Woodman's Artisan Bakery — Restaurant in Nashua

Inviting atmosphere. Friendly staff. The counter person was very soft spoken and made anything she said a challenge to understand.

We bought a large selection of different pastries and a focaccia at our first visit. Some of the pastries in the case and subsequently in our bag had burnt black edges or were very dark. Not a super big deal but reflects the attention to the cooking.

We got kouign-amann, croissant, cheese danish, chocolate croissant, and a rosemary cheese focaccia. I had very high hopes because even with the uneven cooking these looked good.

I’ll review each item separately

Kouign-amann- buttery, flaky and delicious. Uneven cooking leading to chewier parts on one side and crispy parts on the other with uneven sugar distribution.

Croissant- same issue as above. Over cooked leading to greasy bottoms. Heavy on the pallet and stomach. I’m sure if they were properly baked these would be fantastic tho.

Chocolate croissant- same issue as plain croissant but with the addition of cheap grade chocolate poorly distributed so that there is very little chocolate on each end of the pastry.

Cheese danish- over cooked again leading to dry crumbly cheese filling. Otherwise if properly cooked this would have been delicious.

Rosemary focaccia- this is truly the biggest disappointment. Dense, somehow devoid of any cheese taste and a sad bitter dried rosemary taste that hits the pallet every few bites. It had what I can only describe as a dusty flavor that left this as a very unenjoyable bread to eat.

As a whole I would not return if I was a one and done type but I will give another chance and see if the pastries are cooked correctly. If so I would gladly give them another chance and I would also try a baguette.

Overall 2.5 to 3 star based on...

Was looking for a local place that has pretzels after some searching Woodman's Artisan Bakery came up.I went in to place an order for some pretzels and added on a focaccia. Bill had given some ideas with what use the focaccia for. I would have never thought to use it as a pizza crust. While I was there, I grabbed some croissants after reading the reviews. The reviews were not kidding. The croissants are nice and buttery and just melt in your mouth. You can see how nicely the dough is layered.

When I went again to grab my order, I grabbed a couple more croissants for my family. The worker at the counter was telling me how they made the croissants and the process.

After trying the croissants, my family also agreed that the croissants were very good. We all enjoyed the focaccia. We just had it as is with some olive oil. My sister had mentioned that the crust was exactly what you wanted. The pretzel was nice and fresh, and the right right amount of salt on it.

Overall, the baked goods are nice and fresh, and I could tell by my interactions that there is true passion that goes into what is made. I would highly recommend going and grabbing something from them. And don't forget to grab a croissant you won't be...

Update: 1/2025 This place has the BEDT buttery croissants! Far superior to other area bakeries, even Boston bakeries and they offer fantastic breads also. The only change I’d make is to get better seating for those eating in the cafe area. Current seating is metal garden furniture and way too low to the ground. The chairs are hard, no cushions, which might be the easiest, least expensive fix. Original review follows… I finally found them open today and stopped in for a browse. Pleasantly surprised by the product quality and cleanliness. This place is the real deal. Got a butter croissant and an Italian-parmesan focaccia. Both are delicious! I highly recommend this place for lovers of excellent breads and pastries. They also have coffee (and German pretzels, something I've missed dearly since German John's in Hillsboro closed), but I'll save these for when I have time to sit and...