Breads Bakery – Upper West Side — Restaurant in New York

I’m writing this because what happened during my recent visit to Breads Bakery was not simply a matter of poor service — it was a display of negligence and indifference that genuinely shocked me.

From the moment I arrived, there was confusion among the staff, a lack of basic courtesy, and an overall sense that no one was in charge. When I politely raised a concern about my order being mishandled, the manager’s attitude (said her name was Alicia she was of a bigger frame Caucasian lady with a bob cut …) was dismissive and condescending. Rather than de-escalate the situation or offer a reasonable solution, they doubled down with hostility and arrogance. It was unprofessional to a level that left every guest nearby visibly uncomfortable.

This was not a one-off lapse of manners; it reflected poor judgment and an alarming lack of basic customer-service training and leadership. A business with your reputation must ensure managers de-escalate, not weaponize security. I am requesting a formal response from management explaining why this escalation occurred, what steps you will take to retrain staff, and how you will restore trust with long-time customers.

As for the food — what arrived was stale, poorly presented, and clearly not fresh. It was deeply disappointing from a bakery that prides itself on quality. I’ve been a loyal customer for years, and this experience not only contradicted every standard I’ve come to expect, but also raised serious questions about management oversight and staff training.

I left embarrassed for having brought guests there and disheartened by how little care was shown at every step. It’s one thing to have an off day — it’s another to exhibit systemic disregard for customers’ time, money, and dignity.

I sincerely hope Breads Bakery takes this as an opportunity to reflect, retrain, and rebuild trust. What happened today was unacceptable on every professional level, and I will not be returning unless I hear that meaningful action...

EDIT I was a big fan of breads for a long long time. Literally every Friday and every Jewish holiday I would stock up on their items to fill my table. Being French in NYC quality is super important to me when it comes to bread. I would have said without hesitation that Breads was the best bakery in NYC... That is, until Hanukkah of 2018. I host a party every year and usually get 4 dozen sufganiyot to serve. About a week before I went to Breads to buy one of each flavor to try and much to my surprise when I ate my first donut there was zero jam inside. Like, nothing. I was kind of upset but figured it was a mistake. I reached out to both the Breads Bakery via instagram and also Uri Scheft himself and got zero response. I guess they feel that they are too big to respond to individual customers. Or maybe they just don't care? After hearing nothing from them I was kind of turned off. I obviously couldn't buy and serve tons of donuts that were no good and weren't filled. So I went to Orwasher's instead. I actually haven't been back to Breads since that bad trip. I don't plan to either. It's a shame because their food used to be great. At this point I don't want to plan on serving something when I am not sure of the quality. Honestly in NYC it is possible to find other good options with consistency and good customer service. Bye bye Breads. ----

ORIGINAL REVIEW : Where to start ? The BEST bakery in New York. Their babka is to die for ! Im French and I assure you that their pastries are a true taste from home. Everything is always right on the spot and fresh. The staff is friendly , a little pricey but...

It smells good when you walk in.

Sometimes they offer you a sample of sweet and tasty item.

The line moves quickly. Some dine in and others takeaway.

I order the egg sandwiches which I like but without the bread. I like both poppy seed and the sesame seed options but want to hollow it out. There is much bread in their scrambled egg sandwiches. The egg part is tasty. Next time prefer at minimum half the bread gone (ie remove the top bun). I literally feel my stomach expanding as we speak which is unusual. For $9 seems overpriced for hot eggs on bread. 🤷🏻‍♀️

This is laughably the “large” cafe latte. When I placed my order I saw the two sizes cups, so you can imagine my surprise when they handed me my large latte in the small cup. In contrast to everywhere else I have been to in this world, Breads defines a large latte as a small cup size with another shot.🤯 so I pointed to the large cup and I asked what that was for. They said the large cup was for the drip coffee. 🤨 Both across the street Epicerie Boulud and Starbucks along with any other place would define a large latte as the conventional larger capacity cup (which btw I saw when I ordered the large) with more of everything (including the milk that goes with the latte).

It’s the only place to get some decent hot breakfast/food so that explains the lines during rush hour

A little overpriced for what they are offering..

I appreciate the warm smile by the cashiers (who change) which makes the...