Is there a restaurant like this where you live?

[Julie in CA]

I'm working on a business plan. what I have in mind is sort of an upscale (for my small rural town, lol!) cafe/bakery.

Light breakfast and lunch menu, with baked goods in a beautiful pastry case. Not cutesy, and more sophisticated in decor and feel than the usual hole-in-the-wall breakfast joint.

Is there a restaurant like this near you? Do you like it?

If you're comfortable telling me the name of the restaurant, I'd love to look it up online.

[Unicorn.]

P'ming you

[plansrme]

Sugar Cakes, Marietta Square, Marietta, GA. I can't link, but they have a web page.

 

They also make wedding cakes, or used to, and have several on display. Light, yummy breakfast and lunch menu, and pastries to eat there or take (individually cellophane-wrapped cookies, especially). At Christmas, they sold whole fruit tarts on special order that looked amazing.

 

Terri

[Happy]

Not exactly like you describe, but Main Street Bakery in Grapevine, Texas. It's a hopping little bakery/cafe. I go there to get a French eclair fix or to take visitors for a 'local' breakfast.

 

More French and less cutesy. Yes, I'd come to your place in a heartbeat.

[Violet Crown]

Upper Crust, Austin, Texas.

[MrsMommy]

I'm not sure this is exactly what you're looking for, because it's really a full-on bakery that just happens to serve breakfast/have a deli. But they do have beautiful pastry cases that make me drool (which was especially cruel last year when I had to go in there when I had gestational diabetes!). It's the best place in St. Louis to buy a cake (and other treats), imo!

[Joker]

This is one of our favorites places to go.

[Dmmetler]

La Baguette in Memphis-it's wonderful.

[tearose]

Just found this place by googling, but the menu is making me drool: http://oatmealsny.com/

[nmoira]

The Fleur de Lis and Bridges Cafe. They also do outside catering.

 

http://fleurdelisbakery.com/

http://www.bridgescafeandcatering.net/

[Erica in OR]

Petite Provence. http://provencepdx.com/

 

I hadn't realized it was a mini-chain. We've been to one of the locations and it's a lot like you describe.

 

Now I'm hungry for some baked goods.

 

Erica in OR

[BarbecueMom]

I'm not sure this is exactly what you're looking for, because it's really a full-on bakery that just happens to serve breakfast/have a deli. But they do have beautiful pastry cases that make me drool (which was especially cruel last year when I had to go in there when I had gestational diabetes!). It's the best place in St. Louis to buy a cake (and other treats), imo!

 

 

Our wedding cake came from there. I had no idea they had breakfast and deli food.

 

The Blue Owl (can't link from phone, should be first thing that pops up in Google) sounds close to what you're looking for.

[Annie G]

Sugar Cakes, Marietta Square, Marietta, GA. I can't link, but they have a web page.

 

They also make wedding cakes, or used to, and have several on display. Light, yummy breakfast and lunch menu, and pastries to eat there or take (individually cellophane-wrapped cookies, especially). At Christmas, they sold whole fruit tarts on special order that looked amazing.

 

Terri

 

 

 

Since you're familiar with the area, do you know the name of the little French place just off the square? They have wonderful breakfasts and lunches, and their pastries are delicious!!!! We moved from the area 20 years ago but go back to visit family and always eat there after a trip to the local quilt stores. I think it;s also very close to the kind of place Julie is talking about...and we always try to get a table that allows a view of the guys in the kitchen making the pastries....fun!!

 

Edit: Found it- Douceur De France in Marietta, Georgia. The website doesn't show the pastries, and evidently they don't do breakfast. I know we've been there that early before but it was several years ago.

[Heatherwith4]

Shea's Express Huntsville, AL

[Plink]

Black Forest Cafe: http://theblackforestcafe.com/index.php?submenu=aboutus&src=gendocs&link=What+We%27re+All+About

 

I love it there - it is my grown-up place to hang out with my girlfriends when we leave the kids at home with their dads.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Pm'd you

[Caitilin]

Not in my town, but in Billings MT, my mother took me here: http://www.caramelcookiewaffles.com/cafe.htm. It was a little cute, but not cutesy. I'd definitely visit your cafe!

