I have to stay that I am a baker and my buttercream is pretty darned good. That said, I do have an appreciation for Asian desserts. Less sweet, more delicate, and typically quite lovely, I can pass up a buttercream-covered delicacy for the right light delight. J.J. Bakery was an afterthought post a Korean BBQ dinner. We started to walk off a big meal and passed the bakery. Despite full bellies, our taste buds perked up and urged us to step inside. Just look, they said. You don't have to buy. Yeah, right. My immediate go-to has to be red bean buns. I quickly scanned a case of lovely deserts and fell into despair. Oh no. No red bean? Sensing my distress, Mr. Handsome quickly points to a display rack behind me. Eureka. Red bean heaven. I grabbed a few and waited for others to pick out their desert. Just one? Actually, we were headed to the entertainment mecca that is Sidney S.'s home, so we picked one of a few different things, figuring that we would all share at home. I ate the red bean buns on the walk to our car. At our destination, we all grabbed forks and dug in. There wasn't any trouble making sure we were clean-platers. However, I didn't see that look of intense satisfaction on anyone's faces. The deserts were all nice and none were a big wow. As for the red bean buns, they were dry. If in the area, this is a good place to get your fix. If you aren't in the area, J.J. Bakery isn't worth the drive. I'll just have to find a hotteok cart to satisfy my red bean need. read more

I am really, really disappointed in JJ Bakery. I live within a mile of JJ Bakery and I've been a regular here ever since I moved to Irvine. I'm pretty sure I've seen that girl cashier behind the counter at least 5 times. Today, I was starving and borderline hangry already when I walked in. Maybe it was the low blood glucose that impaired my ability to think clearly, but I chose a rice dish off the menu like I always do. Usually I stick with sausage or chicken leg rice but today I decided I was craving pork chop. I ordered a fried pork chop rice. All of the pictures have the pork on the rice, and chinese sides like cabbage or vegetables. I got home, ready to chomp into my chinese pork chop rice, and I open the box to find a weird looking pork chop with POTATO SALAD AND A SOGGY SALAD!! Potato salad at a chinese restuarant?? That is definitely ODD. I called JJ and asked them why I had potato salad and a soggy salad instead of the regular chinese vegetable sides. The person who answered the phone said that the teriyaki chicken and "fried?" pork chop comes with these weird sides but ALL of the other rice dishes come with the regular chinese sides. I guess there is a "salted fried pork chop" that is the chinese version of this dish. WTF. She was very rude, very unhelpful, and offered no alternative or decision. I asked her that since the menu didn't specify this difference between fried and salted, if I could bring in my food at least for a side exchange. She said no! If the JJ Bakery manager out there is ready this... Please state on your menu that certain dishes on your menu come with americanized sides instead of the regular stuff you would expect from a chinese restaurant. Also, teach your staff some customer service. read more

I remember coming here as a kid and their bread is still as delicious as I remembered. My favorites are their crossisants, sponge cake triangles in coffee and their white & wheat pre-sliced bread. I would of given them a higher rating , except last nights experience at their cafe turned me off. I ordered their JJ Fried Pork Chop to go. It was not good. The cabbage was bland, the meat was dry and rice too mushy. Aside from the food, let me tell you about their customer service. Its TERRIBLE. They short changed me! My total came to $7.60 and i gave him $10.60. There was this lady standing by who I think is the owne,r was very rude and had TERRIBLE customer service!! She was pretty much saying that I was trying to rip them off and/or lying blahblahblah... Even worse, she spoke in Mandarin. My friend and I are both Chinese and speak/listen to mandarin very well. I personally, would NEVER return to their cafe. Although in the end, after her bitching, the kid came over and gave me my $3. They never apologized. Just typing this makes me furious. read more

