This French bakery in Little India hosts the city’s cheesiest parties

For better or worse, Toronto’s party culture has changed over the years. With splashy resto-clubs and wellness spas replacing warehouse and block parties, it often feels like the city is losing its sense of cool. But, if you look hard enough, you’ll spot that familiar gritty charm in neighbourhoods untouched by the flashy King West crowd. A particular French pâtisserie in the east end is doing its part to inject a little joie de vivre back into the city.

Conci, located in a space attached to the Redwood Theatre in Little India, opened its doors in 2019. After plans for a sit-down restaurant in the Junction fell through, owners Manon Tournayre and Charles Boggio turned a temporary pop-up into the current café concept.

Related: Six of the city’s tangiest, creamiest, cheesiest fondues

Tournayre comes from a long line of French hospitality and pastry pros. Her father opened Tournayre Pâtisserie in the Beaches 30 years ago and Jules Café in Mount Pleasant some 10 years later. She now runs Jules, on top of co-owning and -operating Conci and Bisou, Conci’s sister spot in Cabbagetown.

As for Boggio, his artistic passions took him down various pathways—travelling, painting, cooking and playing music—eventually leading him back to his hometown of Lyon, where he enrolled in the Institut Paul-Bocuse for culinary arts. It was there that he developed the concept for what would become Conci, whose name is short for “conciliabulé,” French for a speakeasy of sorts, a place where people gather to spill secrets or conspire.

Conci hosted its first block party in late 2022. Dubbed “Iglou-glou Fest,” it was a fun way for Tournayre and Boggio to bring a taste of France to Little India (“glou glou” being the French equivalent of the onomatopoeia glug glug). “It started during the first year of Covid as a series of outdoor dinners with music, so people could gather and have fun,” said Boggio. “It became a very special moment to see and share with our friends and community.”

What started off as a snacky après-ski dance session is now Raclette Party, an annual wintertime series, each event attracting a lineup of cheese-lovers out the door. For those who aren’t fromage superfans, raclette is a popular Alpine cheese that melts beautifully and is typically paired with stewed beef, potatoes and bread—hearty, comforting food for the cold weather.

Before they could kick off this season’s event series, there were some minor delays involving cheese importers. Raclette from France is made from raw milk, and this past May, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency banned unpasteurised milk products from France, Italy and Switzerland. Boggio pivoted, instead sourcing raclette from Quebec—cheese crisis averted.

Related: Toronto’s first family of cheese

Now ready to kick off the 2025/26 series, Conci has set a date, with the first party happening on December 6. Each guest will get a plate loaded with fingerling potatoes, grainy mustard, caramelized onions, pickles, and a choice of apple cider pork stew, mushroom melt or classic beef bourguignon. On top of it all: a thick blanket of melted raclette, scraped straight from the wheel. Guests will also enjoy a salad (though whatever fibre it contains will be no match for the cheese) and, for dessert, seasonal chestnut panna cotta.

To make this party extra chic, Conci will be serving a special champagne by the glass, and local DJs will be on site spinning retro tracks. And it’s important to note that this party will be outside, so attendees are encouraged to bundle up. If anyone forgets a mitt or two, there will be heaters and blankets to keep guests cozy.

As for when the Raclette Party series will end? We can only hope the cheese will go on melting until the snow does.