Sweet new shop: Bakery brings a taste of France to Fort Myers
Opening a business is challenging enough.
Doing it from 4,600 miles away is, well, 4,600 times more difficult.
But Cedric Di Dio was more than up for it.
“I did most of the work from France,” said Di Dio who opened Lily Paris Bakery in Fort Myers six months after moving here. It made its debut in the Pinebrook Park plaza near Bell Tower in November.
“It’s my first business in the U.S.,” he said. “I owned a similar business in France for 20 years.”
Di Dio has brought all that experience to Lily Paris Bakery, which he named after his wife.
“I tried to call it Cedric Bakery, but she said ‘no,’” he said.
Step inside the quaint and lovely shop and you’ll find a few small tables scattered about and display cases filled with his delightful creations.
“It was slow in the beginning of January, but the last few days have been really busy,” Di Dio said. “We are getting the same customers now. And new ones. They give very good reviews.”
From French breakfast through lunch and dessert
Croque monsieur (a hot sandwich with ham and cheese), croque madame (the monsieur with an egg on top) and quiche are the best sellers.
“We do all kinds of quiche — ham, cheese, tuna, salmon, spinach,” he said. “It depends on the day.”
Di Dio arrives at 4 a.m. to bake everything fresh six days a week, including baguettes, brioche tressee, almond and chocolate croissants, raisin rolls, apple turnovers, breakfast sandwiches and more. Add tea or coffee to your order for a “real French breakfast.”
“Everything is made fresh in the mornings,” Di Dio said. “We do omelets and crepes too. Nutella crepes are popular. We can do all kinds. If you want it, we can make it.”
Another best-selling item is the Parisien — a sandwich with French ham, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, French gherkins and butter. It’s served at room temperature — not toasted or warmed — on one of Di Dio’s fresh-baked baguettes.
A colorful assortment of pastries as well
While Di Dio is busy baking, Lily comes in at 7:15 a.m. to make the pastries.
Together, they keep the display cases full of breads, cakes, bread pudding, fruit pies, tarts, tiramisu, yule logs and more. They’ve recently added cheesecake, cookies and gelato.
You’ll even find Kings cake — “galette des rois, a French tradition in January” — along with birthday cakes “in French and Dominican styles with more cream and fruit."
“We use less sugar here like we do in France,” he said. “In Europe, we don’t use artificial sugar. We put fruit inside and outside for flavor.”
Word of Lily Paris Bakery’s sweet goodness is quickly spreading.
Di Dio is now making some of his items for restaurants from Fort Myers to Naples.
And he no longer offers any pastry or baked goods that didn’t sell during the day at half off later in the afternoon.
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“We don’t have anything left over,” he said. “It’s all selling out. Customers love what we have.”
One bite and you'll feel like you're in France, 4,600 miles away.
Lily Paris Bakery, 12995 S Cleveland Ave., Suite 142, Fort Myers; open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; (239) 270-9169; follow on Instagram
Robyn George is a food and dining writer for The Fort Myers News-Press. Send news to [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Lily Paris Bakery brings a taste of France to Fort Myers
