4 of My Favorite Bakeries in Seattle & on the Eastside
When the world feels heavy, a delicious baked good might give you a glimmer of joy. When there's something worth celebrating, you better believe we'll savor every minute of it by sinking our teeth into amazing carbs. We have some awesome bakeries in Seattle and on the Eastside. Here are 4 we go back to over and over again!
Seawolf Bakers in Seattle
We stumbled upon this place during the pandemic. When playgrounds were roped off and restaurants were doing take out, we sought the small joys in life like the best tasting sourdough (confession: I could not keep my sourdough starter alive). Once we tried the sourdough loaf at Sea Wolf Bakers, our search had ended. We drove over the toll bridge to Seattle on a weekly basis to enjoy their croissants, sourdough loaf, cheddar lye rolls and focaccia bread. When new things came out, we ate it! We told our neighbors about these goods and week by week, purchased more and more things to haul back to our neighborhood. This was such a bright spot during the pandemic! Even after the pandemic, we still frequent this place, buying some tasty treats for a casual picnic lunch at Gasworks Park. What child (and adult) wouldn't want to eat a cheddar lye roll while sitting on a bench overlooking the Seattle skyline at Gasworks Park? I'M IN!
A few things to know are:
- Street parking can require some patience. You might need to circle the block a few times to find parking. Otherwise, if there's two of you, drop one person off to grab your haul of goodies while the other person circles the block.
- Their sweet croissants rotate frequently. I've enjoyed their lemon curd marshmallow croissant and strawberry rhubarb croissant.
Hey Bagel in Seattle
I've been going to U Village since my college days. It's my favorite mall because there's a great mix of stores and restaurants in their open air mall. When I randomly walked past Hey Bagel and saw the line out the door, I knew I had to try it. When they handed me my order, I was stunned the bagels were still HOT. I had never had a hot bagel before (even in NYC) so this was eye opening. The plain bagel is great with its crackly ASMR crust. But the pepperoni bialy and my favorite, the caramelized onion & gruyere bialy are SO delicious...my mouth waters just thinking about it. The cream cheese has a great milky flavor and my daughter will lick every last bit from the container.
A few things to know are:
- Weekdays have shorter lines than weekends however any day can sell out. I've gone at 3pm on a weekday only to leave empty handed.
- It's a long drive from the Eastside to Seattle! After bagels, we usually drive 10 minutes to Boba Up for self-serve bubble tea. My girls love filling their cups 75% full with boba or jelly and then topping it off with just a bit of actual juice, haha.
Farine Bakery & Cafe in Redmond
Anytime I want to make a typical Saturday morning just a little bit special, I'll hop into the car (with a coat over my pajamas) and drive 10 minutes to Farine Bakery in Redmond. We love the Farine basket, a sampler of their artisan breads, croissants, jams and whipped butter. It's so fun to come home, toast up the bread, tear off little bite sized pieces and slather them with jam. If we get to the bakery early enough, they'll also have their crème brûlée cruffin, which is everything you'd want in a carb! It has a yummy custard, a crackly caramelized sugar topping and little bits of sugar dusting the exterior. If you want to skip the cake on your birthday, pick up a few eclairs and tarts from their pastry case and cut those into little pieces to share. Can you tell we like to sample things? SO FUN!
A few things to know are:
- Street parking along Redmond Way is stressful because it's a busy street. Parking on the back side of the bakery, along NE 79th St is more plentiful. They also have a parking garage you can enter on NE 79th St.
- They close at 3pm, so if you need a carb fix, go earlier in the day.
- They also have locations in downtown Bellevue and Woodinville.
85°C Bakery Cafe in Bellevue
I grew up on pineapple buns, cream buns and coconut buns. For my childhood birthdays, my parents would buy Asian cakes, with layers of chiffon, lightly sweetened whipped cream and fresh fruit inside. So it was only right to share the same childhood joys with my girls. They love grabbing a plastic tray and loading it up with different types of buns. For their birthday, we can get a sampling of cake slices, buy a buy an entire cake. The highest compliment my Asian relatives give a pastry is saying "it's not too sweet." A QFC cake is cloyingly sweet and all you can taste is pure sugar but these cakes are light, airy and full of flavor!
A few things to know are:
- Parking requires some patience. I've had some luck finding parking right in front of the bakery as people tend to grab and go.
- There is online ordering found here if you're in a time crunch. I do love going in and picking things myself though!
What's your favorite bakery?
I'm always looking to try new bakeries so if you have one that you LOVE, please let me know at hello@linglingzhengphotography.com! If you're looking for something more substantial, I have a list of kid friendly restaurants we love here. Thanks so much for reading!