We ordered a half sheet of the mix cake by phone on Thursday for pick up on Saturday morning. When Saturday morning came and went to pick up the cake, they said they didn't have any order for a half sheet. They told us if we had ordered from the right places. After calling the other JJ Bakery, we confirmed the order was indeed placed at the Culver location and the order was taken by Mr. E. So we went back again, talked to the cashier, and told them again that there should be a half sheet cake for pick up at 9:30am under my brother's name and it was a phone order taken by Mr. E on Thursday. The cashier looked though the phone orders and couldn't find anything, so she suggested getting like a quarter sheet. We needed our cake at 12:00-12:30pm, but she said the earliest she can have that was 3:00pm. Out of options, we decided to get 2 of the display cakes. The cashier apologized for the inconvenience, but did not give us any discount or special service for the cakes we were buying. The customer service here is appalling and horrible, and reflects poor management, and a lack of communication and proper training. Anytime people buy a cake, it is usually for a special occasion or milestone in life. So when they mess up an order like this, it ruins that special moment. It is imperative for a leader and management to communicate with their workers why you do things, and how these things are important to the customer. There is a clear lack of leadership, lack of vision, and a shameful attempt at customer service. Then they call me today, and say there is a half sheet of cake unaccounted for and want us to pay. They blame us for their mistakes. They eventually gave a half hearted apology, but I don't think they don't know what they are sorry for. In a bad situation like this, a person with good customer service would apologize for misplacing the order AND for ruining a special milestone in life. If they aren't capable of putting themselves in the shoes of others maybe they shouldn't be in this industry. The cake itself is pretty good and I have no qualms over it, but the customer service is ruining this bakery. This is a bad review, but I am pointing things out that clearly are a problem with the hopes that things will improve. read more

How sad, no one seems to like J.J. Bakery. Well, let me tell you why. Because you're going to the restaurant... This place is called a Bakery, so but the bread because they are delicious!! If you have lived in Irvine since you're a fetus, you will know that J.J. Bakery is the place to buy traditional Asian bread. A lot of their buns taste very similar to the buns that you will find in Taiwan! There is a reason that J.J. has expanded from one store in the last 25 years to so many branches: the bread is good. The cake here is alright. You have to be very strategic about picking the cake here. The good ol' fashion fruit cake is a no-no, but the cheesecake is a big yes! The tirimisu is very inconsistent, one year it was very light and another year it was very rich. Just get the cheesecake. My favorites are the red bean bun, the milk cream bun, and the taro bun. But honestly, I like most things that offer... I've basically tried all their bread and tasted the evolution of them since birth. To sum it up: eat the bread, not the food! If you're reading this and thinking, "I like 85C better," let me tell you why 85C isn't better. 85C was about to go bankrupt in Taiwan when it was first introduced in the U.S. It was failing in Taiwan because it opened way too many restaurant believing that their food, beverages, and dessert were exceptional... well, when walking past any of the stores, they were empty, because the food did not cater to many Taiwanese people's taste. I'm not sure how it became a huge hit in the U.S.... probably great marketing that gets people all hypes up about the alright food (like Sprinkles, Champagne, etc.). But I'm just letting you know, J.J. is the place to go for the real deal. Put the brand judgment aside and really try the food. read more

I bought quite a lot of pastries today and it was warm and fresh! Super tasty! Friendly as well.

I have to give JJ's an extra star for not having a stupid-crazy line out front. Yes, it's a bit more expensive than 85c but it's worth it not having to be waiting in line for an hour. read more

The Green Tea Almond Cookies ($4.20 for one pack) are SO OILY you can SMELL the oil and it tastes and smells strange. PASS...don't be fooled by the cute shape and color.... The cheese bread was pretty good so extra star for that. The little cocunut cookie is so small and cute - tasted decent but I don't know if I'd get it again. Service is non-existant. Everyone looks bored and tired. Not a very "lively" place if you will. No peppy folks like at 85C hahaha....Some people might really like this. *Shrug* I don't mind it, just FYI. The Pineapple shape bread was pretty decent. I kind of prefer it a little more crunchy. The one here had too much of a "mushy" texture. It was a bit flat. I don't think I'd ever go out of my way to visit this place again. Maybe if I'm next door somewhere in this plaza....maybe... read more

