Champagne French Bakery Cafe

Chicken Pesto Baguette & an Orangina = Day Changing. This place used to be apart of my Sunday ritual sitting out in the sun with live music was a nice relaxing way to start the late morning. It’s to bad this place shut down, not to happy about it. RIP Champagne.

I am sorry to say that they have really gone down hill. The staff is unfriendly and has made several mistakes with my orders the last few times I have been here. (overcharging and also giving me wrong items, i went back to exchange the item for the correct one and they gave me the wrong thing again but I was home when I found out) I don’t know what is going in but I don’t feel like coming here anymore.

Decided to give this a try over local sbux. The name sounds great. While things looked halfway decent, the butter croissant I ordered was probably more healthy than the rest of the bakery fare. I also ordered a peach iced tea. I should have specified unsweetened, because it had added sugar. Staff seemed bored.

Had lunch here today with a friend and I was happy. We sat outside since the weather was nice– it was very nice. I ordered a house salad with ½ sandwich… a French Dip. I found the sandwich to be delicious. The salad however, I think they need to rinse the lettuce a bit more as there was extra protein found on a few of the lettuce leaves (found a couple of aphids).
My friend said her Quiche Lorraine was very good. Her lettuce had the same problems as mine.
So for the aphids they lost a star. However I wouldn’t mind going back again.

Champagne is a nice place to dine when the sun is shining. It’s situated in the Corte Madera Town Center and has plenty of outdoor seating. It’s a charming place to meet up with friends over pastries and coffee. You almost forget you’re in a mall.
The concept is very similar to La Boulange (coffee, pastries, salads, sandwiches, etc.). Contrary to the name, they do not serve bubbly or any wine for that matter (bummer).
The food here has always been consistent. I usually get a sandwich or salad, and finish it off with an espresso. Very simple and French. The baguettes are always fresh.
On my most recent visit, the food was still good (I had a salad with raisins, blue cheese, apples, and vinaigrette). However, something seemed off about the place. The service was a bit scattered. The employees didn’t seem like they wanted to be there, or maybe they were just overwhelmed. Though I’m not sure why, because the place was pretty empty. My friend and I sat inside and it just sort of had a dreary vibe. A little music and some better lighting could definitely help elevate the mood of this place.
Over all, I think this place is still worth a visit. Though make sure to grab a seat outside.
FYI — they also have another location in downtown Mill Valley (next to the movie theater).

I went to Champagne Bakery in Corte Madera today, even though previous experience wasn’t great, gave it another chance. Was the last.
I ordered the vegetable omelette and a large soy latte. Omelette was mediocre. Bread came with no butter or jam, I had to ask for it, and then they told me they were out of jam, really… They forgot about my latte, I had to get up and ask for it again. The table next to me stayed dirty for as long as I was there and 2 table over, a dirty clean-​up rag was on the table the whole time. Service was obviously mediocre and management clueless about how to run a restaurant. Sad

I wanted to love Champagne, but this location really did nothing for me. I ordered a hot chocolate (too sweet), an egg-​based sandwich of some kind (very meh), and a bread pudding (very dry). The service people were very busy, but friendly enough. That’s about all I can say for it. Wouldn’t recommend it, and that’s the bottom line.

If you’re just stopping for a pastry and a hot drink, this place adequately serves that need. I will give them that — there is nothing quite like taking a break from running errands to enjoy a flaky croissant and cup of coffee.
Anything beyond that? You’re better off going somewhere else. I’ve given the lunch items here so many chances but they always fall short of SOMETHING. I realize it’s an Americanized «French» bakery in a shopping mall, so it’s nothing like ordering French onion soup with a croque madame in Paris, but I seriously recommend heading a few yards over to Blue Barn for a decent sandwich and/​or salad.

I’m sorry but anyone who thinks this is close to a French bakery café has never been to France. This place has a franchise feel and the pastries are frozen and the menu has nothing on it that French people eat except the croque monsieur which is uninspired. The coffee is also blah. The service is less than average and this is a place I won’t return to. Even the croissants are wrong. Would love to have an authentic French experience but this isn’t it. This place wouldn’t last a day in France or anywhere in Europe for that matter.

I got a croissant sandwich and hot chocolate here. The sandwich was suppose to be a «favorite». I asked for my bacon crispy. Instead, it was soggy and gooey, there were fuzzy hairs all over the croissant, and the tiniest amount of cheese. The potatoes that came with it were hard and not fresh. We also ordered 2 hot chocolates which came out after the food and were cold. When we told them about our cold chocolates, they just microwaved them, whipped cream and all. Would rather have eaten airport food. Won’t come back. Overpriced for sub-​par food.

perfect lunch on a perfect sunny day in Marin.
i partook in their delicious croque-​monsieur with a side of their breakfast red potatoes (they made no fuss for the substitution!) cheesy, hammy, yummy on buttery bread grilled to perfection. see picture included.
my friend had their brioche french toast and i really would recommend this as well. it was the bread itself that made this dish. they used 4 pieces of what looked like gourmet hamburger bun halves, complimented with strawberry slices. mmm mmm.
their whole menu looked really appetizing. oh! and their pastry display? forget about it. i wanna try it all! hopefully itll be sunny when i return… it is november though…

So I was walking around the mall waiting for the farmer’s market to begin when I felt rather hungry and narrowed my choices down to starbucks or this place. Honestly, It’s been a while since I’ve been to a french bakery so of course I went here. Also, I was growing tired of starbucks.
I was going for something simple and light but done right so I ordered the Le Metro Breakfast sandwich ($ 5.75. Egg, herb cream cheese. Avocado. Tomato, whole wheat roll) and a coffee. Damn. It was an nice feeling, lounging around that café, sipping some decent hot coffee, munching on a really filling sandwich (that wasn’t greasy), and reading the morning paper. Great place to enjoy the simple things.
They also had croissants and other pastries. All of them looked quite delicious and I will be sure to come back sometime to try them.

