Tra My Anderson, 24, speaks about baking with the kind of wisdom that usually comes after a lifetime in the kitchen, or at least a few thousand mornings spent elbow-deep in dough and dusted with flour. When she talks about Parisian pastries, it’s with adoration and a clear understanding of the artistry behind them — a respect for baking that is equal parts dreamy and grounded.
On Feb. 21, Anderson will bring that appreciation to life with Le Petit Morceau, a new French-inspired bakery and cafe at 1421 Bainbridge St. in Manchester. The brick-and-mortar venture is shaped by her family memories, time spent abroad and deepening roots in the community.
Since 2022, Anderson has been a familiar face at the South of the James Farmers Market in Forest Hill Park, selling treats such as “Pop-tart” croissants, galettes and her signature brown butter chocolate chip cookies. While she wasn’t necessarily looking for a storefront in the beginning, she always kept a casual, curious eye on the real estate market. Last year, while heading to an event at nearby Studio Two Three, she passed an empty building with unfinished floors and oversized windows — and she wondered. Months later, she saw it listed.
“It was just kind of by chance,” Anderson says. “I wasn’t necessarily looking to open a brick-and-mortar. I’ve always wanted my own bakery, of course, but it just felt like the right time. It kind of felt like fate.”
Le Petit Morceau — French for “little piece” — is both an introduction and a reflection of Anderson’s journey. Adopted from Vietnam at 6 months old and raised in rural Farmville, she spent her early years alongside her Luxembourg-born grandmother, Catherine. A self-taught cook with unmistakable Julia Child energy, Catherine made escargots, picked fresh produce from the garden, quoted cookbooks and approached food as a way of savoring life. Those moments left a lasting imprint.
“My earliest memories are spending the day with her,” Anderson says. “We’d pick fresh fruit and vegetables from the garden and prep them in the kitchen. I was her sous chef.”
When describing her grandmother’s cooking, Anderson says, “I think it was her expression of love for my family. It was just something I really connected to. I’ve always been passionate about it; I’ve been baking my whole life.”
Growing up, Anderson also tuned into the Food Network show “Good Eats,” spent her free time either playing soccer or wearing an apron, and gravitated naturally toward the kitchen. Deeply process-oriented, she says she finds joy in the methodical, detail-driven nature of baking, troubleshooting at every step and refining technique through repetition.
Anderson’s reverence for food deepened during college, when she spent a year abroad living with a host family in France — coincidentally, above a bakery. She would hear the shuffle of bakers working before dawn and smell the aromas of butter and bread wafting upstairs in the early hours. She became enamored with their dedication, the simple magic of people working to create something beautiful while the rest of the world was sleeping. The experience sealed her fate; French baking became her niche, and she ran with it.
“It was really a magical, life-changing experience,” she says.
Living near Forest Hill Park post-college, Anderson began selling pastries from her family home, an effort that gradually grew into regular appearances at farmers markets.
The name of her operation is a reference to “In Search of Lost Time,” the Marcel Proust novel her grandmother often mentioned, in which a single bite of madeleine (a shell-shaped spongecake) unlocks a flood of childhood memories for the narrator. Food, Anderson says, is inseparable from memory and place — just a small taste can transport you somewhere else entirely.
That philosophy extends to the physical space at Le Petit Morceau. Inspired by Scandinavian bakeries and Japanese interiors, the bakery is bright and open, with clean lines; warm, natural tones; and plants throughout. Anderson describes the aesthetic as “almost mystical, like wood elf energy.” Ceramic cups from a local artist, weekly floral arrangements from an area florist and large windows flooding the space with sun make it feel calm, grounded and inviting.
“Every time I’ve been in here, no matter the weather, it’s always just bright,” she says. “That really adds to the feel.”
Beyond the pastries, Anderson is intent on re-creating the bakery culture she fell in love with abroad.
“I’ve spent a lot of time in France, in a lot of different parts,” she says. “The boulangerie [bread- and pastry-focused bakery] on the corner is such a staple of their culture, their daily rituals. I really wanted to bring that vibe here — a place you come in the morning and make part of your routine.”
Le Petit Morceau’s offerings will focus on classic French staples such as croissants, pains au chocolat, tarts and galettes, alongside playful signatures including croissant cinnamon rolls, salted honey croissants and chocolate crinkle cookies. Anderson has shown her range through years of pop-ups, from nostalgia-centered menus with cosmic brownies (a nod to Little Debbie), diner-inspired strawberry shortcake turnovers, coffee-and-doughnut-inspired creations with plenty of beignets, and even Indian-influenced treats such as a gulab jamun croissant. The variety has helped build a growing and enthusiastic customer base.
The bakery will open with breakfast service and pastries before easing into lunch, featuring soups and sandwiches, including a jambon beurre with Virginia ham. Her sourcing reflects a commitment to the commonwealth, with grains from Deep Roots Milling, dairy from Richlands Creamery, coffee beans from Afterglow Coffee Cooperative and seasonal produce from local farms. Anderson says she hopes to use flour from Sub Rosa Bakery in the future. A blackboard in the bakery will list every local purveyor.
“I love when places foster a real appreciation of where food comes from,” Anderson says. “I’m really trying to root this place in the Richmond community’s food culture. I’ve made so many connections with other local producers. It’s all going to be based around seasonal menus.”
When hiring bakers, Anderson intentionally welcomed applicants with no prior experience. She received more than 200 applications.
“It’s almost better when everyone starts fresh,” she says. “We all learn together. It takes away hierarchy.”
Looking ahead, Anderson says she plans to add outdoor seating, continue popping up at markets, explore wholesale opportunities and eventually host evening events — community nights, themed dinners and menus shaped collaboratively by the people who work at the bakery.
For Anderson, Le Petit Morceau isn’t just a business, it’s a living thing. “I think food is really the core of any kind of community; it can build community and bring people together,” she says. “To have started just selling to my neighbors and building a small community, it really aligns with my morals and where I am in my life.”
Le Petit Morceau will initially open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. For its soft opening weekend (Feb. 21-22), hours will be from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. or until sellout.
Dining and Cooking