This review is just about the bakery and not the cafe. I feel it's more like a 3.5 to me, a better reaction than an A-OK (3) and not quite so fabulous or different for me to go Yay! but I round up. I've been stopping by JJ Bakery since I was a kid because it was a regular stop after eating at Sam Woo (which my family does every couple months). JJ does carry some different breads from 85, but they also have the typical pineapple buns, red bean breads, etc etc. I like getting their bbq pork steamed buns and I think their coconut bread loaf is absolutely amazing and a great deal. For ~$3 dollars you get a loaf that'll provide me with breakfast for dayyss. As for cakes, I think 85 seems to have more variety in cakes but I haven't tasted enough cakes from either to judge on taste. I'll be returning to JJ in the future, probably more frequent than 85 because you get more for your money. read more

I used to come here on a pretty weekly basis, since they have a deal at lunch where you get a free drink. I usually get the JJ pork chop, JJ fried chicken, or black pepper beef fried rice. The JJ pork chop and fried chicken are what you expect from Taiwanese style cafes, and its served with some pickled vegetable and an egg. The taste is fairly consistent but it won't win any awards. The black pepper beef fried rice, on the other hand, fluctuates in quality. Somedays, it will taste amazing, with just the right amount of flavor. Other days, it will be either too bland or too pepper-y. It really depends on your luck but whenever I feel lucky I go for the fried rice. Overall you get a pretty decent sized meal and a drink for a fair price, but that's not available for dinner so I'd suggest coming here for lunch only. On another note, the bakery side accepts credit cards. All you have to do is tell them you're going to get something from the bakery, and they will give you a receipt so you can pay there. Of course, you have to buy something from the bakery too... read more

We stop by JJ's each visit to LA & order the same 2 items: #1 Taro Toast bread-amazing! Order ahead for a fresh loaf. (eat as is or lightly toasted...SOOOO GOOOD! #2 Fresh soy milk (with sugar or non sugar). Red Bean Mochi pastries are tasty too (if you like mochi). read more

JJ Bakery Chocolate Cake with Fruit..why did you suck so bad? You looked good in the display case so I picked you. I brought you to my best friend's b-day dinner tonight because I thought you were special. I dressed you up with b-day candles and showed you off to everyone. But you were so rude. You were tasteless, dry and your fruit tasted a little rotten. I am sure all my friends were thinking as they had to endure your nastiness out of politeness for me... why did she bring this piece of.... "CAKE"! You made me look like a fool ..and my tummy is feeling a little funny now. If you had them, I'd kick you square in the nards!! JJ, there is no next time and you can't make it up to me. I've seen the crowd you hang with... greasy bread, stale pork bun and sad fruit tart with the same funny tasting fruit. Yeah, that's right, I've picked up a few of them before you and been around your block more than enough times. You weren't my first.. but you will be my last. That's for sure! Laters, JJ. read more

Spend almost $30 for a chocolate strawberry cake for mother's day. It turned out more than 80% of the "cake" is the greasy sweet frosting. Barely any cake nor strawberry. They used to be good and the only bakery we wanted to buy cakes. But the quality has been going down in recent years. This chocolate strawberry cake is just the last straw. I will never bother to come again. read more

J.J. Bakery - This is the chocolate strawberry mothers day cake from JJ bakery. More than 80% of the cake is the greasy frosting. Gross! - Bakeries Near Me - Irvine, California

Once upon a time, when competitions were scarce and Taiwanese culture prevailed, this was a decent bakery and an oasis of treats and delights. Alas, no good things last forever. Two decades later, the original staff are long gone and disappeared with them the inspirations and passion for baking. Granted the store still look same, but u taste more grease in the fillings, u notice stale cakes more often. A few items are ok, but there is a general lack of enthusiasm and spirit. sadly that is also true of many other bakeries. read more

Aw JJ how I adore thee. You offer all the goodness of asian bread without the long lines and ridiculous people. You're choices are extensive and I love all your breads especially the pork sung ones. Mm mm! I do wish that you would continue to bake the bread throughout the day so when I come in at 3PM my choices arent cut back by half. But the late bird does not get the worm, so touche touche. I like that you have labels and prices on all your breads! Thanks for helping a sister out and letting me ballpark how much I'm spending unlike 85C. Your pastries are delicious, especially the strawberry ones. I have yet to order your cakes but in due time. NOW, onto my other favorite part about you: Your restaurant. The food is truly very good and such reasonable prices. Your tea can be a tad too sweet. I love the lunch specials though! read more

