WILMINGTON – De La Coeur Café, the French-style cafe and bakery, will be closing its doors for good at both locations in Wilmington’s Forty Acres and off U.S. Route 202 […]
[caption id="attachment_199541" align="alignright" width="479"] De La Coeur in Trolley Square | Photo by Mike Rocheleau[/caption]
WILMINGTON – De La Coeur Café, the French-style cafe and bakery, will be closing its doors for good at both locations in Wilmington’s Forty Acres and off U.S. Route 202 amid the coronavirus pandemic.De La Coeur Café owners Gretchen and Alex Sianni announced the closure through an Instagram post Thursday. The couple asked that people continue to “support each other and especially your local small businesses during these uncertain times.”Both De La Coeur Café sites closed onMarch 17to slow the spread of coronavirus. The Siannis held a bake sale at its Wilmington location to support its staff in April.In 2015, the couple opened De La Coeur Café et Pâtisserie as an eight-table cafe that specializes in freshly baked bread, crepes and more. It stood out as a restaurant in the traditional Forty Acres neighborhood, where patrons often walked up for a pastry.The name De La Coeur means “from the heart” in French, and it best captured the cafe's mission, Gretchen Sianni said inan interview with Delaware Today.“Everything comes from the heart. Take your passion and turn it into something big and beautiful,” she said in 2018.In June 2017, the couple bought Bon Appetit Gourmet Food Shoppe in the Talleyville Shopping Center and opened De La Coeur Café et Boulangerie. That spot served more French-inspired sandwiches and lunch fare. But a little more than a year later, the Siannis closed the Talleyville site to find a better fit.In February 2020, De La Coeur Café et Boulangerie reopened in the Independence Mall Shopping Center off Route 202.The Siannis or representatives from De La Coeur have not immediately returned a request for comment.By Katie Tabelingktabeling@delawarebusinesstimes.com