Mmmmmm! Moist, delicious, and filling muffin with a rich warm mocha this morning at Sweet Elena's was the perfect way to start my day before exploring West End. I met Nancy Russell, the artist whose charming paintings currently decorate the walls like effervescent and enthusiastic confetti. There are colorful renderings of garden cats, coffee shop chats, and flights of pure whimsy. Nancy was charming and friendly. Then George, a frequent customer and legend, came in and charmed the room with his sunny, friendly smile. It was exactly the kind of coffee/ bakery that everyone would love. I left happy and smiling. I will be back! read more

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We got here around 10am and they were sold out of a bunch of pastries. I got the ham & swiss and they put grated cheese on top and so when it was warmed up the cheese burned a bit and made the taste of the croissant not great. Overall, I wouldn't go back because of the limited options and I didn't love what I got for the price, but it wasn't bad. read more

4 stars Unfindable on Apple Maps but 30 years old. I stumbled on this spot trying a new street. Rosemary Ginger Lemonade: good Plain Croissant: solid Almond Croissant: I'm particular about this and this an excellent example. Ham Pizza: very nice. Lovely tomato and herb base with dollops of crème fresh. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Rosemary Ginger Lemonade, croissant, ham pizza - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

Cute place with delicious breakfast and coffee! Our group had the quiche, bacon and egg croissant, cinnamon roll, & almond croissant-along with Pumpkin Cheesecake & Cookie Butter Lattes (not too sweet believe it or not). In an industrial stretch but quiet enough to enjoy sitting outside. Would definitely return! read more

Stopped here for a quick breakfast on the way home from Monterey, and it was a fantastic find. The horchata latte and vanilla lavender latte were both excellent. The ham and cheese croissant was incredibly flaky, buttery, and delicious. I also tried the strawberry custard danish and loved that it wasn't overly sweet. Everything tasted fresh and thoughtfully made. I'd definitely stop by again when passing through! read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

My wife and I came in with high expectations after seeing many videos on social media (Instagram). Overall, the latte and cappuccino were very good, and the pastries were also well made with great flavor--everything was just right. The only issue for us was the service experience. Social media sometimes shows a very different image from reality. We felt there was no warm welcome, and the staff came across as a bit cold when taking our order. Even the owner just looked at us without greeting us. We'll give this place another chance, as we'd like to believe it might have just been an off day. We hope to see some improvement in that area moving forward. read more

YELP ELITE EVENT: Staff were so polite and kind. Alana let me choose two bakery items, and two cookies, and a beverage. WoW super generous. I chose a Cinammon roll and chocolate almond croissant. Horchata latte with almond milk. My husband grabbed the Cinammon roll the second he saw it. Chocolate was just drizzled which I preferred across the almond croissant: perfect combination. Chose ginger cookie and chocolate. Nice and chewy with good flavors Horchata was sweet needed no extra sugar and the coffee was tasty. Overall plus 5 stars rating for generosity and choices. Thank you Sweet Elena's read more

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This was the first time into this sweet little bakery-cafe. The whole atmosphere is cozy and inviting, like sitting around grandma's kitchen table for a sweet treat and the perfect cup the wash it down. Between the variety of delicious choices, it was hard to make a decision on what to order. I ended up with a box full of pastries and an iced horchata latte - YUM! The staff were gracious and friendly as they helped me with my order. I highly recommend this hidden gem for its homemade goodness and bright and cozy atmosphere. This bakery will definitely become a regular spot for me! read more

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Went here after seeing their pumpkin cheesecake latte posted on Instagram the night before. They didn't have the cheesecake foam, so why promote something if you don't have it? She gave me vanilla foam instead and still charged me the same price which was nearly $10 (crazy price). The coffee was bland, I didn't taste the pumpkin and felt like a vanilla latte that I overpaid for. Overall, overpriced and not worth it. read more

I convinced a good friend of mine to join me for a walk around Sand City and admire the murals. After a few miles of switchbacks, we stumbled upon this coffee shop. The friendly staff, relaxed atmosphere, excellent coffee, and delectable cakes made it an instant hit. It's a hidden gem, but I'm certain I'll find reasons to return. Highly recommended! read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Cafe Latte - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

This place is amazing!!! Being raised in Eastern Europe on fresh baked goods, I have high standards. Everything was delicious! The crust on my quiche was super flaky. Not pictured but we had the strawberry rhubarb tart and that was the best thing ever. Will definitely be back. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Bacon and egg croissant (back) and spinach/Swiss quiche - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

