A beloved Los Angeles bakery and its decorated chef-owner has taken home yet another award to add to its growing list of accolades.
Republique — the La Brea Avenue bakery/cafe/restaurant owned and operated by Chefs Walter and Margarita Manzke — was named one of Tasting Table‘s 14 best French bakeries in the United States.
Making it one of two California bakeries on the list, joined by Arsicault Bakery in San Francisco, and the latest of many awards for the eatery.
The spot has been mentioned in the Michelin Guide back in October, with Chef Margarita also winning a James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker in 2023.
The restaurant opened in November 2013, and it has frequently mentioned on The Los Angeles Times’ Best 101 list, and it is one of the paper’s restaurant critic Bill Addison’s favorite restaurants in town.
Margarita was born and raised in the Philippines, before starting her culinary education in London.
“I went to school at the Cordon Bleu in London for both the culinary side and pastry program as well, and then after that, I went to CIA in Hyde Park, and I just did the culinary program over there,” she told The Post.
She would go on to cut her culinary teeth at high-end Los Angeles restaurants like Patina, Spago, and Mélisse, before relocating to Carmel with husband Walter.
There they opened Bouchée, Cantinetta Luca and l’Auberge Carmel, where Margarita perfected her French baguette.
The couple returned to Los Angeles, where they ultimately opened Republique, in a building that has a lot of Hollywood history.
The building at 624 S. La Brea Avenue was originally built in 1928, serving as the original offices for Hollywood legend Charlie Chaplin.
It was turned into a restaurant back in 1989, when Chefs Mark Peel & Nancy Silverton transformed it into the La Brea Bakery and Campanile.
After Campanile closed in 2012, the building was updated to house Republique, and it’s been putting out award-worthy culinary delights ever since.
When asked about this latest honor, Chef Margarita added, “Obviously, it’s a great honor, and we’re very grateful to be getting this, you know, recognition, because it just validates the hard work that everybody puts into this.”
“Not only the pastry team, but it’s, like, everybody contributing to the restaurant, you know, because I feel that I believe that it’s not just the pastries, but it’s the whole environment,” she added.
“It’s just, you know, a contribution of parts of the restaurant, making it, you know, a great program, great environment, to have a pastry and a coffee, and, yeah, it’s it’s an honor, and it’s great for the team, great for the restaurant, and we’re very happy,” she said.
The cafe at Republique is open daily from 8 AM to 2 PM, with dinner service from 5:30pm – 10pm Tuesday through Friday and 5 PM to 10 PM on Saturday.
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