In French, anyone may greet another with “bonjour,” while loved ones and best of friends say “coucou.”

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Cou Cou Rachou is our way of sharing a warm hello and welcoming you into our world of butter-laden goods.

The vision for Cou Cou Rachou began, as does many a good thing, around a table. Raised in a large family whose door was always open for hospitality, pastry chef Rachel De Jong grew up prizing the power of food to delight and draw people together. After receiving her certificate in pastry from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Rachel spent a decade honing her art in restaurant kitchens on both American coasts, serving as pastry chef alongside such internationally acclaimed chef restaurateurs as Patrick O’Connell (The Inn at Little Washington) and Ludo Lefevbre (Los Angeles’ Petit Trois).

Now, she’s returned to her roots in the Blue Ridge, sifting the best of her recipes crafted and lessons gleaned to open a bakery that makes people feel good. Cou Cou Rachou breads and pastries knead the traditional with the whimsical, the indulgent with the wholesome, creating an inviting environment where palates are pleased, guests become amis, and bonjours turn to coucous.