Backhaus has been on my radar for forever, so I was so excited to finally try them on a Sunday…read moremorning. I came in around 9am and they were already sold out of some items, but I did manage to get my hands on one of their famous croissants! I ended up getting the Pistachio Raspberry Croissant and Chocolate Chip Cookie. Both pastries are PHENOMENAL. The Bay Area truly does have a fantastic pastry (especially croissant) scene, but Backhaus is definitely up there. I loved how well the flavors came through in both, and the textures were great. They were also baked perfectly. I definitely want to try more of their offerings in the future! In general, this place well deserves the hype.

The plain croissant was excellent--beautifully flaky with a delicate sweetness and satisfying…read morecrunch on the outside, while remaining soft and pillowy on the inside. The chocolate croissant was just as good, featuring the perfect balance of sweet and slightly bitter chocolate wrapped in layers of buttery, flaky pastry. The latte, topped with a leaf design, was rich, smooth, and flavorful. It provided the perfect pick-me-up while making a headache disappear. The café offers plenty of seating both indoors and outdoors, with additional space upstairs and downstairs. Friendly staff, a welcoming atmosphere, delicious pastries, and good coffee make this cafe well worth a visit.

Bonjour Bakehouse is a hidden gem located near SFO in a quirky residential area. They offer coffee,…read moreteas, both savory and sweet scones, and some unique pastries. The pastry selection is incredibly large so its normal to feel overwhelmed. There is no parking lot, only street parking so expect a little walk. There are a few outdoor tables as well as some inside tables. There are two gender neutral restrooms which both have baby changing stations which I would say is very thoughtful for families. * Lemon scone - very soft and more cakelike in texture. Lemon flavor is strong but not overwhelming. The sugar glaze makes it a bit sticky and counteracts the tart lemon tang. * Cinnamon roll- *only sold on sundays* This was delicious! The cinnamon roll is light with a crisp exterior and delicate notes of cinnamon spread throughout the pastry. The cream cheese frosting is decadent and creamy. Its a good ratio and doesn't feel too heavy to eat by yourself. * Salmon scone- I ordered this because I was craving something savory. It was pretty small so no more than a few bites. The bagel seasoning on top adds texture and grainy salt bits. The salmon is soft and smoky. It was good but compared to the other pastries, it didn't stand out to me. * Caramel latte (hot) - it was lightly sweetened, with balanced coffee flavor and milk. The coffee isn't too acidic and very easy to drink. I like that the drink wasn't too sweet so you could enjoy the pastries together. Bonjour Bakehouse stands out for their wonderful selection of high quality pastries and solid coffee options. If you're looking for overly sweet specialty coffee, I would look elsewhere. They serve authentic coffee using Ikon Coffee beans. Their outdoor patio is great for soaking up some sun with your pup.

3.5*** Rando place…read morethat's right across from an industrial building and surrounding area so, it feels like you're lost and plus parking isn't great. Despite that, service was great. There's seating inside and outdoors. It looks linked to an actual kitchen - guessing that's why it's called Kitchentown. Taste testing done on site in addition to production? If so, that's efficient! The food looked yummy! Ordered: Egg-tine 7/10 The black sesame seeds were good but then the sunflower seeds adding with the cheese in the center, uhh, it was ok. I took off the center - see pic of actual product with the center in tact. That made it taste better. The croissant was my fave part - crispy yet flaky and oh so soft in the middle. Jamon fromage 10/10 Basically, a ham n cheese croissant. This was delish. Unsure if you've eaten at Croissante; but, their jamon fromage isn't that great compared to this. Theirs has mayo, which completely throws off the taste for me. In any case, this was a success. Latte 3/10 Way too milky and not enough flavor.

I went during the soft opening. It's a really nice place. I got a baguette and a ham and cheese…read morecroissant to go. Both were excellent, though a bit pricey. I'll definitely be back to try the other items on the menu.

Cute new bakery storefront and cafe in SOMA. Nice large interior with plenty of seating. Bright…read moremurals in the walls. Service was a little lackluster. Staff seems very young. Pastries are just ok. Not sure what the hype is about. Got the pain au chocolate and the almond croissant. Didn't like either of them. Both were very dense. Unfortunately the almond croissant had very little almond paste within. And both seemed slightly dry.

My favorite place to get bread. Either here or in SSF they are wonderful. When I had a catering…read morebusiness they were my main supplier and people LOVED the bread. From hot, fresh sourdough or Dutch crunch to half cooked (fresh) bread from the fridge, it is all damn good!! Also I enjoy their pizza from time to time and of course the beautiful ladies behind the counter are fantastic and sweet! Be nice to them! One lady makes the sweets and when you get them fresh they are addictive! I have to be careful and control myself around those cookies! The owners (two brothers) are fantastic people who deserve support from the community. They are honest and respectable yet humble folks. My business belongs to them and I always tell folks to try this place, you won't regret it!