In terms of cafes, and relatively cheap food (especially in Irvine), this is definitely a 4 in my book. This a Saturday afternoon go to spot for my bf and I. We came here sort of on accident, and out of curiosity because every time we were at the bakery, we'd walk pass people and their food looked delicious. There's 4 things I'll speak for: JJ Herb Salted Chicken with rice and diced pork JJ Fried Chicken with a fried egg and diced pork Shredded chicken with diced pork and hardboiled flavored egg Taiwanese sausage fried rice. I've tried them all and love it. I think the dishes are about $6.75, and includes a crap load of food, green tea or milk tea (if its daytime) or broth if its at night. I'm not taiwanese so I can't say if it's authentic, but i do have functioning taste buds...and they tell me it's really good. To those who talk about authenticity, I kindly say screw you because food is food, and who's to say your version isn't watered down from generations before. Lol..with that said, my friend who recently moved to the U.S. will vouch for this place. Sidenote: they actually do accept credits if your bill is over $10. Just order your stuff, and tell them youll pay at the bakery side, bring back receipt, and you're good. read more

The cake here is dry and tasteless. It deceptively looks delicious, but is massively disappointing. The place itself is clean and looks to be kept at a good hygiene standard. Staff was friendly. Didn't try the bread but given how bad the cake is, I can't imagine the bread is any better if not maybe worse. Would go to 85´ for both. read more

JJ Bakery is an dishonest store! I went to JJ Bakery this morning to get some breakfast. I got what I wanted and the total came to $5.80. Since they have the $10 minimum for credit card charge and I didn't have any cash, they asked me if I wanted anything else. I felt bad for telling them no so I told them I'll add a large cup of coffee and toasts. I watched her add in my coffee and toast to my tab and saw that she charged me $2.95 for a large cup of coffee. I was thinking that it was one expensive cup of coffee when I saw a post it like note on the wall saying large coffee was only $1.95!!! What do you know, with my overcharged coffee and toast, the total came out to be $10.60! Enough to meet their minimum credit card charge! JJ Bakery - I could have you just charged me $5.80 for what I originally wanted but I was feeling bad for you. You turned around and jeeped me instead. Now you lost a customer and possibly many more once I tell everyone what you did...Was that really worth the extra $1 you took??? read more

This is not the original JJ Bakery! It is a complete knock-off of the "real" one, which has chains I know of in Arcadia and in the other 99Ranch plaza on Jeffrey. Immediately I noticed the different in aesthetic quality of their cakes and pastries. The taste is different too. Don't be fooled! Almost everything looks identical to the real JJ Sweet Bakery, but this place is a crock! read more

I have had dinner here a few times. Not bad! Their entrees come with soup, veggies, and rice. For around $7 it's a good place for a quick bite. But if you want quantity, definitely stop by Sam Woo! Haha. read more

Chocolate cake was dry. Baked goods bought are packed with no expiration/ best by date. Poor customer service. I have been here on a number of occasions and the bagger and cashier are always busy chatting, laughing with each other rather serve the customers more efficiently and productively. read more

JESSICA C. AND I WERE GOING TO OPEN A BAKERY CALLED JJ BAKERY, BUT this place got the name already. How sad However, I decided to check out this bakery before heading back home. 10 dollars MINIMUM to use credit card............. I didn't like that. They didn't have a lot of variety or any of the ones I absolutely love. Their bread tasted mediocre, yea I rather just stick with my 85 degrees! read more

I always stop by this cafe before I leave Irvine. I absolutely love their baked goods, and let alone, they're extremely affordable. Have yet to be let down. :) tips: be sure to have cash. they're charge a $10 minimum to use credit card. read more

