Passion for food is in Dahmane Ladjassa’s DNA.
The Algerian-born chef helped in his father’s restaurant as a child before leaving for France aged 20 and then travelling to England to open a business. He later qualified as a professional chef, having studied fine dining and gastronomy at Westminster Kingsway College, where he was awarded a distinction and prizes.
Now he owns two branches of Boulangerie Bon Matin, affectionately dubbed BBM by locals. The shops in Hampstead and Finsbury Park focus on selling delicious, freshly prepared Mediterranean food with an emphasis on healthy dishes using high quality ingredients. Even the croissants are handmade, using traditional French techniques.
He said: “I’ve always been passionate about food – it’s all my wife and I talk about at home! But my love for food has grown exponentially since I trained professionally.”
He added; “In the past, people tended to focus on one nationality of food, such as pure French or Italian, and only classical fine-dining was considered to be worth pursuing. Now there’s a growing trend towards fusion – I use a lot of flavours from France, Lebanon, Algeria and Italy in my cooking – and even some Japanese ingredients. I want to create great tasting and exciting food, inspired by different cultures. These are the flavours of my life story and London is the perfect place to experiment and enjoy, with inspiration around every corner.”
The 48-year-old sold his shares in another company in 2011 to set up BBM in Finsbury Park and recently invested his life-savings in the sister branch in Hampstead.
He added: “I’ve received offers in the past from people who have wanted to invest in my concept, but I’m so passionate about quality and consistency that I wanted to keep a tight control over things. I think when a business is independent and run by people who have a passion for what they are doing, and not just the bottom line, it shows. The business has a heart and a soul.”
BBM employs around 20 people across the two sites and the businesses are already a focal point for community life.
Dahmane added: “Hampstead is a tough area to run an independent café like this with big name chains competing for business. But as long as we stay true to the quality of our food and drink we’ll do fine. Our coffee is exceptional – we source it from independent roasters, Exmouth Coffee, who freshly roast it right here in London and our baristas are highly trained.”
As for the future? Though he’s fearful about the impact Brexit will have on the cost of imported ingredients, he’s always on the lookout for a third location to branch out to.
Dahmane’s wife is a GP, so they both work really long unsociable hours. At the weekends, Dahmane likes to go to food markets and eat at local cafes/restaurants. He is really passionate about engaging with the local area, and is happy to donate food to schools/local causes etc. So do get in touch.
They have a few branches in the North London area, so the food is all made locally in their kitchen . ALL of their food is made overnight, fresh for the morning. The salads are made early in the morning – they are blanched, roasted then brought on site for dressing. They also do catering for parties, and I think these big portions of salad would be a big hit (with a side of protein). The small sandwiches are all organic. The coffee is made by a super independent supplier – they are mad about coffee and make a special blend for BBM. They also train the baristas to make coffee properly, so you should have a great cup of coffee at BBM (being a tea drinker, I can’t testify for coffee quality). They are currently working on more vegan products and will release them once fine tuned – Dahmane is an artisan and refuses to sell any until they are perfect.
The recipe for the oat bran pancake on the menu is made by Dahmane’s wife. As a doctor, she is well aware of the need for nutritious food, so they experimented for a long time with the chefs to provide something nutritious and filling on the menu.
Dahmane has a strong background in food. He worked with his partner on the first fast food pasta place (like Vapiano), back in 1990. When he came to London, he started his first cafe with family members, and in 2013 he studied to be a chef and passed with distinction in 2016.
We talked briefly about the costs involved for running a business. As my parents owned a small restaurant and I grew up around the business, this is an area I’m quite intimate with and I guess is where my passion for supporting local businesses come from. All I can say is – if you like a business, keep going to it. There’s no point saying “oh, that’s a shame it shut” after not visiting it for 6 months.
