I posted on Facebook the moment I got home - Magali's is closing! I was in shock and honestly upset. Today I'm resigned and even took Boo there for a last visit before she closes for good on Sunday. We acted as if it was just another day - not the last day.
What made Magali's so great for me? It certainly wasn't the decor - everyone agrees it wasn't great. I do prefer the pastries compared to the competition - they are just buttery yummy. And the famous bugnes. What was great was that it was a bakery/café - in other words: A coffee shop. This might seem strange since France (Valbonne included) is full of quaint café like you see in the movies. But in terms of homeyness and practicality, Magali's couldn't be beat. The bread was fresh, the coffee Illy and her shop is set in a modern 'strip' with a large terrace where, on the weekends, parents can wake up with their coffee and visit and the kids can run around with each other. Something for everyone. It is without pretense and was a place for 'regular' people to go. It was a place to gather.
It was also a place that I went to, alone or with Boo, at least twice a week during the last half of my pregnancy. It was then that we, as a family, became on a first name basis with Magali and that she knew our order when we walked in the door. She watched me get big, big, big with Little Guy inside and towards the end I think she was genuinely worried I might go into labor in her shop. She cooed over Boo and let him play behind the counter and when Little Guy was born spend minutes watching him and visiting with us. She was part of what brought him into the world.
There are cheaper places to buy bread, there are more quaint places to get a coffee, but for me Magali will be (indeed, is already) missed.
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