Oh JJ Bakery why didn't my honey and I find you before we ate some rather disappointing Thai food close to our hotel?!?! Oh well. We got to drown some of our sorrow in your soft yummy buns. And exercise some self-restraint to not buy half the store to take home with us! My green tea almond cookies lasted a few days, making it hundreds of miles back home. And the soft chocolate cake wedge hit the spot! My husband's red bean paste goodies did not last that long. We miss you! read more

I was craving Taiwanese food and I have been deprived of it while being in San Diego. So when I was driving back from LA, per a friend's recommendation I came to JJ. JJ is a bakery and restaurant that serves Taiwanese baked goods and food. The guy who was helping us was extremely grumpy and was not very friendly. BOO. Anyway I ordered the pork dry noodle and my boyfriend had the pepper and beef fried rice, both were delicious and definitely calmed my Taiwanese food craving. It hit the spot. Although I wouldn't say it was the best I've had, it was still decent. The prices were reasonable and the service was fast. The bakery serves freshly baked Taiwanese pastries, from pineapple buns to porksung rolls. Everything I've had from the bakery is pretty delicious. I bought some items to take back to San Diego with me for breakfast. JJ is a great place to get a quick bite to eat with no fuss. Just a note they have a $5 minimum charge for credit card use; however, there are banks all around the plaza, I counted 4 different bank branches, so you will have no issues getting some cash. read more

JJ's is your typical Taiwanese/Asian bakery where you can find all your favorite asian bake treats. From the sweet breads to the scrmptious fruit cakes, you can find almost anythig. Normally I only get the bakery side, but tonight I decided to try the cafe side. First of all, I wasn't too impressed. The menu was three pages long, but didn't explain much, so I tried to stick to the simple dishes that I'm use to. I ordered the beef stew ($8). When the food came out, it wasn't what I expected. The stew was watery, and not thick like typical stew. It was accompanied by daikon chunks and carrots with a few pieces of diced green onions. The aroma was good, but overall a bit bland. The dish came with rice, corn, pickled vegetables, and an egg. If you go for dinner, your meal comes with soup rather than a drink which normally comes with the meal during lunch. Overall the food was rather bland. I didn't have high expectations an one of the major downfall is that they only except cash. The bakery does except cards, but they have a minimum. My final thoughts. Go to the bakery, but if u want food, walk a few steps to Sam woo's for the Chinese food. read more

It's usually really bad or really good for me to put up a review. This place sold me a frozen cake that I couldn't even cut. They assured me that they were freshly baked this morning. I tried to get a refund and they wouldn't do anything about it. The chiffon bread that I also bought had mold growing on the back that really really disgusting! I will not go back!! read more

The pastries aren't very good. Raisin crossaint, sandwiches did not have much flavor. Hot dog cheese bun wasn't good either. Milk tea was good and only $2.50 read more

My family went here for some Chinese breakfast. A few issues leading to 1star: 1. Cashier could not understand our order. Eggs over easy came sunny side up. Savory soy milk was not entered. 2. Food came out literally cold. Probably because it sat unattended while servers were not around to check. 3. Had to chase down toast for our order. Basically pointing to cashier the poor toast that was so lonely and out of place on the counter. 4. Chinese fried donut was over fried, and cold. Overall we experienced end to end incompetence at JJ, bad service would actually have been preferred. Food was substandard and completely unsatisfactory. Will not return. read more

hairs, hairs, and more hairs !!!! i have been a customer for several years, my favorite bread WAS cheese toast till i found a lot of short hairs on it.. NEVER going back there again. ..piece of advice check your bread before you eat it read more

LOVE the egg tarts, they are $1.50 each. J.J. Bakery is next to Ranch 99, I believe they deliver their baked goods to a nearby restaurant in the shopping center. The cashier is bilingual (English-Mandarin). They have a fairly good variety and great quality desserts and baked goods. Note that purchases under $5 must be in cash. read more

This place NEVER lets down! Their cakes, pastries, and plated desserts are always consistent. Fresh. I've never gotten desserts here I didn't like. And there's always someone around to write on the cake if it's a special occasion! read more