[Caitilin]

Oh, and this one in Santa Fe, where my aunt worked for a bit: http://www.thefrenchpastryshop.com/

[Orthodox6]

OT, but perhaps you can tell me whatever happened to the Wildflowers Bakery in Grapevine. (I think that was the name.) The young people running it had gone to Germany to study whole grain baking, and their breads were out-of-this world delicious! I live in the Metroplex, but not "right there".

 

If you happen to know, thanks so much for any answer!

 

 

Not exactly like you describe, but Main Street Bakery in Grapevine, Texas. It's a hopping little bakery/cafe. I go there to get a French eclair fix or to take visitors for a 'local' breakfast.

 

More French and less cutesy. Yes, I'd come to your place in a heartbeat.

 

[SJ.]

 

La Tartine, now I'm hungry for a croissant!

[extendedforecast]

PM sent.

[Cafdog]

The cute little country store and cafe at the Michael David winery in Lodi has great sandwiches, soup, and pie, and is always busy during the day. http://www.michaeldavidwinery.com/

[Tutor]

Not sure how to link from my phone, but you might want to check out HoneyBee Bakery and Big Bad Breakfast. Both are in Oxford, MS. Both focus on local foods, and the chef from BBB has been nationally recognized for his food and his business models (he owns four restaurants in Oxford).

[OrganicAnn]

Not my town, but I ate a muffin or cupcake from this place once.

 

http://www.cakeflouronmarket.com/

[Crimson Wife]

PM'd you.

[Sparkle]

http://www.ettores.com/ I haven't eaten here in quite a while, but it's a popular place and the food is good; the bakery is the best part of it. I don't really like the fast-casual set-up though (I think that's what it's called) where you have to order at the counter and they bring your food to you. It's awkward if you want to order more food/drinks/dessert later. They do serve dinner here as well but I think it has more of a reputation as a bakery/brunch place.

 

http://www.yelp.com/biz/ettores-european-bakery-and-restaurant-sacramento Yelp reviews

[sgo95]

Sending you a PM.

[newlifemom]

http://gerryfrankskonditorei.com/

 

I guess they serve dinner too. I have not eaten there. I'm told the desserts are to die for, the food, not so much.

 

Good luck to you. You can do it.

[lailasmum]

This place near us sounds a lot like that. A friend of mine goes there a lot.

 

Royal William Bakery.

 

There are a few places like this near us. They all tend to have a rustic farmer market type feel except the one I went to next to my sister's house in London which is a french cafe with a bakery, that was more of a shabby chic type place. There is a an amazing little cafe in our town that does really lovely simple lunches, lots of different sorts of salads and tarts/quiches and they do smoothies. They also do what they call gourmet sandwiches which have unusual breads and fillings. They started doing posh pizza too a couple of evenings a week.

[Mom0012]

Julie, I don't know of a restaurant like that in our area, but have you ever watched "Best Food Ever" on Netflix? They showcase different types of restaurants/eateries. There are maybe 5 episodes, but there might be something in there to inspire you.

[Isabella]

Nothing like that where I am, but I would definitely go to it regularly if there was! I can imagine it would become a favourite breakfast/brunch place to go with good friends!

[MissKNG]

Panera Bread

[Country Mouse]

La Farm Bakery in Cary, NC

[Cosmos]

Panera Bread

 

 

It does sound like Panera, doesn't it? I hadn't made that connection.

 

We have a Panera here, but all the other breakfast places in the area are diners. Delicious food (including lots of local ingredients) and wonderful service, but not really what the OP is describing.

[AngelaNYC]

I like the Corner Cafe in Manhattan. They have so much to choose from, the decor is really nice, and the food's great.

[Beth in OH]

Mozart's Bakery Cafe, Columbus, OH

 

This restaurant is also open for dinner, but the "breakfast/lunch only" concept is very popular here in OH. If you found that people still wanted bakery items after the kitchen closed, would you be able to keep just the bakery open longer?

[Dandelion]

http://www.labaguettefrenchbistro.com/index.html

http://www.marigoldcoloradosprings.com

 

Both of these restaurants started out as simply breakfast/lunch cafes (with in-house bakeries). They've both been very successful (always packed) and both have now expanded their hours to offer dinner as well. On the Marigold's website, if you wait for the pictures to scroll on their home page, you'll see a picture of their gorgeous pastry case (#4). So, so good. :drool5:

[LucyStoner]

I live in a city, so there are quite a few that sound like your description. My favorite is called Cafe Besalu, but it's quite small and the menu outside the pastry case is pretty limited. It's also a straight up pastry place. Not a lot of other types of desserts. They make the best pastry dough ever.

