Michette — Restaurant in Somerville

Michette is a gem tucked into the ever-evolving landscape of East Somerville. From the outside, the charming signage with little cartoons holding croissants pulls you in, but it’s the feeling once you step inside that really hooks you.

Walking in, it almost feels like you’ve crossed into a different era. The rich, dark wood and bustling energy give it this kind of timeless, grounded vibe. You’ve got a crowd inside, all clearly here with purpose, as the team behind the counter works like a well-tuned orchestra, each person genuinely engaged with their craft. Watching them work—rolling dough, restocking trays—makes it feel like you’re witnessing something rare in today’s fast-paced world: people who truly enjoy what they’re creating.

In a city where larger, established bakeries often dominate, it’s inspiring to see a small, grassroots operation like Michette making its mark. There’s something special about seeing the community embrace a place that’s focused so much on quality and craft. Their strive for excellence doesn’t go unnoticed, and it’s clear that they’re pouring everything into this spot.

I tried their canelé and chocolate croissant, which lived up to their reputation. The canelé was perfectly crispy on the outside, soft and custardy within, and the chocolate croissant had these endless layers, each bite flaking away to reveal the deep chocolate tucked inside. You can taste the skill and attention that goes into these pastries; it’s obvious they’re baked with genuine love.

Michette feels like it could quickly become a contender for one of Boston’s go-to bakeries. I’ll be back soon, and if you’re a pastry lover, this place is definitely...

This review has been a long time in the making... Michette is in my neighborhood, and I would like to visit every day. But, the service is so painfully bad, so slow, so disorganized that I only go in if I have absolutely nothing to do for the next hour, and even then, I end up walking out 50% of the time in frustration.

Michette, please, please get better counter service. I ordered pastries for my son's birthday with an explicit request that they be ready by a certain time because I would have hungry 3 year olds and parents waiting. They weren't ready, and the staff person explicitly told me to wait in line with everyone else before your he would even tell me if they were ready; this was on a busy Saturday morning, and I ended up waiting 15 minutes for the order. I would never pre-order with you again.

Routinely, 2 or 3 staff (everyone essentially), waits on one customer at a time. It makes no sense. Just have the person making drinks take drink orders, have someone pick out pastries, and someone else ringing people up. Instead, staff jump from one task to another, often doing nothing but waiting for the single customer that they're all waiting on to finish each individual request.

Maybe this is the vibe you're going for, and you believe (maybe rightly) that your food is so good that people will wait through utter chaos to get a croissant and latte. And obviously some people do. But, as a neighbor and would-be-frequent-customer, please try to move people through the line a...

From the moment you enter, the aroma of their fresh baked pastries and bread tempts you, wafting from the kitchen and display counter up your nose as if it could carry you away like a character from old cartoons. Neatly packed into a postage-stamp-sized storefront, Michette embodies the very essence of a French boulangerie/viennoiserie. How lucky we are to have such a charming place in the middle of East Somerville. One universal recommendation: get there early!

Michette is the real deal. One of the bakers is from Lyon, and as I understand it, some of the classic Lyonnaise flavors, including terrific sausage, make it into their rotating selection of savory pastry, the petit pain salé. But in my opinion, what is most unique about the daily offerings is how many creative flavor combinations they manage to put into laminated dough.

There’s a spinach and feta pastry in the format of a pain suisse topped with za’atar which blew me away—as good as what you’d find at Sofra, if not better. They recently started selling a ham and sauer kraut-filled pastry with just the right amount of whole grain Dijon inside, topped with cracked black pepper. A triumph. And for people who like the sweeter stuff, their chocolate and fruit-filled viennoiseries are sublime. The cold brew is another slam dunk, strong enough to pull you out of any early...