Lebon Patisserie & Café
The Lebon Patisserie & Café (Turkish: Lebon Pastanesi (Beyoğlu)) was a historic pastry shop and bakery in Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey. Opened in 1812, it closed in 2022.
History
Edouard Lebon opened the bakery, known as Lebon Patisserie & Café , in 1810.[1] The shp sign reads the establishment year as 1886.[2] Lebon was a French chef at the Embassy of France in Istanbul (then Constantinople as the capital of the Ottoman Empire), who left the embassy kitchen, and established the bakery, located at İstiklal Avenue, on the corner of "Passage Oriental" in Pera (today Beyoğlu) district of Istanbul.[2] The bakery became famous with its interior decoration by Alexander Vallaury as well as the French dragées,[2] cakes and profiterole baked in a cake oven imported from Europe.[3] In the 1920s, for the purpose of changing the interior design, tiled wall panels decoreated in Art Nouveau style with the thema Four Seasons were ordered from France.[2][3] The panel representing winter broke already underway. and the "summer panel" was later removed and replaced by a mirror.[3]
Known for its quality and luxury, this place was called "chez Lebon, tout est bon" ("Everything is good in Lebon").[2][3] Some wealthy European travelers, who came to Istanbul by Orient Express, and prominent local peaople like poets Ahmet Haşim,[3] Yahya Kemal,[2] writers Namık Kemal, Ziya Pasha, İbrahim Şinasi and French Pierre Loti. were among the visitors of the Lebon Patisserie & Café.[3]
In 1940, Lebon Patisserie moved across the street, and Avedis Ohanyan Çakır opened the "Markiz Patisserie", named after the Marquise de Sévigné chocolate shop in Paris, in that place.[3] The tiled wall panels of Lebon remained in the Markiz Patisserie.[2]
It was the first pâtisserie in the Ottoman era and the early years of the Republic.[1]
Closure
The property owner Karagözyan Foundation increased the rent from ₺ 42,500 to US$10,000 (approx. ₺186,000 as of 31 October 2022). The historic pastry sho and café closed on 31 October 2022 due to the very high rent cost. One of the partners of the small business expressed that a relocation would cost around ₺10 million.[1]
References
- ^ a b c "Beyoğlu'nda 212 yıllık Lebon Pastanesi kapandı". BBC Türkçe (in Turkish). 31 October 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Patisseries Witnessing History of Istanbul - Lebon Bakery". Pera Place. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Zincir vurulmuş tarih: Passage Oriental" (in Turkish). Fakülte Sanat. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
Coordinates: 41°01′46″N 28°58′31″E / 41.0294281°N 28.9753819°E