Maison des Lys

Maison des Lys is an artisan French pâtisserie but with a real point of difference. You would never know from the taste or quality, but (in a shift away from traditional French ingredients) everything at Maison des Lys is entirely plant-based. Expect nothing less from your favourite French goodies: there are flakey, buttery croissants, sweet and savoury tarts and the classic filled baguettes - they all just happen to be vegan. 

Despite having no formal training, owner and pastry chef Drissilla recalls her upbringing in France as being very food-inspired. As a kid, she would be up at 5 a.m. making weekend crêpes and loved visiting the local bakery for her daily dose of pastry and bread. As an adult, Drissilla converted to being a vegan, and to align with this value, she started experimenting with ways to make her favourite sweet treats vegan too. 

It took a while to perfect the craft - croissants sans butter are susceptible to losing the flakiness we love them for, so there was a significant amount of comprehensive research and experimentation that needed to occur. Combine this with a newborn, a pandemic and the ultimate goal of perfection, and the pâtisserie’s opening in October 2022 was no mean feat. 

The shop may be small and seating scarce, but that shouldn’t deter you. The queue lining the street front certainly features more than just vegans, and the team’s passion for creating delicious French pastries is evident in the output.