French Bakery Near Me in Culver City: Des Croissants Paris on Washington

Des Croissants Paris is a narrow boulangerie at 8539 Washington Blvd in Culver City, in the gallery stretch of Washington between La Cienega and Fairfax, where Parisian-born baker Samuel Manar sells croissants, baguettes and a cult kouign-amann four mornings a week. It opens only Thursday through Sunday, and the case is emptiest by early afternoon. If your french bakery near me search comes up on a Thursday morning on the Westside, this is a short, specific pilgrimage.

Before the shop existed, the only way to buy Manar's pastries was at farmers markets, in Culver City, Echo Park, Mar Vista, Old Town Santa Clarita and Studio City, Yo! Venice reported when the storefront opened in February 2023. He told Eater Los Angeles at the time that the goal was something good, not too fancy, super clean and simple, and long-term. The paper noted that Manar had previously worked at Milo & Olive and Bottega Louie, two of the Westside's busiest bakery kitchens.

The bakery's own About page calls it a traditional French boulangerie-pâtisserie and lists its values as integrity, respect and authenticity, under a three-word motto: taste, smile, encore. Its homepage puts the method more plainly: breads made the old way, viennoiserie made in respect of French tradition, and quality French ingredients throughout. Yo! Venice reported that Manar uses French butter, and that the bottled coffee drinks come from his business partner, another Parisian, Angelique Sakho-Green.

Manar's route from market stall to storefront is a common one in Los Angeles, but his range stays narrow on purpose. There are no hybrid pastries or novelty fillings in the case, just what a Paris neighborhood boulangerie would bake: croissants, pain au chocolat, chouquettes, financiers, quiche and long baguettes. Customers who first found him at a Sunday market can still buy the same pastries there, while the storefront adds seating and coffee.

The space was designed by architect Natalie Kazanjian and is mostly display case, with three dine-in tables, according to the 2023 opening report. That means most customers take a bag and go, and on weekend mornings the line can reach the sidewalk. There is no table service: you point at the case, pay and leave. The bakery also sells coffee and hot chocolate, plus grab-and-go bottled drinks with alternative milks, so a quick breakfast here really is quick.

The hours have grown since opening day. In February 2023 the shop ran from 8 am to 1 pm, Thursday through Sunday. Today the bakery's homepage lists 8 am to 2:30 pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with Sunday still ending at 1 pm, the same morning that four of the bakery's market stands are running. Monday through Wednesday the door stays shut, which is the main thing that trips up first-time visitors arriving on a whim.

The Infatuation included the shop in its lists of the best bakeries and the best croissants in LA, and singled out what it called perhaps the best kouign-amann in the city. Its review described layers that peel apart like tissue paper and a sugar crust that shatters like candy while staying gooey inside, and said the pastry alone was worth the trip. Google Maps reviewers keep mentioning the pain au chocolat, pain suisse, almond croissant, raspberry danish and pain aux raisins.

The bakery does not post walk-in counter prices online, but its catering order form lists prices item by item. A croissant is $5.50, a pain au chocolat $6.50 and a ham and cheese croissant $7. Mini croissants are $3. Bouchons and financiers are $5 each, and chouquettes, the little pearl-sugar puffs, are $1 apiece. A six-serving quiche Lorraine is $48. Catering orders need 72 hours' notice and are not confirmed until paid, and pickup can be at the Culver City bakery or the Pico kitchen.

The markets are still part of the business. The homepage lists stands at Old Town Newhall on Saturdays from 8:30 am to 1 pm, and on Sundays at Santa Clarita, Valencia FivePoint, Studio City from 8 am to 1 pm and Mar Vista from 9 am to 2 pm. A second shop has been announced at 1704 Ocean Park Blvd in Santa Monica, the former Antequera Bakery, which Yo! Venice reported in March 2025; the website still marks it as coming soon.

The Santa Monica announcement credited the bakery's reputation to coverage of its buttery, flaky croissants by food publications including Eater LA, and said the new shop would carry a similar range of pastries, bread and sandwiches. Until it opens, the Culver City storefront remains the only place to buy from Manar's case on weekdays, and the Sunday markets are the fallback for anyone who misses the Thursday to Sunday window on Washington.

This block of Washington Boulevard sits inside the Culver City Arts District, a stretch of galleries and design studios that rewards a slow walk with a pastry bag. The Infatuation's write-up points to Destroyer and Copenhagen Pastry as other Culver City food stops, and the Helms Bakery District, built around the old Helms Bakery buildings on Venice Boulevard, is a short drive south. The E Line's La Cienega/Jefferson station is the closest Metro rail stop.

Address: 8539 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232. Hours: Thursday, Friday and Saturday 8 am to 2:30 pm; Sunday 8 am to 1 pm; closed Monday to Wednesday. Website: descroissantsparis.com; Instagram: @descroissantsparis. Catering prices: croissant $5.50, pain au chocolat $6.50, chouquette $1, six-serving quiche Lorraine $48, with 72 hours' notice. Seating is three small tables, so plan to take your order to go on busy weekend mornings.