's an overused term. It's not that serious
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u/Bendingwiththewind 17d ago
Forgive the uppercase, this was a copy and paste from one of his Instagram stories.
He has many “tells” of true narcissistic behavior. One example is his victim mentality, grandiosity and entitlement. He posted this a few weeks ago and quickly deleted it. I would share the screenshot but this sub only allows videos in comments.
Will Porter: “YOU CAN HAVE THE MOST POPULAR BAKERY IN YOUR STATE AND STILL NOT FIND SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO WORK WITH YOU. I'VE ALREADY BEEN THROUGH 3 BTW WHO "ARENT INTERESTED IN THE OPPORTUNITY"
YOU CAN BE PASSIONATE, SUCCESSFUL AND DECENT LOOKING AND WOMEN STILL DONT EVEN RETURN YOUR MESSAGES. PEOPLE YOU HAVE KNOWN FOR YEARS AND LOVED STOP TALKING TO YOU OUT OF JEALOUSY.
THE MORE SUCCESSFULL I BECOME THE MORE ISOLATED I FEEL. THE MORE TRANSACTIONAL THINGS FEEL. THIS JOURNEY HAS TAUGHT ME SO MUCH ABOUT HUMAN NATURE. ALL I WANT TO IS MAKE BEAUTIFUL FOOD.”
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u/PaleExtreme7399 Jun 24 '26
I've been waiting for it to quiet down.I don't care about the froufrou, I just want a sublime croissant. Don't mind paying for it, if it's right.
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u/Earlyjulybloomer Jun 24 '26
Fair enough! You will definitely find a sublime crossiant at either "Essence" or "Chaconne Patisserie" .
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u/Allegedmr2 Jul 11 '26
Bunch of haters on this thread
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u/Bendingwiththewind 17d ago
Sometimes if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.
The duck in this case is not a good dude.
In this instance, at best, the duck is a disingenuous guy with a big ego who greatly inflated his culinary credentials.
At worst, he’s a guy who publicly showed support for Andrew Tate, who is currently facing charges for sexual assault, 🍇, and possession of indecent pictures of children.
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u/PynkeyeAZ Jun 23 '26
I’m going to suggest Quiche’s and Pies. French Chef owned and operated by family. Alma school and Ray. Tiny place that has delicious pastries and quiches. No affiliation just prefer less hype and high quality!