Meh.
The place has a chain faux-​European feel.
I bought an almond croissant. It was $ 3.50. It promised almond paste inside.
It wasn’t very croissant-​y in texture (no flakiness!) and the «almond paste» was more of an almond-​flavored Boston crème filling than anything.
I’ll pass.

Cute French café. Inside outdoor mall so some walking required to get there.
Delicious and has outdoor seating to sit by adorable elephant water fountain. On a sunny day the outdoor seating is just lovely.
The food they make is good but not mind-​blowing. Quiches and things are made ahead and sit for a bit waiting to be bought.
Nice place.

One of my fav place for breakfast! great coffee! I like their french toast and panini. Staff are very friendly and helpful. Overall a great place!

Ordered strawberry cream cake for my daughter’s birthday a week prior, specifically asked not want strawberry mousse cake. On the day of pick up, guess what was given to us, Strawberry Mousse!!! So we were left with no cake, had to pick up some cup cake from another bakery in shopping mall.
Every time we order something from this bakery, there has always been some mistake or other. In fact, I am quite amazed at how many different ways they can screw up an order. Name spelled wrong, wrong cake, no cake, shop closed early with our cake still in fridge but doors shut, the list goes on!!!

So happy to find this place! I am not a sweet person! Savory is my middle name so I did not think I would find too much here but I was pleasantly surprised to see quiche on the outdoor sign.
Inside I found plenty of savory choices. I narrowed it down to two and the very friendly, smiling wait person helped me choose the chicken salad on a croissant. YUM! It was perfect and came with a choice of sides. I opted for the fries and they were perfect. Skinny, crunchy and tasty.
I will definitely be back because although I had not seen it on the menu, I overheard someone else order the French Dip!

Just keeping it real here. After reading all the recent reviews I have to say: Did I just go on a really bad day or what?!
The place looks cute décor and all. However it is obvious they do not make their own pastries and a lot of their menu is pre-​made foods.
If you like your Cappuccino done correctly (pressed espresso) do not order your coffees from here. They use a pre filled machine to do all their coffees. This is not «real» coffee nor even close to European standards.
I did ask how they make their lattes because I did not see a coffee press behind the counter. I did not order my coffee here.
We stood in line trying to decide on what pricey dessert to pick. All cakes are at least $ 5 per slice. The person in front of us could not decide so we waited patiently. When the customer was thinking about her order the cashier did acknowledge she would be right with us. However what she failed to do is tell the person that butted in line and started ordering, that we were next! So we had to wait another 10 minutes.
My friend wanted to order the FRESH squeezed Orange Juice because it sounded nice and refreshing. However he is very particular and wanted to make sure it was really fresh squeezed. So he asked. The cashier said «Yes we JUST squeezed the ones in the case and place in not long ago». So he ordered the OJ with a side of ice. However, when he realized she was taking the cup of OJ out of the display case, he asked to have it mixed in with the ice after all. She proceeded to go to the refrigerator and pull out a jug of Odwalla to top off the cup. uh oh not good at all…
Note to all: Business will advertise that their items are freshly squeezed because it says on the container.
I did not want my friend to make a fuss because we already spent too much time going over if the OJ and pastries were fresh. We ordered a chocolate cake that was okay and one almond croissant. Put it this way, If you closed your eyes, you would never know it was from a «French Pâtisserie»
Yes, the atmosphere is nice, the location pleasant, however if we are rating a restaurant you have to consider the food and the service. This experience was a dissappointment.

One of the better Chicken Florentine Crepes I’ve experienced for the price. I would recommend Champagne French Bakery Café to anyone who wants good and simple French dish at a reasonable price, along with excellent service and relaxed surroundings (and YES it’s in a mall) if you happen to be shopping in the Corte Madera Town Center.
What impressed me most about Champagne French Bakery Café is the reasonably sizeable portions of exquisite food they served. I didn’t expect the food to be excellent here, but after eating their Chicken Florentine Crepes I am very tempted to come back here just to have lunch. They definitely don’t hold back on the quality or the quantity of their food. Well deserved 3 ½ stars!
BON APPÉTIT!

So I went back again last Saturday and picked up one of each … The Napolean, Raspberry, Blackforest, Mango Mousse, Tiramisu and one other that I wolved down too soon to remember it’s name. They were all delicious though I haven’t had the raspberry yet.
This time I picked up the bluberry mini cookies and they too were really good; but I prefer the spicy almond cookies I picked up the last time.
I think Champagne French Bakery hasn’t seen the last of me just yet ! :-)
(mini update: the raspberry pastry was pretty good too but it dried up a little, being that it was in the fridge for a few days. I bet it’s even better when fresh and moist)