Le Petit Paris Café will expand from Mandarin to add a location in Atlantic Beach by this summer, owner Alex Chezaud said Feb. 18.
It will lease 2,274 square feet at 363 Atlantic Blvd. in the Shoppes of Northshore. Chezaud said it will be a south of France-style café like those that could be found in Nice or Sainte-Tropez.
The cafe operates in Mandarin at 9965 San Jose Blvd. in Merchants Walk. It opened in March 2019.
Chezaud plans to keep the best-selling sandwiches, quiches and salads from the Mandarin store, but will add south of France cuisine including zucchini, eggplant, fennel, radishes and melon, he said in an email.
He said the cafe also will offer a greater selection of wine, cheese and charcuterie boards.
“My dream was always to own and operate more than one café to be able to bring new design/decor and menu ideas to each of them,” Chezaud said.
The Atlantic Beach cafe also will offer French pastries, such as croissants and macarons, along with coffee beverages.
Sandwiches are served on a French baguette or croissant.
Colliers International brokers Katy Figg and Nancy Sumner represented the landlord. Cantrell Morgan sales associate Ryan Switzer represented Le Petit.
Figg said via email that Le Petit will take over a former Jimmy John’s and clothing boutique space in the shopping center.
“We believe Le Petit will bring something new and different to the beaches market and will thrive from the synergy and traffic that the Beaches Town Center brings,” Figg said.
Other center tenants include Peterbrooke Chocolatier, Stubbees, Milo Fashion, Hamilton & Co. and Ocean Massage.
“We also feel it will compliment the successful local restaurants/retail surrounding this center at Beaches Town Center that pulls from the entire MSA,” Sumner said in an email, referring to the metropolitan statistical area of Northeast Florida.
Chezaud said he liked the Shoppes of Northshore location, adjacent to the Beaches Town Center.
“The architecture of the building reminds me of my summer vacations in St. Maxime when I was younger,” he said. “I love how everything is (within) walking distance in Atlantic Beach.”