Roggenart European Bakery, Bistro & Cafe — Restaurant in Columbia

I was driving along 175 when I happened to notice a sign for a new pastry and coffee shop opening up in Columbia-- and I'll be damned, it's much needed! Columbia is a rather up-and-coming area now with an influx of new jobs, restaurants, bars, and shops. What it has been lacking is a proper, local coffee shop. Yes, there's Mad City Coffee, Riverside, and endless Starbucks. But none of those strike my fancy-- Mad City doesn't have a particularly great sitting area and Riverside isn't any better. That's where Roggenart comes in-- the name translates to 'the art of rye' in German and it becomes immediately clear that the shop lives up to its name.

Step into the lavishly European setting and you're greeted with the aroma of freshly baked pastries and Lavazza coffee.Every single bread and pastry in the shop is made by hand with rye from fields in Lower Austria that is sourced from a small family-run mill. It was a great surprise to see that the shop serves Lavazza-- Italy's most popular espresso brand. Few shops in this area serve it, and I have yet to see any in Columbia. The pastries themselves are excellent-- I had a Caramel Schnecken pastry, a sweet bun with a heavenly glaze that is traditionally served for breakfast in Germany. You can order anything from a blueberry danish to a loaf of freshly baked bread. The breads are driven over from the company's other location north of Baltimore on Falls Rd.

Now, onto the coffee. As I mentioned, it is Lavazza-sourced. I'm a huge Lavazza fan-- the company sustainably sources its coffee from around the globe and has been putting out some of the best beans for the last 120 years. However, Roggenart comes up a bit short in the coffee department for me. I had an unflavored latte so that I could really let the coffee flavor shine but I got none of that. It was clear to me that the wonderfully pleasant woman who made my latte just made it-- it wasn't crafted. There is a huge difference between the two. A latte needs to be carefully crafted with espresso, milk, and foam with layers and proper ratios. Using only one short of espresso for both a small and large latte is silly and not common practice. If Roggenart had a dedicated, trained barista, the coffee would be much more enjoyable. It also took me 12 minutes to get in and out with one pastry and latte-- even though I was only second in line. Still, the employees were very nice and knowledgeable about their products. Most of these annoyances can be forgiven while the new location finds its groove.

The decor is excellent. You walk in and are greeted by a beautiful wall of books and decorations with small tables and chairs. There is plenty of seating and the lighting is excellent. The shop is conducive to getting work done or simply making great conversation. I'm excited that Roggenart brings a unique twist to the coffee scene in Columbia. It's clear that it prides itself on its long-sourced tradition of using Austrian rye and freshly baked breads. Still, the shop does need a bit of polish before it can steal customers from that never-ending drive-thru line across the street...

I will be honest, this place has exceptional food. Yet- every TIME I’ve come in to order OR placed an order over the phone, each and every order has been messed up. This includes missing toppings I’ve paid extra for, a completely wrong order WITH my name on the receipt, modifications I’ve made to an item that I’ve been told were possible, yet upon returning home, the modification (for example, different bread) was not fulfilled even after being told, “we can absolutely do that!” I have never been called back to be told my order could not be fulfilled or ever told something wasn’t possible. Yet after TIPPING and speaking to the same cashiers I spoke to over the phone, or, as I said placing an order in person, I STILL have never been made aware that the order I’m being handed was NOT able to be completed as requested. They simply just hand it over. No “Hey you placed an order over the phone, I apologize we didn’t call you back OR tell you when you called that your order wasn’t able to modified as you wanted.” Not even in person was I warned or made aware that the orders I’ve been handed were not able to be made as I’ve asked. Even after explaining that previous orders have been made incorrectly I have yet to be compensated, YET to get the same thing I’ve requested discounted, or even offered any type of item or side on behalf of Roggenart. Worst of all- I come in with a warm smile and NONE of the cashiers I’ve encountered here in Columbia have ever returned that smile, asked how I am doing, or EVER went above and beyond to offer exceptional service. Unless I personally say, “have a nice day or night” a few seconds after walking away, none of your employees have said a word or even “thanks” after I’m handed an order. None of your employees seem to want to be here and I’m not sure why because it seems like an awesome job. Especially after being a former executive chef myself, as well as working in TWO bakery/bistros, a wide array of restaurants, plus fast food; even on my most stressful days, being underpaid, and not even wanting to come in, I’ve never treated a customer as poorly as the employees have treated me here. The only thing I can recommend is training those who work here proper customer service skills, perhaps even contracting secret shoppers to come in at random times to verify that this is in fact, factual, based off all the times I’ve returned and seeing different faces, as most of the things I’m saying on an account with no reviews like this will make it hard to believe that this is an accurate portrayal of how your customers...

Comically bad service that defies belief. Visited Saturday, Nov 30 @ ~ 11:30 AM, 4 in our party. One of us ordered a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, three of us ordered ham, egg and Swiss sandwiches. Bacon, egg and cheese arrives and the person that brought it asks the rest of us what we ordered. We repeated the order, three ham, egg and Swiss sandwiches. We got the impression they screwed up the original order as we then waited quite a while. Finally, out comes two ham and Swiss sandwiches on a very hard roll (like a hard baguette, as opposed to the ciabatta roll the first breakfast sandwich came on). No egg. In other words, it was not a breakfast sandwich and not at all what we wanted. But we've waited so long by this point, and the first person was nearly done, we said just leave them. But we're still short a sandwich. The staff is paralyzed in confusion. So we explain again we're missing a ham, egg and Swiss sandwich. Another long wait; the first person is done, the other two nearly done. Finally the last sandwich arrives. Yeah! It's got ham and egg! But wait - it's got American or cheddar - something other than Swiss. Needless to say another attempt to get the correct sandwich was not made. To make it even worse, a 20% tip was left at payment (you order and pay at the counter, then have a seat). But the story doesn't end here. One of our party had also ordered a cherry cheese strudel to take home. On the way home as we were discussing our experience I jokingly asked if the box was checked to make sure it had the right pastry. Everyone laughed but sure enough - they got that wrong too and put a blueberry strudel in there instead of the cherry cheese. It's hard to separate the culinary experience from the service and most critically the total lack of accountability for said service. If you want to give this place a try, my recommendation is to be sure to get a receipt, check the receipt for accuracy before sitting down, and don't leave a tip when you order. If you want to leave a tip, leave it when...