I discovered Raymond's Sourdough Bread when a friend noticed their building on the El Camino and…read moretold me to check it out. Parking is not easy so plan on parking up the street just past Charles Schwab and walk a bit. As to the bread, WOW yes its delicious! I just enjoyed a big loaf of Raymond's Ciabatta with my home-made soup. They have a nice large show room where you can see what's available and check out the breakfast goodies! I'm going to be a regular!

First time trying this out, my friends told me these cookies are delicious... well they were right,…read morethe cookies were so good! This shop is small, the service was great and I liked how they also write down on their menu if they are low on cookies and how many are left. They also have a small oven where you can WARM UP YOUR COOKIE(S)! Such a great idea, highly recommend checking this place out for their cookies.

We stop by Antoine's almost every time we're in San Mateo to pick up a cookie. My boyfriend and I…read morehave slowly been working our way through the menu and trying a different cookie each time. The cookies are consistently good--crispy around the edges, soft in the center, and slightly chewy. They're sweet, of course, but not overly sugary or overwhelming. I also appreciate that there's a microwave inside so you can warm up your cookie. So far, we haven't tried a cookie we didn't like. It's become one of our favorite spots to grab a treat, and we'll keep coming back until we've made our way through the entire menu.

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 will drive over 40 minutes just to get my coffee fixed. I don't think I've ever had a bad cup of…read morecoffee here. They measure everything that goes into your cup. Although the lines are kind of long it's always worth it. Waiting outside in the San Mateo sun and walking in to fresh AC air is truly the best. Not that it matters, but if you walk into the restroom. Ummm, hello bidet! Cus why is it such a nice bathroom, it screams luxury. They also have different types of milk, so if you're lactose don't be afraid.

Stopped by on an early Friday morning to see what the hype is all about. We still had to wait in a…read moreshort line within the cafe. Out of the 3 drinks we ordered, the miso caramel latte was the standout. It was sweet, but the saltiness of the miso caramel helped to balance it out. I would order this again if we return. The sesame latte was way too sweet for me. Only order if you like extra sweet drinks. The matcha latte was not good at all. It tasted like iced milk, as there was barely any matcha (was a light green once mixed). I think it would help to serve these in a smaller cup so there's a lot less milk, or add extra ice to decrease the milk volume. I'm surprised that people seem to be really big fans of their matcha drinks, but it's possible that it was a consistency issue.

I was looking for the best carrot cake in the area for someone who loves carrot cake for their…read morebirthday and my search led me here! I also wanted something the kids/guests enjoyed and something different so I decided to see if I could add vanilla ice cream to the cake, and they said, "Of course! We haven't done this before but I think that would taste good." And lo and behold, it was amazing- it was a hit with the birthday boy and the guests as well. Their carrot cake is amazing (moist and not too sweet) and they helped with my crazy questions and ideas along the way. I will def go back to have them create my cakes for other occasions! I've previously come here for their ice cream and smaller desserts, which were all great. The service is friendly and quick. Very clean and some seating inside, tho we always just pick up and take items to go.

The cake itself was moist and had a strong matcha flavor, which was a huge plus. A lot of matcha…read morecakes and pastries tend to have a very subtle matcha taste, so I was pleasantly surprised by how much the matcha flavor came through. I'm also not a huge frosting person, and I believe the cream was buttercream, which was probably the biggest downside for me. It wasn't overly sweet, but the consistency was just too thick for both my husband and me. I even tried leaving it out for over an hour to see if it would soften, but it remained dense. I do wish there were more fruit in the filling. It was mainly cream and a few berries. We sliced the cake on Saturday, and by Monday the exposed part of the cake from where it was cut had become pretty dry. I ended up cutting off the dry outer layer, but thankfully the inside was still moist, so I was able to enjoy the rest of the cake. Ordering through Square was easy. I ordered the 4-inch cake with a marble design, matcha cake, strawberry cream, and strawberries. One thing to note is that if you order the 4-inch cake, there wasn't a section to add custom text. You'll need to email or call them with your order number to let them know what you want written on the cake. Overall, the highlight of the cake was definitely the cake itself. The moisture and strong matcha flavor really stood out and were my favorite parts. If I were to order from this bakery again, I'd probably try a different filling and cream because the buttercream just wasn't for me, but that's more of a personal preference.