Village Bakehouse — Restaurant in Oro Valley

Updates May 4, 2025. We went to pick up my wife’s birthday cake, and got two of VB’s outstanding Reuben sandwiches to boot.

And, while we waited I took photos of some of their cakes! ——————- Updated: February 15, 2025: As usual, VBH has remarkably good food, especially for such a small and rustic place. What I did not know, or had forgotten, is that in addition to rather tasty breakfast tacos, and croissant sandwiches, they serve a full breakfast, including eggs-as-you-like them, bacon, sausage, etc.. No hashbrowns, but scrumptious breakfast potatoes. ... I still wish there were a way to expand their indoor seating, but if you get there early and stake out a table, it's a great place to eat ... maybe too great!

Updated Father's Day 2023:

For today's Father's Day my lovely wife took me to the Village Bakehouse around lunch time.

Simply Marvelous ... that's the only way to describe the food we were served AND the German Chocolate Cake that we bought and took home!!!

Wow ... the Eggs Benedict were simply divine ... from the sauce, to the perfectly cooked eggs, to the canadian bacon (very tender), to the English muffin below to the very, very, very scrumptious and perfectly done red potatoes! And, my wife commented specifically on how well prepared were the scrambled eggs in her bacon, egg and cheese croissant sandwich!

Well, with food that good, and since German Chocolate is my favorite cake, we reserved the last one we saw in the case so that no one else would buy it before we were done eating.

We were not disappointed!!!

Easily the best German Chocolate Cake, from anywhere, that I have had in years and years and years.

The Village Bakehouse is highly recommended for its polite and helpful employees as well!

UPDATE Sunday, October 1, 2017:

Well, its hard to describe just how rare it is to find a chocolate cupcake, with chocolate mousse-like icing, that is THIS good. Wonderful. Wonderful. Wonderful ... And to top it off, the Reuben sandwich I had just before the cupcake, which was WONDERFUL itself, didn’t dampen my spirits for the chocolate cupcake.

Boy, what a great place to eat.

UPDATE Saturday, November 25, 2023:

I ordered three pies for Thanksgiving from Village Bakehouse … I ordered them in mid-October, actually, to make sure they would be available … sooooooo popular is VB! Smartly, VB suggested I pick them up on Tuesday the 21st, as Wed the 22nd. Great Idea! I happened to stop by at 7:00 a.m. right after my weekly Tuesday workout (I train nearby at Real Fit, with David VanHoorik … he trains all comers, but is especially well qualified and helpful in training us old, or if you prefer, ‘mature’ people who want to keep fit or who need to get back into shape), and I was astonished to find VB busy with people waiting in line to buy pies etc, or pick-up their orders! VB was VERY efficient … they had to be, they had pies stacked almost everywhere that I could see. Well, very quickly I got my three pies, Apple, Pumpkin/Cheesecake with Pralines, and Pecan, and was on my way. Wow! The crust on all the pies was just like it should be, flaky, light and tasty … even the bottom (below the filling was still not soggy like it gets sometimes). Since most of what I like about Pecan pies is the caramelized pecans on the top … they were great! The filling was excellent too, but that ‘s not my ‘jam’, as they say. The Apple pie was done perfectly … with the Apples not too done/mushy and not too sweet; the cinnamon flavor was just right. And the Pumpkin-Cheesecake w/Pralines was surprisingly good. The Pralines added a bit of crunch and the cheesecake on the bottom paired well with the pumpkin filling on the top.

I am continually amazed at how Village Bakehouse continues, year after year to provide good, wholesome, well-made, high quality baked goods and sandwiches. Highly recommended. Just order your Christmas pies early and pick...

Review from Former Employee, Degree Holder in Nutritional Sciences & Long Time Fan

As the beginning of this review states I am a fan of this bakery/cafe, not only is it near by my neighborhood with a variety of nutritious and delicious options it also has been a go to spot during many pivotal times in my life for celebration/comfort food; during the pandemic, post-surgery, graduations, etc. On that note, I always had such a pleasant experience with the front of the house employees that during the time between graduation and the start of my first corporate job I decided to apply to work in the back of the house. What a sweet experience I must say! I learned so much about the multiple steps of baking high quality pastries/cakes, the need for organization with catering and the time management skills needed for cooking multiple meals in the kitchen. Seeing the multi-team process that goes into creating each yummy bite of our food shined a light on the level of respect and craftsmanship baking is. Beyond the great food, something I would like to highlight about behind the scenes is the emphasis of low/zero waste. It was impressive to see how there are many ways to use an item to create the dishes we love and avoid making the item going to the trash. (Example, lemon zest for cake, then lemon juice used for the lemon bars. Genius!) Also the importance of recycling and purchasing durable cook-wear is a point that makes a positive impact on our planet. Additionally, when I was there it was a delight to see the highly diverse staff. Employees were from all over the world and spoke different languages yet worked harmoniously while sharing laughs along the way. There was such a variety of people I learned a few phrases in French, Vietnamese, German, Spanish and Arabic. Seeing the amazing rainbow of people which complied the team really warmed my heart and is a standout benefit of this location. Lastly, I must mention the fabulous woman that leads the ship. The owner of this bakery is truly a gem for her leadership skills, high standard of excellence, teaching ability, humble heart, kindness, creativity and ability to stay calm under pressure. From her I learned so much about food science, restaurant management, the importance of due diligence with processes/presentation and what it means to push the limit on one's ability. A story that stands out to me is when I saw the bakery have a plaque award dropped off. A huge fuss wasn't made by the owner, she acknowledged it, put it in a safe place and continued working. This story stays with me because it is an example of when you are the best, your work will speak for you, others will see it and when they say you are amazing you accept it and keep working hard because fine craft-womanship is what got you there to begin with. Basically being a winner is just another day when you are truly winning in your field. Also it really touched my heart to see the listening ear the owner would give to her employees. Whenever you needed to share an experience, it was great to know you could count on her to listen and show empathy. One more point I would like to highlight about the owner is her ability to have confidence behind her/the team's creative efforts. Trying new recipes and displaying them for sale really is a form of high confidence especially considering all of the bakery/cafe's marketing is word of mouth. In conclusion, if you are a lucky guest of this fine establishment, you are supporting a eco-system of positivity that is sure to leave you with a sweet taste in your mouth. Thank you again Village Bakehouse for letting me be part of your team!

-Abby Charles, Author, Speaker...

Edit: This paragraph here is an updated edit. I am leaving what I wrote below because it happened. Can't change that. With that said, the owner, Paulette, called me today. She explained that she had given her employees remedial training to explain that they have to charge what their menu board states, and don't embarass someone else for making a mistake in front of the entire staff and customers. I promised I would upgrade my review from 1 star to a higher rating. This interaction was definitely not a 5 star interaction, but it's clear the owner is trying to maintain a great business. I hope she continues to improve. I asked for, and received nothing from the Village Bakehouse.

Original experience below:

TLDR: Village Bakehouse tried to charge more than the price listed on their menu boards for two separate items, got offended when I said I wanted to pay the price written on the menu boards over their heads, and took personal umbrage when I said I felt they were trying to rip me off… ya know, for charging more than their posted price.

If the food is so good, why the bad review, especially when I have been a fan of this place for years?

The customer service I received today was terrible because they tried to charge more than the prices they advertised, and then refused to change the items to the prices written on their menu boards.