Sub Rosa Bakery — Restaurant in Richmond

I'd been meaning to post a review for a while; the owners asked for details on my low rating in a very cordial and friendly manner so here it goes: My husband and I were passing through the area when we decided to look for a highly rated coffee place. Sub Rosa came up. The pastries looked homely and wholesome, and the place seemed like a nice place to sit and sip a cup of coffee. We decided to go for it, excited to have found a real bakery/coffee shop and take a break from driving. When we entered, the lady behind the counter said she'd be with us in a second. It was more like 10 minutes. I noticed that while she made a coffee drink by the machines, a pastry was reheating in the electrical oven. 5 minutes later, I wondered how the pastry would turn out. We looked at the pastries left, and when the girl finally took our order, I asked her if the pastries in the cooling racks were available for sale; to which she replied, in a very exasperated tone, that the ovens had been turned off for the day and that they only had what I saw.

First, I understand certain batches are made at certain hours, to serve them during specific shifts, and that all this is predetermined by the store manager based on previous traffic and sales logged, if he/she is a good one.

But here is the problem: It was 4pm in the afternoon. This meant that all of those pastries would be sold the next day, over 12 hours later, as freshly baked goods, when they are not. That is a problem, because it is misleading. Any baker worth his salt knows pastries and baked goods, with few exceptions, are no longer considered fresh after 8 hours. This is why real bakeries sell their goods at half price after 4pm; because they are getting rid of the baked goods they will not serve the next day because they are no longer considered fresh (it's something to do with the gluten and sugars, and the changes the pastries experience after being baked).

Here's another problem: No one should leave the store without something in their hands. You always want a customer to leave happy, because you cannot rely on new traffic alone. What's worse, new traffic spreading the word will leave you with neither returning customers nor new customers. The girl behind the counter should have used her common sense, and seeing that we did not want any of the pastries in the window and would rather walk out hungry than take the day's leftovers, should have made an exception. Maybe then I would have tasted your pastries, and the review would be about the taste of the products. I'm only one customer, but I can't imagine that I'm the only one noticing these things, so left unaddressed, these minor hiccups, do turn into bigger problems.

By the way, on our way out, I looked at the plate of the guy who was served the chocolate croissant. As I expected, he'd taken the top layer of the croissant off and placed it aside: It was burned, but strangely, he hadn't had the courage to send it back. This spared the girl behind the counter of the discomfort of having to apologize, but I don't think it spared the store from that customer later on telling his friends he was served a...

When anywhere near Richmond during Sub Rosa's hours you better pull up. But do expect a line when they open until close. This quaint bakery in Church Hill does things the old fashion way with a wood fired oven that makes all the difference in taste.

My visit around 8 AM on a Sunday found a challenge to park and a line a block long. I knew I had arrived at the right place. They have been on a try list for a few years. With a flight in a few hours I was a bit nervous, but it all worked out as they are just 10-12 minutes from the airport.

The building is an adorable two story with awnings. The neighborhood is one of the oldest in the city adding some charm. However not far is a lot of blight. I felt safe as I finally found my way to their front door after approximately 35 minutes. However you will make friends trust me.

The counter of goodies is immediately as you walk in. The place is small but offers a few tables to enjoy your pastry and coffee, they also offer a few tables outside. The brick oven is the hero as employees work hard to pull off trays of bakery items to replenish the depleting cases. They have a policy of only 8 per customer. Larger orders call 48 hours in advance.

I decided on a few items like a basic croissant, a chocolate croissant, a crumb cake and something with potatoes. I was eating in, but also taking a box out. So I informed them what was for here and also a cappuccino. It's pricey as the bill with 20% tip was just under $40. The service was friendly at the counter.

I did chat with a staff who said their baking process begins by loading the oven with wood and firing around 2 PM for the next day. She jokingly said you would not want to be here it gets real smokey. The restroom in the back was clean.

The pastries came out quickly on real plates with real metal utensils. Thank you! The cappuccino took much longer and was mistakenly put in a paper cup which was disappointing. Every single item was tried and magnificently tasty and fresh.

I left very satisfied that I supported a local business as well as found such a gem of a bakery to recommend. The visit had one small hiccup that I will ignore for the purposes of their overall composite score of a full 5 stars.

Sub Rosa has been in business for 13 years and has always had the same method of making all their bakery items. I will hopefully...

This place left me with so many questions and I couldn’t understand why it was so customer unfriendly. Do not waste your time. If the product is so amazing it does not give you an excuse to have literally no customer service, make it difficult to get a hold of the product, provide no space for you to enjoy the product. I’m so thankful I went to Whisk right after leaving this awful place and enjoyed every bit of experience I had for the first time at that bakery (Whisk). I’ve lived in large cities my whole life and I’ve never experienced anything like Subrosa.

1. I do not understand why you have a bakery open for business that you are not allowed to step foot in?
2. I don’t understand how you run a business where the customer is not allowed in the shop to look at the goods and everything has to be ordered online in advance yet you’re online platform freezes making the experience yet even more user unfriendly?
3. Why is there a tip included in the bill when you receive absolutely no service nor did you even step foot into the shop? Am I tipping you for the inconvenience of standing out on the street in the cold waiting a half an hour for you to bring me my pastry in a paper bag?
4. If the online platform even allows you to go through with the purchase of your food why then do you have to take the extra effort to text them to let them know you’re here? Should they not have your food readily available and be looking for you or have a system set up to where you’re allowed to retrieve your own food?
5. Once again I am perplexed by the tip on the bill when there is no customer interaction whatsoever… You’re doing the ordering… You’re doing the purchase transaction… There’s not one person there to assist you or to provide any...