Paul Brunello, father of Roger and Dan, immigrated to America from Venice, Italy and began the Brunello tradition of bread baking. Believing in his European roots of serving fresh hot bread, right out of the oven, Paul opened a small retail and home delivery bakery in 1922 in the little Northern California lumber town of Weed. His Italian bakery became the finest in the region because it offered quality bread, baked with the best ingredients, fresh from the oven.  In 1956, the Brunello’s left Weed and moved to the San Francisco Bay area.

By 1963 Paul enlisted his son, Roger, to join the family business after he graduated from college. Roger had been involved in the baking industry his entire life, having spent much of his childhood helping his father at the bakery after school and during summer breaks. Roger rapidly became knowledgeable about the business and took over managing bakery operations after his first year, taking over for his father to carry on the family tradition.  Paul eventually retired in 1976.

Roger and his brother Dan continued to expand the family business under the Le Boulanger name. They built a reputation for delicious sourdough and specialty breads and rolls, as well as pastry and danish items that were unprecedented in the area, setting the stage for Le Boulanger to become one of the Bay Area's premier bakers.  The Brunello family expanded the business over 40 more years, serving hundreds of restaurant and food service locations throughout Northern California.

In 2020, the Brunello’s retired and worked through transitioning the business to the Smart family, who also own Athens Baking Company . Athens Baking was established in 1908 and has been a Bay Area baked goods provider for over 100 years.  Both companies have a longstanding reputation for high quality baked goods, and reliable fresh delivery.

The bakers for Le Boulanger continue to use a century-old method to make their famous sourdough bread that requires a complex and lengthy fermentation process. The result is the delicate flavor and texture that has led to its reputation of being among some of the best sourdough bakeries in the Bay Area.

Le Boulanger is now one of the few remaining family owned and operated bakery businesses, and continues to serve restaurants, country clubs and golf courses, caterers, airports, stadiums and sporting events, hotels, resorts, delis and more.

Le Boulanger The Baker is not affiliated with Le Boulanger Cafes.  Call 650-949-3429 for any inquiries relating to Le Boulanger Cafes.