Mabel's Bakery & Specialty Foods — Restaurant in Toronto

Food is not a concern, the staff really needs to learn to talk! The guy at the counter is pretty rude to talk to and condescending! We visited the shop when it was freezing cold (feels like -21) with our dog. Wanted to grab a quick coffee for comfort. My husband was standing at the door and requested if we could be inside for a few minutes as the dog is shivering in the cold - only until we get the coffee and be on our way. I understand no pet policy. We have left our pet out at all events when visiting the bakery. Again we requested as it's too cold, can we stand next to the door with her. Besides talking well - let alone accommodating - the guy rudely points at the poster claiming we can't see / read - it's a policy. He made sure my husband left along with the dog and guided him to get outside the door. The lady at counter kept apologizing for the event. But the guy was extremely rude. There was no need for getting aggressive about the poster. A polite word would suffice. The situation could have been handled well besides pushing my husband...

Be wary of this place! At times Mabel's, both at this Dundas location and at the Roncesvalles one, has good fresh breads, croissants etc, especially early on a weekday morning. Other times, as today, the selection is minimal, some products look old, the display cabinets seem on the dirty side. The big issue today at Dundas was no baguettes on display; the server had to go to the back to get one...already super unprofessional and uncommercial for a good bakery..., then when she presented me with an overcooked one, and I asked if a less dark one was possible, she replied, briskly, "no, they're all that way", further implying there was no way she was about to go back and check. Totally unprofessional, totally indifferent, totally ignorant of what a good baker should know about their product. She seemed quite annoyed actually. Mabel's will fail if they don't pay more attention to CONSISTENT good quality, to sufficient quantities, to cleanliness, and to hiring servers who actually know and care a bit about the good...

I was waiting in line behind a pair of gentlemen ordering up a storm and a second employee came up to the counter and she asked the woman behind me what she needed. I was so shocked I just stared at the two of them, dismayed. They ignored me and carried on. I'm not from toronto but I'm guessing that in this area they don't get many Chinese-looking people. This kind of thing happened to me in France, even though I speak French but this is the first time that it has happened to me in Canada. Normally, I would just leave but we were seeing some friends there so sent my (white) spouse to order. Perhaps Chinese people are invisible to theses staff members. Yes we ended up with some pretty decent pastries (all of the great reviews confirm this) but i don't need to go through that again and they probably don't need my business anyway, message received. Have a...