Boulangerie Nantaise

Saw a sign posted on the front door today that Boulangerie Nantaise will be under new management in the near future and will be renamed as Le Parisienne. Hopefully I got that right since I was in/​out with my two almond croissants. Guess it’ll be a ‘wait and see’ how it will affect their overall product line and service.

Everytime I pass by this bakery, my mind screams ’ wow, such a charming bakery’ almost every saturday after zumba I am tempted to grab a bite here, sometimes i succumb to the temptation. Love their chocolate croissants, their muffins, their bread, not a big fan of their coffee. Service, décor both excellent. only wish they were open on Sunday too. Just so glad that its right behind my apartment.

After writing an update reflecting on some of the negative changes I had noticed at Boulangerie Nantaise, the manager wrote me a very kind note addressing the problems. I LOVE when business owners actively listen to their customers in order to improve! These are the types of restaurants that will keep their customers coming back, because you know that even if service isn’t quite right, something will be done to fix the issues.
I went in a week following the manager’s note and was pleasantly surprised to see that they had removed the soggy sandwiches from the glass case AND they brought back my favorite pea soup! I can’t even begin to explain how much I love a bowl of their delicious split pea soup on a cold day! Gives me the warm-​fuzzies!
Thank you for the great service!

Back in the day this was a place I sought out, it was so delicious. It sadly has not been able to maintain that level. Booo

Food here is great. Bread is excellent. Coffee? Eh. I asked for a very dry cappuccino (which is pretty much just foam). What I got was basically a latte. When I asked the barista to make it again, she got annoyed. Second time around, it was still wrong. I can understand her being flustered, it’s probably the fault of whoever trained her, but I found her slamming the drink on my table and asking «anything else» really unprofessional. I won’t be coming back here.

This place sucks!
I was strolling through the downtown area one Monday afternoon in search of a quaint and delicious café. I assumed, where better place to find a little specialty café than Seattle. How could I go wrong especially with a French café. Well I was wrong, very wrong. I walk in and am not addressed by any of the 3 people behind the counter for at least 5 mins. When I was acknowledged, it was done very nicely so I will give them that at least. It seemed however that no one behind the counter knew what was going on. They didn’t have organization or order with their drink making process. Basically it seemed like it was everyone’s first day their. I order a small café mocha, a ham and cheese croissant and a slice of quiche and it was almost $ 18. WTF??? Begrudgingly I pay the amount because I’ve already ordered and I was hungry but I was kind of put off by this. My drink and food finally come. The café mocha is just okay and but my quiche and croissant are both cold. No big deal at first. I ask them to toast in for a while longer. The barista brings the food back again and it is still cold. At this point I’m kind of pressed for time so I didn’t bother telling them so I just ate and left. May I also mention that this place was EMPTY. That should have been my first tip off. Second and lastly, I noticed when walking in that there was a big strip of red tape covering part of the wording on the café sign. I realized upon closer that they had blocked out the word «organic» so if you have frequented this place prior to the edits of the signage then be aware that this place is no longer organic.

So I live right around the corner and Monday-​Friday I try to go there in the morning before work and they are slow as escargot. On the weekends they do not have a Croque Monsieur which is the only thing I can not find anywhere else. Ugh so frustrating.

I’ve been coming here for the past year and half on a regular basis since I work next door. I come about 3 – 4 times a week and I always order the same thing: a salad w/​tuna. The past few times, the new people they hired have been giving me about $ 2 worth of salad and 50 cents worth of tuna and often forget to include the few slices of bread. I can’t help but feel ripped off when I pay the $ 8!
I’ve tried looking online but their website is down (the domain expired last year), facebook page hasn’t been updated in over a year, and I could not find ANY contact information on the internet at all; I even tried to find someone on LinkedIn! I did not want to cause a scene in front of other customers when I received the piss-​poor excuse for an $ 8 salad-I’m at my wit’s end; hopefully someone from here will contact me because I want to give them a chance to make this right.

