Like many restaurant and hospitality workers furloughed in 2020, Lauren Tran turned her small apartment into a testing ground for baked goods. Tran had worked as a pastry cook at Gramercy Tavern and wanted to keep up with her craft. Craving desserts with traditional Vietnamese flavors, Tran created Bánh boxes that blended the structure of French pastries with South Asian flavors.
Tran began selling boxes to friends and neighbors, and images of her artfully crafted confections drew a sizable following on Instagram. Soon, Bánh by Lauren transformed from a passion project into a successful business– even without a storefront.
In a phone interview with What Now NY, Tran described Bánh by Lauren as “our silver lining of the pandemic”. Bánh by Lauren is co-owned by Tran and her husband Garland Wong. Wong left his corporate finance job in 2021 to go all-in on their dream of opening this business.
After hosting pop-ups all over New York City, Philadelphia and Seattle, the husband-and-wife duo were eager to establish a physical base for their business. Now, Bánh by Lauren’s first physical location is on its way to 42 Market Street in the Two Bridges neighborhood.
“With pop-ups you have to pack everything up and bring your equipment into restaurants, and at the end of the day pack it up again and bring it back,” Tran explained. “It’s really nice to have a home for Bánh by Lauren.”
According to a liquor license application, guests will be able to stop in seven days a week to purchase Vietnamese-American desserts, French pastries and breads. The café will have a bar counter and a few tables with seating for 11 guests at a time.
Tran and Wong aim to have Bánh by Lauren open as soon as possible and hope to be serving pasties in Two Bridges in late May.
“Two Bridges was my first home in New York City when I moved here and being able to build our business in a neighborhood we know so well really is the cherry on top,” said Tran. “It’s great to be in this neighborhood and setting down roots for our bakery.”