Do not get the cakes that are in the display. They are old. Do not get the cakes by slices either. They are also old. Instead, preorder the cake and you will get a fresh one. It's worth it. read more

Used to drive here every week when I was in my "OMGAH! Bakery!" phase. It's not that this place was amazing, but rather, it had a good variety and I like hot pastries. (And most of the stuff I tried was very good.) The garlic bread is interesting and doesn't taste like traditional garlic bread, so I like to get that when it's fresh. I also like the chocolate chip & walnut cookie when it's not hard as a rock. What I really love here, though, are the tea sandwiches. Although they don't contain cucumber like Champagne Bakery, they still taste really good with the thick toast, asian mayo, ham, cheese, and fried egg. The chicken pate chauds here are also good, but they have a bit too much onion and not enough chicken. Overall, this place still holds a place in my heart, as it helped teach me to be extremely critical of pretty cakes (that taste bad) and appreciate very fresh pastries. read more

Black forest cake was so bomb, and so was the creme brulee. The vanilla cake left something to be desired...but for only about $3 a slice, I'm not complaining. I love that you can get a variety of desserts without feeling like you are draining your wallet! read more

J.J. Bakery - Black forest cake (yes!), vanilla cake (meh), and creme brulee (yes!) - Bakeries Near Me - Irvine, California

Patty: Pigs in a blanket (hot dog rolled in bread) Pork sung roll, and their fried pork chop is sooo delicious. They don't have asian bakeries like this back at home so I love to come here when I'm feeling some asian pastry. I wouldn't try anything except the green tea they offer you with your meal at the restaurant/dine in place everything else is super sweet, like super duper sweet. Only downside is that they only take cash, so expect to make a stop at 99 ranch or atm like I do most of the time when I visit. Scott - Well this has to be my go to place for taiwanese food in irvine. On the cafe side, I usually order the JJ fried chicken and it comes out delicious 90% of the time. I usually get the fried pork chop which tops it when you come in the morning, when its the freshest. I have also tried the sausage here and its OK compared to the other items on their menu. The worst thing about this place has to be the tea that comes with the meal. Every single one that have gotten has been significantly worse that other places that serve tea. The only tea that tastes alright is the green tea and even that is very unimpressive. Luckily the food outweighs the drinks. On the bakery side, i usually get those pigs in a blanket. So far ive tried the custard bun, the pineapple bun, and the blueberry danish. 99 has a better version of the first 2, and many other bakeries have better danishes. Luckily the pig in a blanket here is noticably different than the 99 version. I can still give it a 4 star though, just because the jj fried chicken and jj fried pork chop are pretty amazing. read more

Came here last night with my wife for date night. She ordered the JJ Pork Chop Soup Noodle while I ordered the JJ Chicken and rice. I was not impressed. Though the prices were good for Irvine (less than $15 for both dishes) it wasn't all that good. I liked the meat sauce over the rice but the chicken was on the dry side and not that tasty. The sad excuse for soup (broth and turnip) didn't help. My wife's pork chop had decent flavor but the noodle soup was just that ... noodles in some sort of soup broth. On the plus side, the service was decent (semi-counter service) and the bakery is right next door. Next time, I'll probably skip on over to the Sam Woo next doors or get take out from the 99 Ranch around the corner. read more

I've only had the bakery items and cakes which can seriously satisfy some major PMS craving! The fruit is always super fresh and I love their little fruit tarts. I found the check out lady to be helpful and friendly. Yum! read more

They have really tasty pasties here that are quite fresh. I particularly enjoy the BBQ pork buns, the egg (custard) tarts, and the various coconut pastries. Occasionally they do run out of things early, but that is a sign that things aren't sitting around too long. I haven't tried their bread or their cakes, so I can't comment on those. read more

We love going to this restaurant for the inexpensive lunch specials that are all under $10 each. One of our favorite is their fried chicken item, that comes with a sizable portion of chicken, rice, egg, and vegetables. The lunch specials come with a drink and are very filling. There is a bakery right next to the restaurant where there are many breads and pastries. read more

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