Went to the San Mateo Backhaus and was very impressed! I've been to the Burlingame location and I…read morelove this one equally. The baristas are super efficient and nice to talk to. The interior was limited seating but the back patio is spacious. I got a croissant and an iced americano. The crossing was delicate, flakey, warm, buttery and tender- so delicious! The coffee was very satisfying, with a bold, smooth flavor. Great experience- also bonus points because this location is walking distance to the Central Park Japanese Garden.

Backhaus bakery seems to try to bring the Best of SF down here. Imitation is the sincerest…read more.. There's a line every morning. NO gluten free options. Burlingame location has breakfast options. 4.4 on yelp. Kouign Amann ($6) original - 85% as good as B Patisserie in SF. Slightly overdone. 8.5/10 Country Bread ($12.50/8.25) - 80% as good as Tartine. Very dark. 8/10 Morning bun ($5.75) 60% as good as Ariscault. Under sweet and lots of dough. 6/10 Pretzel Epi bread ($9.75 salted) is good but not great. Dense. 8/10 Someday I'll see how close the croissant is. If you are jonesing and do not want to drive to the City.. Overall - Very Good Food - Very Good Decor - Very Good Service - Good Value - Good Would we come back - Maybe

Miso caramel never had anything like it, i'm shocked and…read moreimpressed and very down to get this again or try other things on the menu also the Miso caramel didn't overpower the coffee taste at All which is imo rare? service was great and speedy considering how long the line was (30min before closing too wow) I also loved the decor and I think this would be a great place to work: there's wifi, some seating and I think i saw a plug but not 100% sure

4/5 Kaizen Coffee…read moredefinitely lives up to the hype when it comes to their pour over. The space is clean, modern, and aesthetically nice, but it is pretty small and not really the type of café I would hang out at for hours. It reminded me more of a busy boba shop where you grab your drink and go. We came around 1 PM and waited about 10 minutes. They only allow around six people to queue inside, so there was a pretty steady line of people waiting outside. This place gets BUSY. We tried the black sesame iced latte and a single origin pour over. The pour over was easily a 10/10 for me. I love light roasts that are super fruit forward, bright, and almost tea like, and this was exactly that. The barista was also incredibly friendly and even shared his recipe with me, which I really appreciated. The black sesame latte was one of the drinks we kept seeing on social media, so obviously we had to try it. Unfortunately, it was not our favorite. The black sesame tasted pretty grainy and bitter, which clashed with the sweetness of the coffee rather than complementing it. I would probably give that drink a 3/5. One thing I really liked is their whole bean selection. They had a ton of freshly roasted coffee available, including beans from Hydrangea and Black & White. Overall, Kaizen gets a 4/5 from me. The pour over alone is enough to bring me back, but I was expecting a little more from their black sesame iced latte

The baked goods are chef's kiss. Crab cakes were AMAZING. As were the beef empanadas and guava…read morepastry. 100% positive experience.

Call and order ahead, so they will have your sandwich waiting. We always go for breakfast, and get…read moretheir croissant sandwiches and a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice. They are very flaky, so it's a good idea to eat sitting down and not while driving. The only thing I miss is their spam as an option: it hasn't been on the menu for a long time, and they keep saying they will get it back, but it's been over six months since they said that. Please bring back the spam!

I'm not even a cake person, and Shru's Flavors of India cake is literally the best cake I've ever…read morehad. I first had it for my birthday back in 2020, and I'd never tasted anything quite like it. The pistachio and cardamom are such a unique combination, the cake is incredibly moist, and it has the perfect amount of sweetness. Vegan or not, it's just an amazing cake--you would never know it was vegan. The owner is also the sweetest person and very responsive. Definitely check out her website and IG, and keep an eye out for her pop-ups and special offerings. And seriously, get the Flavors of India cake. It's SO good!

I've ordered Shruti's Flavors of India cake a few times, and even though it is a long drive for me,…read moreit is 100% worth it. Her cakes are unique, well-balanced, beautiful, and absolutely delicious. They are light yet flavorful, moist, and not too sweet. And vegan! Even my non-vegan family loves her cakes. Communication and pickup with her is easy and smooth, and she provides clear and accessible instructions on cake care. Shruti is a very kind, sweet person as well. I would definitely recommend her cakes to anyone looking for a tasty, special, local and homemade treat. Thank you Shruti for your amazing business & cakes!

