The everyday baguette. In Paris it appears at every meal. As tartine – slathered with fresh Normandy butter and jam at breakfast or the classic jambon beurre — stuffed with ham and butter at lunch. And a basket of sliced baguette with every meal — whether it’s an omelette or a steak frites. It is truly the “daily bread”.

There is something utterly enchanting about French baguettes – from the smell of them when freshly baked, to the crispy burnt crust which shatters into a thousand shards over your clothes, to the steaming, soft crumb. It’s a little daily luxury experience wrapped in an inexpensive package. They’re irresistible and I’m not the only one who has consumed a half loaf while walking home from the bakery.

The classic baguette, called tradition, is made with the simple ingredients of flour, salt, yeast and water. It used to be price regulated but still only costs €1.30 any place in Paris. Anything other variation (Parisien, or sourdough or grain) is more. The cheaper baguette normale is the industrial cousin sold in supermarkets.

But now, enter the instagram tourist. Suddenly, one’s trip to Paris is unfulfilled until you find the “best baguette”. Is it at Mamiche, on rue Chateau D’eau? Or the famous Stohrer on rue Montorgueil? Perhaps it’s our own Boulangerie Utopie, underneath our apartment. These all have long lines of (mostly) tourists chattering away while waiting patiently. Our instagramers spend their time making awkward poses in front of the bakery sign, or holding out their purchases for photography. Sometimes they even eat them. I am a little reminded of tour busses at famous sights, disgorging their contents, the tired looking tourists snapping obligatory pictures and then trudging back to the bus.

All these tourists are lined up for what is, laughably, the most ubiquitous foodstuff in France.

Why? Do they think only five bakeries in Paris make the “best baguette?”

I went to each of those bakeries. They make fine baguettes with minor differences. But they’re not that different from the thousand other boulangeries in Paris.

Listen, you may have preferences. There are some differences in the crustiness, the ratio of crust to crumb, even the shape. But even grocery store baguettes in Paris are just fine.

Sometimes a baguette is just a baguette.

So relax people, enjoy the food and enjoy the city. Order a baguette tradition at any boulangerie that strikes your fancy. Pair it with a great Normandy butter (or frankly any French butter) or a little wedge of cheese. Brillât Savarin cheese on a fresh baguette makes me dream of the hereafter. Or eat it piece by torn piece on the way home. Experiment a little and enjoy the moment. And don’t waste your time lining up.