Athan's Bakery & Cafe — Restaurant in Brookline

Short version: Terrible service, awful policies. Ask for your money back at your own risk.

Long version: Ate here for the first time today. Got a pastry, a Nescafé frappe and a tea. We were told the coffee was strong so I added medium sugar to it. After tasting the pastry and coffee we decided to ask for a refund as the pastry was bland and the coffee was very watered down. The lady at the register said okay to the refund and gave me my money back after asking why. Or so I thought, it turns out she just refunded the pastry and not the coffee. After realizing this I returned the counter and asked if it was the full amount. It wasn’t. She said, “Oh the refund for the coffee is more complicated. It’s Nescafé, it’s supposed to be that watery. We make it the same way every time.” This is the same person who told me it was strong. I said, “This was my first time trying it and I didn’t like it.” She had to call management in order to give me a refund for the coffee. Absolutely ridiculous. My girlfriend and I decided to leave after being treated like criminals for not liking the food. The tea we ordered was fine. When we went to return the tea pot the man who made our drinks said, “Why didn’t you just tell me that you didn’t like the coffee? I could’ve made it stronger” “Sorry, we just didn’t like it” “Well you should’ve told me because now I’m going to be in trouble with my boss.” We left immediately after that. Moral of the story: You better like what you order or else you’ll be lied to and harassed.

Only good thing that came out of this is we went across the street to Cafe Fixe right after. Delightful atmosphere and amazing coffee. Save yourself the headache and go...

Great spot for anyone seeking traditional Mediterranean and European pastries and some of the city's best Baklava.

Brookline has a lot of ethnic bakeries and Athan’s is among the local’s favorites. With its classic wooden interior and relatively large seating area, it offers a comforting atmosphere, perfect for a peaceful morning treat.

During my recent visit, I was immediately greeted by the attentive staff, who guided me through their variety of Baklava. I got one of each and these bite-sized Baklava pieces were amazing – achieving the ideal balance of density and flakiness, with nutty fillings that were simply sublime. Among these, my favorites were the chocolate walnut and almond varieties.

Their cake selection didn't disappoint either. The Napoleon puff pastry was delightful – light, airy, and spongy – while the Amendoa's delicate vanilla sponge and almond flavor was a pleasure. An unexpected highlight was the ham and cheese croissant, served warm from the oven, with enticing cheese crisps at its edges.

Overall, a great bakery that serves amazing traditional pastries. I'm already looking forward to my next visit to explore more of their cake and...

Great ambiance and good decor cannot make up for unpleasant coffee!

Unfortunately I have to use harsh words but the coffee served here was just nasty. It was not coffee. You cannot call that brown colored water as coffee. We had an iced mocha frappe, and iced Greek Frappuccino. The mocha frappe had neither any cocoa/chocolate nor any coffee to add flavor to the water and ice. The Greek Frappuccino was extremely bitter with more than half of the cup covered purely by bitter froth.

The pastries were decent. We tried Black Forest, Baba, Fig flavored one and the Jamaican chocolate one. All of them were good and had unique tastes. I won’t call the Baba pastry as my personal favorite as it was a sandwich of hard bread with soft creamy filling. My friend however liked it.

Lastly, I wouldn’t want to comment on the service as the lady the only one managing and clearly over worked.

Overall, it is a cute place to hangout but DO NOT drink...