I would love to give them more stars but I just can’t. Please read on to see why.
THE FOOD —
The food is great, the selection and the fresh bread make my mouth water thinking about it. The soups are fresh and delicious. I highly recommend getting a baguette to go! The fruit tartlet is to die for. The french onion soup is my favorite! I sometimes go and wait in line just for this! Each soup comes with 3 – 4 slices of baguette so I always buy a small to go with.
THE COFFEE —
No. Just No. There is an Uptown Espresso across the street. If you want a café a late or an espresso go next door then come get your sandwich. It is highly unfortunate that they have an espresso machine but they burn it and it’s horrible tasting. Also because of the high wait times you will have something to do while waiting.
THE SERVICE —
It really stunk when it just abruptly shut down with a note on the door that they would reopen sometime. However, when they did reopen, the service is the same. At high peak times it’s slow and twice I have gotten the wrong sandwich. Because of the way it’s wrapped you don’t know until you get back to the office and then BAM you have someone elses order. Then you either eat it or go back and stand in line for another 10 minutes to a half hour. It’s kind of like the lunch lottery; even though it’s great food, I like to get what I order.
So like I said, I wish I could give them more stars, but if they got rid of the gross coffee and upped the turn over time, I could see that happening. However, don’t count this place out, it’s definitely a must if you’re in the area and if you’ve ever been to France you will appreciate the authentic food and charm.

Went in today, after hearing they were back in business and was very pleased! The two girls that were there were friendly and attentive. Love the new benches by the window (although they need to be lowered, or the tables need to be raised, hehe). Layout of the place is much better. I had minestrone soup that was really nicely seasoned; didn’t have to add salt or pepper. Their croissant was divine as usual! Really one of the best places in Seattle to get an authentic French croissant. Also had their chocolate chip cookie and my friend had their cinnamon roll, both of which were so delicious. I noticed they were featuring croissant «mini’s» too, which is such a perfect idea if you don’t want a big pastry! All in all, well done Nantaise! Please continue to hire friendly people and have amazing food and pastries!

I find it ironic that when I used to live across the street from this place, I would rarely go. Now that I no longer live across the street, I find myself craving this place and wanting to go weekly. Hands down, they have one of the best croissants I’ve ever eaten in this city. I LOVE their croissants. Their pain au chocolats are delicious too.
As for lunch, I LOVE LOVE LOVE their french onion soup and this sandwich called Chipotle. It has chicken, lettuce, roasted red peppers and chipotle mayo and you can pick the kind of bread that you want with it (I always get country french). IT IS SUCH A YUMMY SANDWICH. They have a soup + ½ sandwich combo that works out pretty well. I always think that I am hungrier than I am and end up ordering a whole sandwich, along with the soup, which is just too much. Inevitably, I take half the sandwich home with me and stick it in the fridge for a snack later. The sandwich tastes almost as good, if not better cold, by the way.
I know people seem to be crazy about Macrina, but I think this place is way better than that. I would say that this place is a little more expensive compared to other bakeries, but I do enjoy their food so I don’t mind the additional expense.

For a boulangerie, I would have expected much better bread. I ordered a ½ Parisian (ham (not jambon), cheese (swiss), tomato, lettuce mustard and butter) and ended up eating the innards of the wich without the bread because it was so tough and dense.
I also ordered a bowl of the French Onion Soup … don’t do it … it was horribly salty and had may be 6 – 8 pieces of grated white cheese floating on top, unmelted. The broth tastes like it comes from a dehydrated cube. Yuck.
Why 2 stars instead of 1? The Marionberry croissant … certainly not the best I’ve had, but good.
The service was fine … not friendly, but not rude.
The atmosphere is cute … but I won’t be back.

Used to live by here and stop in for a morning coffee or pastry.
I’ve given them 3 stars ONLY because their pain au chocolat WAS AMAZING. delicious, flaky, chocolate was top notch. Just perfection.
Minus 2 bc GOOD LORD, they were slow. They are always slow. Either someone new is training (high turn over in employees it seems) or the girl is just taking her sweet time. I can’t deal, especially when I’m running off to work.
If you’ve got time to spare, try the chocolate croissant. If not, stay away or you will stuck in a time warp.

Solid 3-​stars. Always friendly service and predictable sandwiches.
I don’t mind slow if the food is amazing. But this is really slow for just a good sandwich. I waited to write this review until I had been there a few times. I will definitely go again — but no longer on lunch breaks during the week.

