Detroit Baker Named One Of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs In U.S.

DETROIT — Detroit baker Warda Bouguettaya was selected as one of the ten Food & Wine Best New Chefs in America for 2022.

The honor comes just after Bouguettaya won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef earlier this summer. After receiving the award, she talked about her journey from Algeria, where she grew up cooking with her mother, to opening her dream bakery in Detroit.

Bouguettaya's bakery, Warda Pâtisserie, located at 70 West Alexandrine Street in Midtown, serves items such as, cheesecake, tortas, cookies, coffee drinks, Madeleine and more.

Food & Wine talked about some of the bakery's best treats, and complimented her global approach in blending influences from Algeria, France and Asia.

"Puffy mascarpone clouds float atop delicate, glossy lemon tarts; spheres of choux pastry are stuffed with a makrut and strawberry cream; a slice of Russian honey cake proudly displays its layers the way a zebra shows its stripes," Food & Wine restaurant editor Khushbu Shah wrote.

"There are painstakingly laminated morning buns dusted in sugar and cinnamon; halvah- and chocolate-laced cookies; and stacks of torta, an Algerian specialty that features a tender, puff pastry–like crust wrapped around a savory filling that rotates seasonally (though you can usually find one brimming with garlicky sautéed greens and hunks of feta)," she added.

Bouguettaya and her husband are the sole owners of the bakery and told Food and Wine they make about two dozen types of pastries each day from scratch.

"We had the vision of bringing people together from different cultures, celebrating the diversity in this country," Bouguettaya said. "We have no big investors, no mass production. It's a neighborhood pastry shop."

You can see Food and Wine’s entire list of Best New Chefs of 2022 list here.