Belle Epicurean – aka Belle’s Buns – Fauxdie’s Review

Taste: I am a connoisseuse of all things bad for you (cf. my review of chips at Sonrisa), and I always, always get the pain au chocolat when I grab a pastry. Belle’s p au choc is quite good, my second favorite in the city. The chocolate is semi-melted and the pastry has a nice buttery flavor without making you feel like you’re going to immediately suffer a heart attack (although, in our health-conscious society, is this a good thing?). *8.5/10*

Drinks: They use Caffe Vita espresso, but the execution of lattes and mochas is consistently inconsistent. *6/10*

Texture: As to be expected, the texture of the pastries change depending on the time of day. If you don’t arrive early in the morn, they heat up your pastries, which makes them semi-soft without being mushy. The chocolate in the pain is semi-melted, which is a step above p au choc at other bakeries, where it feels like they just shoved a couple of old chocolate bars in the middle of a soft croissant. *8.5/10*

Prettiness: The pastries look like pastries, the desserts look pretty (and appetizing), but the espresso drinks look lazily-made. *7/10*

Atmosphere: Black-and-white tiles, 2-3 seat bistro tables, and some benches that look like you should be confessing instead of eating. Not good for large groups. Cool old espresso machine and clean pastry cases. Downtown. *6/10*

Service: Inconsistent. Sometimes they bring you your food and coffee, other times they yell your order while others your order sits on the counter until you realize that it’s your job to get it. Really, though, you’re at a pastry shop– do you expect to be waited upon? *6/10*

Price: Not significantly more expensive than other bakeries in Seattle. *7.5/10*

Overall: 8/10

Summary: Great place for a couple of people to split a few pastries, although for some reason this is not the first place that comes to mind when I want a pastry. If you’re not too much of a coffee snob (though you should be; you live in Seattle), grab an espresso as well. The espresso is tolerable, and is certainly not a deal-breaker. The pastries are where it’s at, and this is the perfect place to spend a quiet Sunday morning downtown.