The exterior of La Vie en Rose lives up to its name being bright pink. The phrase “La Vie en Rose” directly translates to “life in pink,” or more commonly in English, “looking through rose-colored glasses.”

La Vie en Rose has a sign outside advertising its specials of the day. The cafe is located on 402 W. 6th Street in Bloomington, Indiana.

Stéphanie Jikeli is the owner of the cafe. She has owned La Vie en Rose for around nine months.

The interior of the cafe is filled with wooden tables and tasteful decor. The artwork on the wall is from local Bloomington artists, and patrons can purchase art that they like.

One corner of the cafe has more casual seating. A photo album sitting against the window shows photos of the cafe being remodeled to what it looks like today.

Stéphanie pulls a quiche out of the oven and checks if it is fully cooked. She bakes the quiches fresh each morning.

A menu displaying different foods that are available sits on the wall of the cafe.

A basket of freshly baked chocolate croissants sits on the counter by the register.

Stéphanie puts a layer of freshly whipped cream onto a fraisier cake. It has layers of strawberry, pound cake, and custard.

Stéphanie’s assistant, Matteo Vidali, puts some of the finishing touches on the cake with pick frosting. Matteo is a student at Ivy Tech in Bloomington.

Jars of food coloring sit on a shelf in the kitchen. This pigment was used to color the frosting for the fraisier cake. Stéphanie imports all her food coloring pigments from France, because they are better quality.

The finished fraisier cake is decorated with a strawberry in the center. The cake will be put on display in the cafe and sold by the slice.

While the rest of Bloomington is just waking during the wee hours of the morning, the kitchen of La Vie en Rose is bristling with activity. The kitchen is warm from the heat of the ovens and the two chefs bustling around the cramped room. Sweet and savory smells bombard the nose when walking into the space. Yes, the rest of Bloomington might just be rising out of bed, but at a cafe and bakery, the day is brimming with life.

La Vie en Rose Patisserie and Cafe is located on 402 West Sixth Street in Bloomington, and the bright pink building is hard to miss. The owner, Stéphanie Jikeli, opened the cafe nine months ago. The cafe sells traditional French pastries such as croissants and baguettes, savory foods like quiches and soup, and delectable desserts that include cakes and macarons. 

Stéphanie is from Toulouse, in the southwestern part of France. According to her, Toulouse is one of the biggest cities in France, along with Paris, Marseille, and Nice. She said that she moved to Bloomington with her German husband, who is a Jewish studies professor at Indiana University.

All of the baking is done in the morning before the cafe opens at nine. Stéphanie uses mostly American sourced ingredients in her food, but imports some ingredients from France, like butter and food dye. She really prides herself in her pastries and cakes that she makes.

“Most of the food is made on the same day,” Stéphanie said. “Everything is fresh because this kind of thing doesn’t really keep well.”

Two other people work in the morning with Stéphanie: Matteo Vidali and Margaret Schmitz. Matteo is a student at Ivy Tech in Bloomington and he helps Stéphanie cook in the kitchen and prep the food for baking. Margaret works in the front of the bakery as a server and barista. Stéphanie said that she enjoys working with Matteo and Margaret, and it’s one of her favorite parts of owning a cafe.

“I love cooking, but I’m not a professional cook; I was a teacher for 15 years,” Stéphanie said. “I suppose I really like managing the place and trying to build up good relationships within my team and the customers. I really like interacting with the customers, too. I like thinking of new ideas to develop this project and make it my own and really special. I try to come here and feel as comfy and happy as I am at my house.”