Hintonburg pastry shop vandalized weeks after opening

BY CHARLIE SENACK

Anew pastry shop in Hintonburg has been vandalized just weeks after opening.

Amandine Patisserie, located at 1175 Wellington St. W, received extensive damage on Jan. 10, after a person broke in and went on a rampage tearing apart the French bakery.

“He didn’t steal anything. He broke the bathroom (toilet) and threw an object through a window,” said Amandine Pajor, owner of Amandine Patisserie. “It’s a very weird situation. Fortunately the displays and ovens weren’t broken.”

Pajor said besides a $50 Bluetooth speaker, nothing was stolen. But tables and chairs were wrecked and an iPad was smashed. The broken toilet caused water damage to the pastry shop and to Stella's Beauty Salon next door.

Amandine Patisserie is a French pastry shop that bakes homemade and artisanal quality products. They specialize in croissants, brioche, tarts and choux.

While the break-in couldn’t have occurred at a busier time for the new business, Pajor said the community has been supportive.

“We have had so many people come in I just couldn’t imagine it,” she said. “It has been overwhelming and great.”

Feb 16th | 1-4PM | Love at First Tour Open House

Starting at 2 PM Nick Veltmeyer will be doing a classical performance titled The Beauty of Bach: A Musical Celebration of the Composers Genius. We hope to see you there!

Pajor said several thousand dollars of damage was done and repairs will take weeks. Ottawa Police are investigating and at the time of publication, no arrests have been made.

Amandine Patisserie is open Thursday to Monday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Feb 23rd | 1-4PM | National Banana Bread Day

Did you know? There are more than 400 varieties of bananas and a banana is a berry and not a fruit. Come and enjoy our Chef’s famous banana bread and tea!

RSVP to either of these events with Belle at: Direct: 613-816-8710 or business: 613-716-6885 | Email: bellep@wellingtonwestretirement.com

Hear from a few of our residents!

Colleen is native to India and completed her education in England. She returned to her homeland to meet the love of her life, a professor in a school Colleen attended. Eventually a new chapter opened in Colleen’s life with her move to Wellington West Retirement Community seven months ago. Now she particularly enjoys the exercise class and has already exhausted the excellent in-house library. “The thing that I enjoy best is that we are respected here at WW. Seniors are not warehoused, we are listened to.”

- Colleen Henderson, resident.

Valentina’s artistic energy was felt when she gently entered the room. A twinkle in her clear blue eyes and wearing an original self-designed knitted sweater. Despite the challenges of relocating to a new country her musical talent allowed her to become financially independent. Valentina received a standing ovation following her performance in New Brunswick and won the East Coast Festival Award. Wellington West, there are no loud voices, only loud laughter! I love the high ceilings, even in my room - we don’t suffocate here! Staff members are extremely friendly!” - Valentina Kotko, resident.

Vince was born prior to WWII in England. At 17, he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and spent three years achieving the rank of officer as a licensed pilot. When he was asked to stay on for an additional 5 years, Vince made a life changing decision and never looked back. He applied for a position at Bell Canada. They credited his Air Force electronics training. His career with Bell took Vince overseas and allowed him to live and travel around the world with his wife and son. As a new resident, Vince is very impressed with WW. “I find the people very friendly. The food here is out of this world! It’s really good! My room is well laid out. This is the best retirement residence!” He is a skillful painter and plans to join the art class. - Vince Hessen, resident.