 

Le Fournil is another. Bakery with a soup/salad/sandwich lunch and a few breakfast selections.

 

Dahlia Bakery is probably closest to your description. It is owned and operated by a local restauranteur who owns a slew of places, all different from each other. http://tomdouglas.com/index.php?page=dahlia-bakery-photos

[kalanamak]

When I think of your little town, I think of Chase County Kansas.

 

http://www.chasecountyks.org/pages/dining.htm

 

This is RURAL. These eating places have been going strong for years.

[KungFuPanda]

 

 

Have you perused the La Madeleine menu? Their pastry case isn't on it, but it's always full of yumminess.

 

http://www.lamadeleine.com/

 

Also, looking at the menus of tea houses might give you ideas.

[Elinor Everywhere]

Ramos Cafe in San Juan Capistrano is one of my all-time favorites.

http://www.ramoshouse.com/

 

 

[elegantlion]

One like that recently opened in our small town. We haven't been there yet, but it's small. They must have had a presence in town before they opened a storefront. I notice they do a lot with the schools and through some local businesses. They are active on facebook (which is why I know about them) and list specials and tempt me with pictures almost daily.

 

They have a separate room for people wanting to schedule meetings and such. Their name reflects the high school mascot, it's cute.

 

When I was just out of high school, I worked at an ice cream shop that tried to expand into a sandwich shop. I can tell you how not to do that. Just my observations. The couple that owned the place I worked had a good circle of influence, but the building was 15-20 minutes away from most of that. People had to go out of their way to visit. They had also bought an existing store (worked for the previous owners too - they only wanted a write off not success) and they had to break free of the reputation of the previous owners. Plus, I was often left alone in the store during a rush. I was barely 18 trying to fill orders for 5-7 people at once. For someone who was trained to scoop ice cream, not craft sandwiches it was a bad deal. Obviously, this was before the Internet, but being outside a good location for friends to hang out made a difference. Also the previous owners had some weird associations that wouldn't go away after the new owner bought it, like people who thought they could get special privileges because they knew the last owner. Also not being properly staffed was an issue.

 

I would continue to find ins within your community while you work through the details of this idea. Find people who need your services without a storefront so you'll be in a position to bring a client base with you.

 

As always, I wish you the best whatever decision you make.

[TKDmom]

 

The Blueberry Muffin in Indialantic, FL. It's not particularly upscale, but it's by the beach, where everyone tends to be more casual, anyway. If I lived out by the beach, I'd be tempted to go out there every week--their food is fresh and just plain good. Their baked goods are pretty much just muffins (surprise!), but they are GOOD, and if they expanded into something like you describe, I'd love it even more.

[TravelingChris]

Atlanta Bread Company is another chain like this, I believe. I go there every Tuesday since it is the nearest coffee shop to my dd's co-op and she only has an hour long class and I live about 15 miles away.

[gardenmom5]

there are some. I don't pay attention to the names.

[Jenny in Florida]

I've never been into this one, since it's not exactly vegan friendly, but I suspect this one might be the kind of place you mean:

 

http://www.benjaminfrenchbakery.com/

 

I walk past it often with the dog and think it's very pretty and inviting.

[runbikeswim]

Wisdom tea in Monument, CO.

[whitestavern]

I'm working on a business plan. what I have in mind is sort of an upscale (for my small rural town, lol!) cafe/bakery.

Light breakfast and lunch menu, with baked goods in a beautiful pastry case. Not cutesy, and more sophisticated in decor and feel than the usual hole-in-the-wall breakfast joint.

Is there a restaurant like this near you? Do you like it?

If you're comfortable telling me the name of the restaurant, I'd love to look it up online.

 

 

No, there isn't anything like that in our area, but I would LOVE to see something like it...actually I'd love to open something like it. I'm no baker, so mine would have a light breakfast/lunch menu with a case of items you could purchase to heat at home (soups, etc.)

[ktgrok]

Not exactly that, it specializes in tea, and has a full menu, but kind of similar and totally fun, is Infusion Tea in Orlando. They do lovely wedding/baby showers, totally love that place.

[bobbeym]

JavaCakes in La Porte, TX is similar. It's owned by a local lady that mostly offers baked goodies and coffee, but has breakfast sandwiches and a light lunch menu as well.