We tried the ham and cheese quiche along with the strawberry rhubarb and Ollie berry tarts all 3 were delicious. Highly recommend. Honey oat Latte was great too. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Strawberry rhubarb and Ollie berry tarts. - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

Since my last review, I've given Sweet Elena's another try and explored more of their pastry offerings beyond the lemon and strawberry rhubarb tarts. Their pain au chocolat might be the best in the area--perfectly balanced and satisfying without being too flaky. The quiches are also flavorful and well-seasoned, though I personally wish they had a bit more crust. That said, my concerns about the coffee and service remain. Each visit, the staff feels a bit unapproachable--interactions are bland and rarely met with a smile. Nothing needs to be overly cheerful, but a little friendliness would go a long way. This morning (Sunday at 8 a.m.), it wasn't very busy. The customer ahead of me ordered two cappuccinos, and one staff member went to prep a to-go order for another guest. After I ordered, two more customers came in and stood quietly waiting. A quick "We'll be right with you--feel free to try the samples" would've been a nice touch. Also, if you're offering samples, a small sign noting what they are would be helpful. Now for my biggest gripe: the lattes always feel half full, even when I ask for no foam. It happened again today. At $5.75 plus $2 for an extra shot--nearly $9--I expect a full drink. Most local spots deliver better consistency and value. Bottom line: Sweet Elena's shines with its pastries (especially the pain au chocolat), but I wouldn't go out of my way for the coffee. Worth a visit for baked goods, but keep your expectations in check when it comes to drinks and service. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - My medium triple shot latte that came half full even after i said no foam - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

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Food is great Thursday market staff friendly Service is top notch Ambiance is a good vibe Love this place read more

The place is small and has nice patio seating. Nestled in an industrial area so kinda unexpected location. The food is good but not unique enough to be a place I would seek out to go to since I didn't like the service. The young woman serving customers doesn't seem to have the right personality for a service related job. I hope they realize the disservice they are doing to this small business owner to be the sole negative aspect of multiple unrelated customer's experience. No greeting, she did not crack a smile while helping others or myself. Maybe that is the vibe they are going for? My partner and I asked her about the flavors of the pies. He is pointing to a specific pie and asking what flavor it is but she didn't walk over to that display case to help clarify. Just stood by the register and said loudly what flavors they had. Since she wouldn't walk over to point out which displayed pie corresponded with which flavor we just choose an obvious one, the apple pie. We also had a chicken pot pie. The apple pie was very good; Not overly sweet. The chicken pot pie crust is good but the filling was not creamy. I couldn't identify the herb used but it was strong for me cause that is what I tasted towards the end of each bite I didn't like. 20 minutes to closing time a customer walks in and she refuses to serve them sit down. That's a lot of time yet until closing to deny service for a place that doesn't cook? I felt like she was going to close the door shut right at 1 and leave. read more

Omg. I absolutely love this shop. it's super cute and has a great artsy vibe with the best quiche ever. i Feel like it's a real hidden gem in A cute area, the shop is always clean with A friendly vibe you can't go wrong coming here, I highly recommend the only downfall is the staff needs to be more lively they are not rude but not very talkative they are very polite but stiff. Please check it out I love it there TY read more

Had the spinach and ham quiche and a Horchata Latte!! Yum!! Probably one of the best quiches I've ever had!! it was light and buttery, and just absolutely delicious!! Although it's tucked away and not seen very well, it is a gem of a find!! Too bad they couldn't find a place that's more visible. I believe they would have so much more business. Will be back for sure!! read more

This place is so cute! I love how up and coming Sand City is these days, and I hope that sweet Elena's (and the awesome paint store next door) never changes! The girls are so sweet and helpful. We shared a smoked salmon and leek quiche, a spinach and Swiss quiche, 2 ham and Swiss croissants (one for later of course), and we also got a tart and bran muffin, along with one cup of coffee. $43! Very reasonable considering the quality of the freshly made baked goods. I have a feeling I'll be dreaming of that salmon quiche for weeks. Plus they have a great little dog friendly patio. Bonus points for the cool local art by Ray Parks on their walls that are for sale. I'm so happy to be introduced to this place. It's fantastic! read more

Such a cute hole in the wall and I can tell locals love this little gem. Their quiche is amazing, so amazing that I came back twice in a weekend. I don't think you can go wrong with any of their pastries, so freaking good. The workers are so sweet and wholesome too. ig: @cravingswithcat read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - ig: @cravingswithcat - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

