MK Cannelle will swing open its seventh shop at 6:30 a.m. on Feb. 20. The spot takes over what used to be Paint Creek Cider Mill in Rochester. Matt Knio, a pastry chef trained in France, runs this bakery.
The space measures 2,000 square feet. About 40 guests can sit inside, and there’s a big patio out back. Paint Creek Trail runs right beside it.
“It’s the ‘comfortability,’ for people to park and enjoy their moment to enjoy their dessert, coffee or tea,” said Matt Knio, according to the Detroit Free Press. “It’s next to a nature preserve, and there’s a river. There’s a walking preserve behind the store. People park and go biking, walking.”
The bakery has built quite a name across metro Detroit. Tarts, cakes, croissants, crusty baguettes, and breads fill the cases at each shop—all done in the French style.
Almond croissants fly off the shelves faster than anything else. Pistachio croissants come in second, with the cinnamon rope close behind. Each spot serves coffee too. Sandwiches and soups rotate every few days. Soups stick to vegetarian recipes: tomato, pumpkin, and French onion.
Rochester will mirror the Keego Harbor setup, which launched last July. Knio called the spot “beautiful,” as per the Detroit Free Press, and picked it because Paint Creek Trail and parking made sense.
Knio also runs Golden Wheat Bakehouse. That’s a wholesale outfit supplying his shops and roughly three dozen coffee places around metro Detroit. Come March 30, the wholesale side stops sending baked goods to retail clients so Knio can zero in on his seven stores.
“I want to open at least a store a year,” he said.
About 100 workers keep the shops and bakehouse running. September saw the last new shop arrive in Northville. You can visit locations in Ann Arbor, Birmingham, downtown Detroit, Farmington, and Keego Harbor too.
Knio dreams of more than a dozen shops down the road. Find the new Rochester place at 4480 Orion Rd., Rochester, MI 48306.
Dining and Cooking