Tatte Bakery & Cafe | Farragut Square — Restaurant in Washington

Tatte Bakery & Café - A Familiar Pastry Haven, with Room for Improvement in Service

As a frequent patron of various Tatte locations across the city, I’ve come to appreciate the brand’s consistency in offering quality fare and beautiful, sunlit interiors. This particular branch benefits from a convenient and accessible location an ideal stop for those in search of a quick caffeine fix or a leisurely bite.

The menu offers what one expects from the Tatte experience: a reliable selection of coffee and tea, light bites including their popular ham and cheese croissant sandwich, and an enticing array of pastries that are, for many (myself included), the true draw. The pastry case elegantly presented and filled with seasonal and signature offerings, remains one of Tatte’s enduring strengths.

The ambience here is typical of a bustling urban café: fast-paced, moderately crowded, and dependent on first-come, first-serve seating. Orders are placed and paid for at the counter, and if preparation requires a bit more time, guests are given a table number for table-side service.

Unfortunately, while the culinary and atmospheric elements were largely in line with expectations, my experience with one particular staff member at the pastry counter left much to be desired. While I understand that isolated service lapses can occur, the interaction was discouraging. A simple question seeking a personal recommendation between the Dark Chocolate Mousse and the Coffee Caramel Mousse was met not with hospitality or even neutrality, but with dismissiveness. I was told, flatly, that the employee “doesn’t eat anything here.” While honesty has its place, a more professional or customer-friendly response would have been appreciated perhaps referencing customer favorites or which may have been more diplomatic.

I ultimately opted for the Coffee Caramel Mousse, drawn by its uniqueness compared to the more commonly encountered chocolate variety. When I later inquired about the location of utensils, the response again from the same cashier was limited to a silent, curt gesture across the room. No words. No acknowledgment. While I’m not one to dwell on minor slights, such interaction creates a lingering impression that could undermine an otherwise pleasant visit.

To be clear, this critique reflects a single encounter with a single staff member not a condemnation of the entire team or establishment. However, from a management perspective, this type of feedback is crucial. Even well-regarded institutions benefit from periodic training refreshers and customer service recalibration. Small improvements in engagement and professionalism could elevate the guest experience significantly.

In summary, Tatte continues to deliver on its core strengths: attractive spaces, high-quality pastries, and reliable light fare. The Coffee Caramel Mousse was rich and satisfying, and the setting, while unremarkable, is familiar and functional. Prices remain on the premium side, but for many, the quality justifies the cost. That said, hospitality is a key part of the café experience, and this location would benefit from addressing the service gaps that can erode customer loyalty over time.

With improved service, this visit might easily have merited a...

Well..not sure where to start. My husband and I were traveling to DC for the first time and we bought the chocolate tart right before the branch was closed for the night. We found out at home that the tart was glued on the button to the piece of cupboard it came with which did not look tasty or healthy at all. We thought at first that they gave us a display tart but it wasn’t. Next morning we came to the same branch to show this concern to the bakery workers and expected to get a refund or other pastry instead, or receive any other solution. To our surprise the employee at the checkout was either incompetent or pretended not to understand what we explained 4 times - that we bought that tart yesterday and wanted to return it or exchange it for something else. He stated that it was normal that the cake was glued to the paper on the bottom and that we had nothing to worry about, then he said that he couldn't take it back because we had already touched that tart with our hands 🙈 we kindly asked if it’s possible to exchange it for a dessert with berries. What happened then, he placed an order and added this old chocolate tart to a new order, added a new dessert with berries to the same order and removed the price of the old chocolate cake from the receipt, saying we can keep that tart lol We handed him the cash so that he would split the change because we wanted to give him a tip for a help, but in the end he still charged the full price for a new dessert using that money for the change we gave him after multiple attempts to explain to him again that the tart was paid for yesterday and the fact that he removed it from the new receipt and charge us for a new one now does not solve the problem. And that’s it, we paid for a new dessert and did not receive a refund for the old glued tart. My main concern is that the bakery ensures that using the glue on the bottom of the tart is normal and edible. They did not however warn that it’s an edible glue which doesn’t look like to me or they could come up with the better idea to put the tart into the form instead of using glue. So my question is would you eat it yourself looking at my pics below? We ended up throwing it out and I’ll unlikely return to that place ever again and that’s not bc we paid $9 for each as you...

I came to Tatte Farragut with my mom on Mother’s Day hoping for a peaceful breakfast. Instead, we were treated with shocking disrespect—especially by Zoe, one of the staff, and Nurshina, the manager.

I simply asked for my latte in a ceramic mug instead of a paper cup since we were dining in. Zoe brought the coffee, slammed it on the table, and yelled, “Do you want the damn coffee or not?” I was stunned. I hadn’t been rude—I had only made a small request.

When I asked to speak to a manager, Nurshina came to our table yelling immediately—no hello, no apology, no “Happy Mother’s Day.” She was there to defend Zoe, not to help a guest. She even said, “I’m not going to fire her,”—when I had never asked for that. All I wanted was kindness and a mug.

She kept repeating, “All I can do and I will do,” like she was doing me a favor—but she didn’t offer to remake the coffee, didn’t offer a refund, not even a kind word. There was zero hospitality or customer service.

Thankfully, Vic, another manager, came by later. She was calm, respectful, and admitted she saw what happened and that it wasn’t the first time Zoe had acted this way. I appreciated her honesty.

This whole experience was disappointing and painful—especially on a day meant to honor mothers. I hope Tatte takes this seriously. No customer should be...