Noe Valley Bakery West Portal — Restaurant in San Francisco

I placed an online order for a devils cake along with some red velvet cupcakes for my husband's birthday. He loves chocolate cake, but I never got him one because he has never requested one on his birthday until now!

This is my first time ordering an American cake and I'm normally used to Chinese cakes (very light with fruit). My past experiences with American cakes were always from big chain grocery stores, which were always way too sweet, dense, dry and had a specific weird aftertaste to them. So that's basically what I expected from these, but the devils cake here was delicious and the red velvet were even better! The cake was very moist, and the right amount of chocolaty. In the end I didn't finish my slice since the chocolate got too much for me (but no weird aftertaste!), but it was a huge hit with my husband and family.

The red velvet cupcakes was what really stood out to me! It wasn't too light or too dense and the cream cheese frosting paired perfectly with it. I'll definitely be ordering a red velvet birthday cake for myself!

My only complaint is that it doesn't seem like decorating is their forte. The bottom two flowers have a weird gap between the two flowers while the two flowers did not have a weird gap...

This looks like a nice bakery and is always busy with people lining up for their baked goods. However, both of my visits to Noe Valley Bakery turned out somewhat disappointed. The first time, after paying I realized that I need a bag because I was holding a coffee in one hand and I have two items to take away. I was not asked if I needed one, in fact, the person helping me was already gone when I was tapping my card to pay. When I asked if I can have a bag, a staff member asked me if I purchased one, and then told me very coldly that it costs 25 cents and I should have bought one. While I appreciate that they still gave me a bag, I wouldn't consider this a good customer service experience. The second time. I had a savory croissant tile and I'll be honest it was awfully sloppy. Didn't...

Returned to Noe Valley Bakery for the first time post-shelter-in-place. The baked goods are every bit as scrumptious as I remember. There was no line when I was there on a Sunday afternoon. The only complaint I have is that the counter help kept rushing me for my order rather than give me the time I wanted to browse, think and consult with my daughter who was with me that afternoon. As a result, I did not receive everything that I ordered although it appears that I was only charged for what I received. I had previously given this store 5 stars. Due to the abrupt customer service (?), I can only give it 4 stars with the hope that I will be able to restore the 5 star rating the next time I visit. Yes, the baked goods...