The customer service was appalling. I'm a local and I like to support local businesses. I usually enjoy their delicious pastries, coffee, installations by local artists and casual vibe. Yesterday at lunch, I had the most unfortunate experience. First the cappuccino was bitter. I had to add sweetener and there were no stirrers. When I asked for a spoon I was directed by their surly staff to use a plastic one in a container that said they were for to go orders only. I waited at least twenty minutes for my quiche and when I asked about it was told I hadn't ordered the quiche and offered a receipt. When the staff member looked at the receipt she realized that I had ordered the quiche. No apology, no receipt just a grumbled, I will bring it right over. A few minutes later, it arrived under heated and under cooked. I wasn't about to ask for them to heat it more, so I requested a to go box. The staff member rudely tossed one to me. read more

Great place for Almond croissant and quiche. Service was friendly and helpful in describing the variety of quiche. Small quaint place. Highly recommend the almond croissant! Delicious! read more

I read about this little bakery in the Food and Wine magazine in the Monterey Weekly. It said the Elena had perfected her recipe for almond croissants and had passed the recipe on to the new owners when she sold the bakery. Since we were headed over to Home Depot anyway, this looked like a great side trip. We spotted it after roaming around a bit behind Home Depot. Cute outdoor eating area, cute bird decor indoors and an ample selection of baked goods! A very friendly staff member rang up the last two almond croissants and we dug in! These were the best croissants I have ever had! Light and delicate crust with a very unctuous almond filling! A bit like an apple pie crust taste to the croissant made them refectory delicious. read more

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We got the two most amazing quiches you have ever seen and they were delicious. One was gluten free and it was top notch! The other was ham and swiss, everyone raved about both. !! Great service and nice people. Everything in the storefront looked amazing. Ill be back!! read more

My family took a vacation to Monterey for a long weekend and for breakfast during the week I swung by here for some pastries. We were all pretty disappointed with the quality of the pastries from here. First, the place has almost no dedicated parking, as there are 5-6 autobody/mechanic shops filling the whole block with disabled vehicles and work trucks taking up every open spot anywhere for 300ft. So you'll have to either park in front of the paint shop next door (sign says for their shop only) or stuggle to find an open spot along the road somewhere. The main disappointment is that the pastries are basically Costco quality. I ordered a range of croissants which were almost the only thing they sell here. They were bready and soggy from the display. This is only 10min after they officially open, so I'm pretty confident they were made either much earlier this morning (4am-ish) or prepared offsite at a commercial bakery and brought in. Otherwise the only explanation is that they are day old and just left in the window until someone buys them... The staff (3-4 people) were mostly busy moving pastries around from the back room to the front space. Didn't seem like they were used to having customers around in the morning. There were 5 people just milling around. Not sure why, as everyone was just ordering from the display cases. The croissants were not buttery or crispy or flaky. They had a mealy tough texture and the chocolate filling (one was a chocolate croissant) was pretty stodgy and seemed like it made have split from reheating a couple times. Oh and the cost! $23 for 4 croissants. Just crazy. It would be acceptable if these were great, high quality pastries that were actually prepared fresh and by hand... but they were just sad reheated lumps of bread. TL;DR: Not good and expensive! read more

Great for the holidays! We got two pies for our large family over Thanksgiving that we all loved. We got the Ollalieberry and Apple Crumb, both perfectly baked with generous fillings. Very fair prices for the pie sizes as well. It was very easy to make an order and had no issues when picking up. Make sure you reheat before serving! Definitely will be ordering more holiday specials for Christmas. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

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Food is excellent, we ordered a spinach quiche, a croissant and apple strudel, plus coffee . We enjoyed , it was very tasty. Ambiance very casual. They have to train their staff in hospitality , they weren't very nice or kind from the start to the end. Btw this is my second time coming over, the first time was great and I was back in the area so I decided to enjoy it again, bad choice. To the owner: describe the name of the pastry and price them please. The tray where you place the dishes after you are done should be on sight for everyone to know that it's the responsibility of the clients to place the dishes away when you are done. Your cashier told me that twice is less than two minutes away from the first time and I already acknowledged that. read more

"An Absolute Gem in Sun City!" If you're in Sun City, make sure to stop by this local treasure! Everything here is made from scratch, and it absolutely shows. The pastries and coffee are decadent and savory--each bite and sip is a treat for the senses. Beyond the food, the team is warm, gracious, and truly makes you feel welcome. You can tell every item is crafted with love and passion for what they do. It's not just a coffee shop; it's an experience. A must-try spot for anyone visiting the area! "¡Una Joya en Sun City!" Si estás en Sun City, asegúrate de visitar este tesoro local. Todo aquí se hace desde cero, y se nota. Los pasteles y el café son decadentes y sabrosos: cada bocado y cada sorbo son un verdadero placer. Además de la comida, el equipo es amable, atento y te hace sentir bienvenido. Se nota que cada producto está hecho con amor y pasión por lo que hacen. No es solo una cafetería; es toda una experiencia. ¡Un lugar que debes probar si visitas la zona! read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

