WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y. -- August 30, 2026 -- Paris Baguette will open a new bakery café at 5150 Main St., No. 200, in Williamsville on Aug. 31, giving Buffalo-area residents access to the chain's pastries, cakes, breads and coffee drinks for the first time. The location is owned and operated by franchisees Ivan Shen and Jing Zhang, cousins who grew up visiting Paris Baguette locations in New York City. It marks the brand's first café in the Buffalo area and its second in upstate New York.
Cousins bring a New York City habit to Western New York
Shen and Zhang spent most of their lives in New York City, where stopping into a Paris Baguette was part of their regular routine. During trips to visit family near Buffalo, they noticed the city's growing energy but felt something was missing: the bakery café experience they had come to rely on back home.
"Bringing Paris Baguette to Buffalo was a personal choice rooted in memory and connection," Shen said. "We missed the quality and comfort the brand brought to our lives in New York, and we wanted our family and the Buffalo community to experience that same consistency."
Chain pushes toward 1,000 North American locations by 2030
Paris Baguette currently operates more than 300 bakery cafés across North America and more than 4,000 worldwide. The company has set a goal of reaching 1,000 U.S. and Canada locations by 2030, expanding largely through franchise partnerships with local operators like Shen and Zhang.
Darren Tipton, Chief Executive Officer of Paris Baguette, said the company is working to make the neighborhood bakery café a community gathering spot across the U.S. He pointed to Shen and Zhang as an example of that approach taking hold in a new market.
New café targets daily coffee and pastry runs in Williamsville
The Williamsville café will carry the chain's standard lineup of artisan pastries, cakes, breads and handcrafted beverages. Shen said the goal for the space is to give neighbors a place to slow down and gather over food made in-house, similar to what he and Zhang experienced growing up in New York City.