Through his wife Andrea, Patrick Moreau from France (Director and Master Pastry Chef) discovered South Africa and Cape Town. Sensing the changes and seeing a gap in the market for authentic French pastries and breads, Patrick took the decision to move with his family to Cape Town.
Sharing his vision with his friends, Ali Majeed Ghareeb and Alan Bradley, the three of them decided to set up the company French Oven (Pty) Ltd and created the retail arm of the business, Cassis Paris.
Ali Majeed Ghareeb from Kuwait (Director) is an entrepreneur with experience in setting up and developing businesses (telecommunications, internet services, etc). He has also for the past 20 years helped Lenotre to develop in the Middle-East and the Gulf. Majeed brings his creativity, flair, love of French food to this venture.
Alan Bradley, from South Africa (Director), a leading financial expert, comes from the corporate world. His vast experience in managing companies all over the world brings to French Oven the financial expertise and stability for a sound and successful business.
Born in Paris in 1965, Patrick Moreau, found his calling early in life, leaving home at the age of 15 years to pursue his passions for the culinary arts. He spent the next 27 years perfecting his skills to become a world-renowned and internationally recognized pastry chef. His skills took him to Morocco where he created the cake for the King Mohamed VI wedding and to the Winter Olympics in France where he was the Executive Pastry Chef. He worked the last few years setting up several patisseries/bakeries for the distinguished Lenotre franchise. His skills have taken him from the busy streets of Paris to London, Bangkok, Las Vegas, Beirut and many other exciting and exotic locations.
French Oven
The magic behind the products, that make Cassis Paris the pastry leader in Cape Town, start at our production facility in Montague Gardens, Cape Town. Under the name French Oven, we offer an exciting range of wholesale products while satisfying the hungry display fridges of our retail stores, Cassis Paris.
French Oven was built from the ground up for the specific needs of Cassis Paris and the wholesale range. Although the work is typically done by hand, some unique and highly specialized equipment needed to be imported from France in order to create the high quality products at the level you will find in the leading boutiques in Paris.
Sourcing the best local ingredients where possible, and adding a few imported ones too, French Oven runs around the clock with a small team of dedicated staff. The staff, handpicked by master pastry chef Patrick Moreau and from all walks of life and different backgrounds, work all hours perfecting the skills they are learning under his watchful eye.