A donut/coffee/ice cream shop in the corner of a strip plaza in San Mateo. We had just finished a…read moremeal and were looking to follow up with something sweet so popped in here. They don't have a huge selection of donuts but you can get your classics here as well as some more unique options, such as mochi donuts, or donuts with unique flavors, like blood orange and raspberry. We decided to get a lemon mochi donut, a blood orange mochi donut, a classic chocolate, and a chocolate "cruellar" donut. All the donuts tasted freshly made, had a soft dense interior, and were very delicious. The chocolate ones in particular paired very well with a cup of coffee the next morning. They also have unique ice cream flavors here. We look forward to trying those on our next visit.

No line on a Saturday afternoon. Can and ordered the donuts with no problems. Inside is just take…read moreout and doesn't feel the cleanest but gets the job done. The strawberry shortcake donut was delicious. The strawberries were a little too tart but the glazed donut was delicious. Mochi donuts were ok but I probably wouldn't get again. Tried a chocolate donut log with egg custard. Do not recommend the custard filling. It isn't done lengthwise and wasn't tasty. Donut itself was soft and fluffy. Overall, I'll come back for a sweet treat. I think service at this one was better than the other cause just less customers.

Only recently came across Claire from IG because of one of the food bloggers I follow and it's safe…read moreto say that she's a winner in our book! She was definitely a drive from San Jose to San Mateo but well worth it. When you pull up to her house, it may be difficult to find parking as other customers are picking up-- I ended up waiting for 1 person to pull out of her driveway so that I could park. The street is pretty packed with cars. Can I first say what a pleasure she is in person? Claire is super sweet and she's the reason I love supporting small business. We ordered the Mocha Crunch cake. Current prices are $50 for an 8". It's cash only so be prepared. The cake itself is on the light side (not as light as Asian cakes but I wouldn't call it dense either). Unlike some other reviewers that found it dry-- I highly disagree as it was not the most moist cake I've ever tried-- But it wasn't dry either. It was right in between and good enough for us. The Mocha flavor was lightly infused in the frosting and filling. It wasn't super overpowering but it was definitely there. The crunch topping was perfect and so unique. The only other place I've tried a crunch topping is in a latte from Kamurocho in Pleasanton. They have a "Honeycomb Latte" that is amazing. We served half the cake at one gathering and we ended up bringing the leftovers to another gathering. The cake was devoured. If you haven't tried Claire's Crunch Cake's yet, do yourself a favor and support a small business and meet the sweetest woman.

3.5 stars. Ordered a take out cake, 6" mocha flavor…read more The cake looks bigger than a 6" as it's pretty tall, so don't worry that it will not be enough. We had a party with 10 people and we couldn't finish the cake! The crunch was really good and special, the cake itself doesn't really present the mocha flavor, as a result, after a few bites, the cake became too sweet. We were all hoping the bitterness from the mocha coffee flavor can balance out the crunch but we were disappointed. Interestingly, we then moved onto eating a chocolate cake from Marvel Cake and the chocolate was able to balance out the sweetness and cleansed our pallet a bit. We all felt that a cup of coffee would be perfect with this cake. The cake inside could also be a bit more moist. So all in all, the crunch got the thumbs up but the overall cake not so much.

I found out about this bakery on NextDoor, someone was saying the best cinnamon rolls were sold…read morehere. I had to go! Sad facts, the Hillsdale mall closed Cinnabon and the annual fair no longer sells cinnamon rolls. I'm super thrilled that Made Out of Dough is here, and I hope for years to come. We tried scones and the chocolate mousse. No complaints. Parking is street only, so be careful crossing Old County Road. No bathrooms, so if you are like me, take your goodies to-go. My goal is to go here once a month.

The ladies there were so friendly! My grandson and I went there for the first time to get a Too…read moreGood To Go deal. We got our order and then bought even more goodies! The scones were delicious. Both the sweet and savory scones were moist not dry. The Maple Bacon was very good! We will definitely be going back to try more items.

Best breakfast sandwich, hands down!…read more My barbershop is literally next door, and my kids are obsessed with this breakfast sandwich -- it's their all-time favorite breakfast sandwich . They are excited every time we stop by fresh in the early morning before I open up shop. It's become our little tradition, and I look forward to it as much as they do. Highly recommend!

The grain salad here is so good that I planned my errands around picking one up yesterday and I…read moredon't even like salads. Also, the bread they serve with it is ridiculous- perfectly crusty on the outside, soft on the inside...totally worth the carbs. I think this could be the reason their avocado toast is also incredible. On top of that, all of the employees always seems happy to be there and everyone is present, which feels rare these days. I love supporting local businesses like this. Such a welcome addition to RWC!