Alta Bakery and Cafe — Restaurant in Monterey

My husband were in town for our anniversary wanted to check out the bakeries in the area, so stopped in Sunday morning before heading out. Loved the decor, especially the old pictures on the wall. Nice place. However, the staff really need to work on their customer service. We stood in line and when we reach the counter to place our order, the young man that was taking the orders suddenly walked away and started speaking with some of the staff and then to another gentlemen across the room. He didn't say he'd be right back or if someone would be right with us. He just walked away. Then a young lady walked by us and we thought maybe she'll taking over for him, but no, she just walked by grabbed something and walked away without saying a word...like "Someone will be right with you" Then about 5 min later the young man comes back and says "How can I help you?" without apologizing for being gone or not saying anything before leaving for a while. Then bad experience continues. When I get to the register and ask the young man at the register, what the pastry in front me was. He tells me with a little irritation to his voice what it is. Then when asked him what makes the crunch in the vanilla "crunch"? Is their nuts in it? I asked because I'm allergic to walnuts and pecans. He says to me with an are you an idiot tone "I would have said nut crunch if it had nuts in it"! The comment and the tone was uncalled for.. In a pleasant tone, he simply could have said what gives the vanilla crunch it,its crunch! At point I was about to walk out without the pasties I picked out. Instead I thought maybe he just having a bad morning. I paid for the items and walk over to my husband and said "I'm never coming here again!". Their customer service is NOT GOOD! We then walked over to your competition Parker-Lusseau Pastries were we had been before and had a great experience. It's more than having a good product or decor....For me its about good/great customer service. It keeps your customer coming back. Btw, it's not just me that was disappointed in your customer service, qthe customer next me and a gal at Trader Joe's said your customer service was not good lately. Hope things...

A very lovely spot. There is always great variety of pastries. You could go in every day of the week and see a completely different lineup each day. I absolutely love the selection that is available every morning. Highly recommend coming as close to 7AM when they open as you can, that way you can get ensure you get to try all the best items!

There are good options for both sweet pastries and savory. Some of my favorite items are the classic croissant, chocolate croissant, and cinnamon rolls. Absolutely delicious!

The atmosphere is simply amazing. The indoor seating is pleasant and there is plenty of lovely art to admire while you relax. However, the real deal is the outdoor seating because of the gardens in the back. Alta Bakery is set in the Historic Cooper Molera complex and the buildings are simply stunning. The outdoor spots are a must.

My only issue is with the copy. I debated whether to give four or five stars. After all, I have found plenty of amazing things to say about Alta. But, because they offer coffee and advertise that they are also a Cafe and not just a Bakery, I have to account for it as well. The coffee is... inconsistent. At its best, it is just okay. At its worst, it tastes burnt and I can tell the beans are never fresh or at least come from a low quality source. Pretty unfortunate, because I would love to have great coffee and great pastries all in one place. These days, I usually just get a pastry and get a coffee elsewhere.

Coffee aside, Alta is a staple of Monterey. The delicious pastries, the tasty sandwiches, and the beautiful scenery all around makes this a...

I generally have enjoyed coming here because I Iove sitting and studying in the large Patio behind Cella Restaurant, but the service is definitely unfortunate. If you don't know how they do things the staff all seem to be pretty passive aggressive about having to explain things to people. The food is always presented well but the avocado mix on the toast had so much citrus in it that it burns out the palate and didn't taste like avocado anymore. I wish they would invest in more cups and glasses to enjoy your drinks in if you're staying, it feels so incredibly wasteful to serve something in a to go cup if someone is dining in. Anther disappointment is that they have no posting anywhere that states they don't offer wifi to paying guests. Which is rather misleading because many people, like myself today, don't find out until they've already spent their money which didn't sit right ethically speaking. If there was signage, perhaps I didn't see it, but if not it errs on the shady side. I have worked in cafés for years and found that having your staff be thorough and genuine in their service is always better than smiling through their annoyance. People aren't stupid and shouldn't be treated as an inconvenience. As you are literally in hospitality work. Be hospitable. I also know that dealing with a long line all day long can be difficult to get things done with eyes constantly staring at you waiting for your attention, but good service never ignores the seeking eyes. A simple acknowledgment and "hi there, we will be with you in just a moment"...