The word above a French bread shop carries a legal meaning. Not every place selling baguettes may use it, and the distinction is enforceable rather than customary.
The title is protected by law
To use the term, a business must knead, shape, prove and bake the dough at the point of sale, and the bread may not be frozen at any stage of that process.
A shop that bakes off dough produced elsewhere sells bread perfectly legally but may not describe itself with the protected word.
The rule exists because industrial part-baked dough became widespread, and the label was the mechanism chosen to keep an on-site trade distinguishable from a reheating counter.
The sign therefore tells you something real
An American reading store signage as pure branding will miss this, since terms like bakery carry no equivalent restriction in the United States.
In France the presence or absence of the word is a factual claim about production, which is why chains selling similar products use different wording.
Depot de pain, terminal de cuisson and similar phrasings indicate bread brought in, and they appear precisely because the protected term is unavailable to those businesses.
Baking times shape the day
Because the bread is made on site, it comes out in batches rather than sitting all day, and the best loaves are available shortly after each bake.
Late afternoon typically brings a second bake aimed at people buying bread for the evening meal, which is when a shop is busiest.
Buying late risks whatever remains from the morning bake, and the staff will generally say so if asked directly. Shops that sell out early are usually the ones worth returning to.
Not all baguettes are the same product
A standard baguette and a traditional one are different items, with the traditional version made under rules limiting the ingredients and prohibiting freezing.
The traditional loaf costs slightly more, has a rougher crust and irregular holes, and stales faster because it contains no additives to extend its life.
Asking for the traditional version by name is normal, and the difference in the two loaves is easy to see side by side on the rack.
Pastry is a separate trade
Bread and pastry are distinct crafts with their own qualifications, and many shops carry both words on the front because they employ both skills.
A pure bread shop may sell a small range of pastries bought in, while a dedicated pastry shop may sell no bread at all.
Reading the two words separately, rather than treating the whole sign as decoration, tells a visitor which counter is likely to be the stronger one.