Roggenart European Bakery, Bistro & Cafe — Restaurant in Reston

Well, what shall I say. Let's preface this review with what "Roggen" means: Rye. The first question that presents itself is where the rye actually is? There is a large selection of pastries and some quiches, but no rye in sight, or any bread for that matter. Other than the large bags of manifestly industrial bread used for the sandwiches. Make no mistake, this is no artisanal bakery. So on this Saturday morning I go to try this out. I stand in line for about 10 minutes and wait another 12 for my 8 pieces of pastry. While I stand there I wonder why there is a wait at all. Only one register is open and there is an army of people working behind the counter. Some of them making desserts that are just piling up. Growing pains I am sure. The dining room is pleasant, another good example that most customers seem to appreciate interior decorating skills more than any actual artisanal products. So for me bottom line, I would rather go to Lidl over this place, spend 99c for a croissant that is just as good or better, have it at home and don't feel like I was scammed paying $5 for a mediocre pastry. And I'd probably be...

We recently visited this newly opened European bakery, bistro, and café on Sunset Hills Rd in Reston, eager to enjoy brunch. While the place has potential, our overall experience felt quite average.

The apple strudel was decent but left room for improvement. The crookie (a combination of croissant and cookie) was unremarkable, and the veggie omelet and signature sandwich were okay. A flavorful sauce could have significantly enhanced the sandwich, as it came across as a bit dry. Unfortunately, the croissant was dry and flaky, lacking the rich buttery flavor we expected, and serving it warmed would have made a notable difference. As for the "European" aspect of the menu, we struggled to find anything that truly captured that essence, although they offered various pastries. On a positive note, the coffee was satisfactory, and the latte made with Lavazza was particularly noteworthy.

The ambience was clean, yet it felt somewhat lacking; a more thoughtful selection of art, adding real plants/greenery, and fuller shelves would...

I ordered the Reese’s Croissant, Vegan Mediterranean, and Sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich. The Reese’s Croissant was very good. Unfortunately, that is where the good experience ended. The two sandwiches were both wrong. The Vegan Mediterranean was missing Avacado and Hummus and the sausage breakfast sandwich was missing sausage! Not sure how one forgets the main ingredients from two sandwiches… Unfortunately we took our order to go and could not get the orders remade.

The atmosphere is loud: noise coming from the workers shouting orders across the whole store from behind the register instead of having a dedicated area for people to wait and for the food to be delivered. They also mispronounced my name when shouting it the one time, and gave me attitude when I did not come to the counter (register) immediately (upon hearing “Chris” mispronounced).

I had high hopes, and the food is not bad, but the service and operational logistics were...