The Claremont Village welcomed a touch of France this week with the opening of Crème Bakery.

Located at 116 Harvard Ave., the bakery opened its doors Wednesday morning, serving freshly made pastries, nearly a dozen types of bread and drip coffee from Oregon.

Owner Erica Hartig Dubreuil, 52, said people were lined up at the door 30 minutes before the bakery was set to open at 7 a.m. And after just two hours, the busy business had run out of cinnamon buns and most items on the morning menu.

Needless to say, Ms. Hartig Dubreuil was “super happy” with the opening day turnout.

The ambitious proprietress retired from her role as Whole Food Market’s Southern Pacific Regional Vice President in 2016, after 20 years of service, to pursue her dream of opening a bakery.

On Wednesday, that dream came true.

“We all have dreams in life and things we want to do one day or things we wish we could do,” Ms. Hartig Dubreuil said. “You’re physically sitting in mine right now.”

Her vision for Crème is to be a “simple but luscious community bakery.”

That means everything is made from scratch—the scones, the bread, the cookies.

“It really does add to the DNA of the food,” Ms. Hartig Dubreuil said. There are vegan items on the menu and wheat free bread in addition to classic fruit tarts, muffins and croissants.

Ms. Hartig Dubreuil kept her neighbors in mind when creating the menu.

“I didn’t put an espresso machine in on purpose because The Last Drop [Cafe] does such a nice business for that,” Ms. Hartig Dubreuil said. “We want to be complimentary, not overwhelming.”

While it may seem like Crème came into existence overnight, Ms. Hartig Dubreuil said she actually looked for a location for a year and a half.

“I knew that I wanted to create a bakery in a community where people actually walked,” she said. The Claremont Village seemed the perfect place.

Earlier this year, Ms Hartig Dubreuil finally settled on the space that used to be Jacqueline’s Home Goods, and construction on Crème began in April.

Five months later, her beloved bakery became a reality.

Christina Stoner, 34, and her daughter Harper, 4, came to the grand opening and bought muffins, croissants and chocolate tarts.

Ms. Stoner, who’s known Ms. Hartig Dubreuil for three years, said Crème is exactly what Claremont needs.

“It still holds the integrity of what this town is, but it’s a breath of fresh air and a modern take,” Ms. Stoner said.

Crème Bakery is open Tuesday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. To learn more and see some of their offerings, visit bakerycreme.com.

—Meghan Bobrowsky