Josef's European Pastry Shop — Restaurant in Grosse Pointe Woods

They've lost a loyal customer.

In the past, we've ordered some good cakes from Josef's. So, I was excited to get my son's first birthday cake from here, too. I drove 40 minutes to meet with one of their chefs on a Friday afternoon appointment and spent another hour talking about ideas for the cake and left there on the premise that I will receive a phone call by Sunday morning to discuss the cake and pricing. When Sunday afternon hit and I didn't hear back, I called to check on the status of things, and was placed on hold for a good 10 minutes, only for the chef to give me a long story afterwards of how they're going to be busy on the weekend because of Father's Day and that my cake requires much time and they will not be able to make it. He explained that he looked at his planner on Friday and was "planning to call either Sunday afternoon or Monday morning" to inform me of this!

It wasn't that they were unable to make the cake, it was the careless attitude about people's special events that really ticked me off. They tightened my time span and rendered my time for ordering a cake from 10 days to 5 days, because most specialty stores are closed on Sunday afternoons and Mondays. What stopped them from calling me as soon as they decided they weren't making the cake? It's beyond me. I cannot believe how a professional place can be so unprofessional and insensitive when they're in the business of making and keeping everything special in an occasion.

Getting excellent quality with excellent service is always optimal, but if I had to choose, I'ld rather go with a mediocre, but dependable place, than one that is excellent quality with service that is...

Take a number upon arrival. Prepare to spend some $ here; and use cash or debit to not add to your bill. Some items are better than others, as most places. Any cake with chocolate mousse is fantastic. Tiramisu, not so much. While pretty, I haven't loved any of their individual desserts. If a special occasion brings you in, to look at the cakes with their beautiful shaved chocolate decorations or perfectly set fruit tarts you may think they cannot be personalized but they will prepare a message in icing on a plaque of chocolate if you ask. They have some lunch fare like quiche and coffee at the far end of the counter as well as a few small tables if you wish to consume your purchase on location. There's outdoor seating in season. My favorite items are right when you walk in. Top shelf are the pastry rings. While poppyseed & fruit are delicious, nothing beats their almond ring. Great thing to bring anywhere instead of donuts. For foodies you get about six servings. If you're dainty, there's definitely enough for an office of 10 to get a taste. If it's only something for one, they have almond croissants with marzipan that get me Mmm'ing with every bite. They have pain au chocolat. Their almond croissants WITH a chocolate strip are wonderful! They bake custom cakes made into the most interesting shapes such as a designer purse. I recently tried their cheesecake and while the crust is good, it's the actual cheesecake part that is the best I've ever had. I don't care for any of their cookies thus far. I've been meaning to try their bread but my pocketbook gets emptied on all of the above before I get to it. They're on a corner so street parking is usually...

Don't let the negative feedback fool you. Josef's has been a well known east side haunt for decades. Admittedly they lost a little something when the original Chef Josef sold the business but the shift in quality is only related to the particular style of the chefs; from a French style to a more Central or Southern European style. I ordered a custom cake for my wife's 60th birthday from them and requested it to be orange flavored with chocolate butter cream frosting and it tasted delicious. I also requested that they decorate the top with not one large flower but cover the top with several smaller flowers. They did not disappoint. The top of the cake was covered with over a dozen flowers; 3 different types of flowers, in different colors and textures. It was one of the most beautiful birthday cakes I've ever seen and it was exactly what I hoped it would look like. In addition to all of this, they were also more reasonably priced than most of the high end bakeries in the area. I drove from Livonia to order it and to pick it up and it was totally worth it. I look forward to my next order with this Grosse Pointe...