Everyday Pastry, Reimagined as Haute Couture

He had dreamed about it for twenty-five years. Ever since qualifying as a pastry chef, Sébastien Vauxion had nurtured the vision of a place to call his own: simple, sincere, and grounded. In 2025, that vision became reality: Sébastien Vauxion Pâtisserie & Café opened its doors in the heart of Annecy, on Rue de la Poste. This new address breaks away from the frozen formality of the " jewellery-box patisseries." " | wanted something indulgent yet accessible," says Vauxion, "elegant, of course, but also a space where you could sit for five minutes and simply feel good."

Designed in collaboration with creative director Georges Riu, the shop embodies Vauxion's vision of warm hospitality. Its broad, open façade, hand-painted signage, light oak woodwork, cocooning mezzanine and olive-green banquettes all invite you to pause. Inspired by the aesthetic of urban coffee shops, the space challenges the norms of traditional patisserie, flowing naturally into the rhythm of town life. This informal gentleness is tempered by technical precision, executed to perfection. 

Because Vauxion is no ordinary chef. In Courchevel, he heads Le Sarkara, the only pastry-focused restaurant in the world to hold two Michelin stars, also crowned with four toques by Gault & Millau.

In Annecy, he embraces freedom. No rigid house classics here, but spontaneous, seasonal creations that shift and evolve. "Right now, we're deep in strawberry-rhubarb season. Tomorrow, it'll be all about stone fruits." One of the spring's best-sellers, a tartlet featuring that same duo, lifted by a herby cream of tarragon and basil, perfectly captures this bold, plant-forward approach to pastry that is both fresh and unapologetically playful.

Alongside Sébastien is his associate and director Cécile Forissier, who sets the tone for the café's vibrant energy. There's also head pastry chef Nicolas Mormile, ready to take the reins when Vauxion returns to Courchevel, and a skilled barista helping complete the team.

Now splitting his time between Annecy and the mountains, Vauxion feels he's found something special in the lakeside town. "There's an incredible energy here," he says. And while this opening may mark a turning point, "a childhood dream, a culmination... maybe even the beginning of something new"-there's no rush to chase growth for its own sake. The chef is clear-eyed: "We adapt, we explore, we bring ideas. But in the end, a great pastry chef isn't the one with the most awards, it's the one who sells." In Annecy, Sébastien Vauxion gives everyday patisserie back its nobility, without losing any of its sweetness.

4 bis rue de la poste 74000 Annecy