I’ve never been to a bakery in Paris but if I were to imagine the experience I think Boulangerie Nantaise would be the next best thing. Apart from the cozy ambiance inside, the baked items and sandwiches are amazing. I can’t say enough about their chocolate chip cookies. They make them fresh every morning and sometimes even sell out by lunch time. The pain au chocolat is incredible too.
I noticed that they are getting dinged a lot by other Unilocalers on the wait times. There is certainly validity to this criticism and I once experienced this firsthand. However I very quickly learned from my experience and in fact was given this advice from one of the workers which is to always call ahead and place your order by phone. Just before I leave my desk I’ll call in my order for a sandwich and by the time I walk there from my work (10 min desk to door) my order is always ready waiting for me. If you are pressed for time and want a quick turn around then this is not a good option.
I will say that it’s also nice to slow down and enjoy a delicious pastry or fresh sandwich while waiting and conversing with other human beings as your order is being prepared. I’m just saying.

I never think about this place anymore.

Well, that does it. I’m now a regular here. I don’t have the words for the chocolate croissants at this place. They’re too good. Flaky, buttery dough. A generous size. Delicious dark chocolate. They’re perfect. The staff here is knowledgeable, friendly and pleasant.
Apparently this place does A LOT of the breads and treats in the city and rightly so. They have lunch specials, soups, sandwiches, etc… I enjoyed my grilled cheese a lot and my coworker tells me his experiences with the soups has always been awesome.
I always get espresso drinks, too and these are also pulled well and taste delicious.
I’m here once a week now and have no shame about it! They warm up my croissants for me now! :-)

Zut alors! Je pense j’aime ce (tte?) café. C’est tres interesant et bon, oui? Bien sur, mon amis! Et les madames… o la’ la’! Tres beau (belle?)!
I forgot what I had exactly, but I had the day’s special (10% off such-​and-​such) and an awesome large chai (The Chai Company). My lunch meetup pahtna’, Kate S, played it low with a pastry and coffee. Overall, good and satisfying; lovable chai.
The ding is mainly for the slow service; it took awhile for our order to surface. Kate thinks it might be the possible new guy on the cashier. Je né sais pas. J’ai faim et soif!
Would like to return for more goodies. This place is within walking distance of the ride free zone (RFZ).

Dropped by Boulangerie Nantaise yesterday to redeem a soon to expire Groupon and try out some of their other items.
The selection here is a bit more limited than nearby bakeries like Macrina and Le Panier. But you will find the classics here. The ambiance of the shop does make up a little for this. It does have a French no worries feel to it.
Service was very good. I like that they let me take the time to view all the selections to decide what I wanted instead of pulling the hurry up stares shtick that some shops have. It was noon time, so I decided to get a savory spinach & feta croissant ($ 4.99), a chausson aux pommes aka apple turnover ($ 2.75) and a garlic bread loaf ($ 3.50).
I like their croissants and that has been established as good, so it pains me to take a star away. The croissant crust was good, but the cheese and spinach filling in the middle seemed like it was not cooked fully. This is after I put it in the oven to reheat. Same deal with the apple turnover. Maybe I should have just microwaved it. It just seemed odd that both had the same issue.
As for the garlic loaf, I liked it. You definitely taste the garlic that goes into it. It is not like the artisan loaves at places like Grand Central where the crust is crunchy and it is soft inside. Seems more reminiscent of an Italian loaf than a French one. Nevertheless, the price was reasonable and they are one of the few bakeries that I have come across where they ask if you would like your bread sliced.
Overall, I still like Nantaise. Will give this place another shot in the future. It is one of the bakeries in Seattle that I think is underrated.

Nice.

I went to Boulangerie Nantaise for lunch and I ordered the turkey pesto grilled sandwich. Service was fast and friendly, although the girl did look disappointed by my Groupon coupon. I liked the crispy country bread, the not-​too-​garlicy pesto and the melted havarti, but I didn’t like the turkey they used. The turkey was thickly sliced and had the bad breath flavor that I find all unflavored turkey to have. I also thought that for the price ($ 7), the sandwich was small and I was left hungry.
It’s a cute little lunch place, but I don’t plan on going back anytime soon.