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Came in and no one acknowledged us for a bit, which was fine because they were occupied with making drinks but was odd because they were taking a long time to make the drinks. Ordered lattes and quiches. Quiches were decent warmed up. The lattes took a long time and came out lukewarm, which was kinda awful. Service was slow. The place itself is cute though - lots of art and cozy. read more

I've ordered a few Items form thanksgiving and the customer service over the phone has been exemplary!!!! I look forward to eating the delicious baked goods!!!! read more

I had a really unacceptable experience here. I ordered a sandwich, and the staff accidentally dropped it on the floor right in front of me. They apologized and said they would remake it -- but they didn't. They handed me the exact same sandwich that had just been on the floor and acted like it was a new one. What makes it worse is that I later saw them posting jokes on social media about dropping customers' food, like it's something funny. It's not. It's dishonest, it's unsanitary, and it shows a complete lack of respect for customers. Food safety and honesty should be the bare minimum. I won't be coming back, and I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone who cares about basic hygiene. read more

Was there not that long ago The latte was decent but could've been better, service was poor because I wasn't greeted when I walked in and I believe the owner was there from what I've seen on social media I'm assuming she was the owner but her energy felt very off. Overall I was to excited for this place just to get disappointed read more

Today , was my first time at Sweet Elena's I'm from Southern California and just moved here . My husband sent me in to pick him up a Iced mocha with whipped cream which I was going to order for the both of us , and when I was in line I had tasted one of their samples they had out it was of their apple comb tart . Can I just say my taste buds were exploding of how delicious it tasted. The costumer service was amazing and also the environment of this place just feels warm and welcoming . It is a hidden gem and a local spot that I'm so blessed to have learned about. I do recommend this place for studying and doing any online work they have free WiFi just as a bonus with adorable wood tables . read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Apple Crumb Tart (5 Inch) - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

tidy and clean café, friendly service, staff, and their Ollalieberry was excellent. The lattes are excellent also. read more

Sweet Elena's Bakery & Cafe - Bakeries Near Me - Seaside, California

We stopped her for breakfast while in Monterey for a trip. So many yummy options! We didn't try the coffee since we had made some at home but we did try a few of their breakfast goodies. I had a quiche with spinach and cheese which was delicious and my husband had a turkey bacon sandwich. Highly recommend this place for an easy breakfast. Would be perfect to grab and go for the beach. read more

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I love the feel of this shop. It feels personable and artsy. Coffee and drinks are great but the pastries take the cake! I would recommend supporting this small business any chance you get. Cute patio as well. read more

Divine! My boyfriend & I decided to visit Sweet Elena's, after I've been recommended to come here & after I had one of their pastries from the farmers market. And I'm glad we did. The establishment itself is a little hidden within the streets of the city of Seaside. It also has parking upfront. It's a super cute establishment, with indoor & outdoor seating Service was beyond friendly & very sweet. My boyfriend & I both decided to order a horchata Latte, although we got 1 iced & 1 hot. We also went ahead & order a almond croissant & a chocolate almond croissant. Everything was to die for! The lattes in both versions, were sweet and creamy, & the croissants were flaky, crunchy & nutty. Although, I do have to say, they have lots of the almond filling inside, or at least the almond croissant did. Overall, I had a lovely experience, and I would come again. read more

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Visiting Monterey via our Airbnb in sand city. Found this cafe on a morning walk. The area is pretty commercial/industrial but this little gem is nestled in there. We had a veggie gallet and a spinach tomato quiche. I also ordered the ginger lemonade. The space is simple but the menu is lovely. Excellent spot for breakfast, lunch, or to grab some homemade cookies to go. read more

Love love love this little gem!!! The food is so delicious and the service is quick and friendly and the ambiance of the restaurant is spectacular. So quaint. I love this place! read more

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This is a great find in the industrial area. The pastries and sandwiches taste so good. Had the lavender latte, it was good! Friendly atmosphere and good service. read more

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The ham & cheese quiche was excellent. We all enjoyed our lattes. I especially like the horchata latte, which wasn't too sweet, as you might think it would be. read more