I love finding a new cafe with delectable baked goods and desserts. During my stay in Boston, I found a cafe that quickly became my favorite. I visited Tatte Bakery & Café in Back Bay, super early in the morning. They had nice outdoor seating, but it was not the perfect outdoor day (just yet), so we went inside.
Since they have just opened for the day not too long before we entered, the inside was still quite with just a handful of customers. The inside was large with nice amount of natural light coming in from the front, with walls covered with large windows. I liked the old fashioned tiles that makes this place a bit more cozy and inviting. They had lots of small round tables, and one large communal table in the middle. It got pretty packed quickly, as they are very popular among the locals and visitors alike. The interior was beautiful, clean and inviting.
And did I mention delectable baked goods and desserts? They sure do have them, and plenty of it! I was in my own little dessert heaven standing in front of these beautiful babies…
The problem was, it was so difficult to choose which one to order! I wanted to have them all… only if my stomach and wallet could afford such luxury…
After some struggle with my dessert-loving-self, we ordered one dessert each with latte to go with it. We were there for the actual breakfast, but since they make them to order, we decided to have desserts while we wait for the food. One of my motto is, Life is Short, Eat Dessert First! Someone else might have said that already, but hey, I agree with ya completely!
We had two kinds of Latte, the first one was their Seasonal Latte ($4.75) which was Hazelnut Praline & Cinnamon. It was super yummy, sweet but not overly sweet. Wonderful praline aroma and flavor. It was just perfect cup of Latte, made with love and care!
The other one was Matcha Latte ($4.25/large). It had real matcha flavor which was great! It was just slightly sweet, more bitter as they should be, really nicely made! What a great way to start the day…
The first dessert was Pistachio Crush ($7). We love pistachio, so this one sounded like a great choice. This is one of their many fantastic cheesecakes.
It had so much pistachio on the top AND in the inside! Even though this is cheesecake base, but the texture was more like whipped mousse, so very creamy and super delicious! The bottom of the cake was like a pistachio cookie, really nice! This one was one of the best pistachio desserts I have ever had… If you are pistachio lover like me, you should get your hands on this one!
While I was trying to make a decision on the second dessert (and having hard time with it), manager (I believe) helped me with recommendations. He asked which kind of dessert I was looking for, and I said cheesecake baked cakes. Then he told me few of the popular ones with descriptions which was very helpful. He said “If you want a really decadent cake, Belgian Chocolate Mousse Cake would be it.” I thought that sounded good, so I chose that one.
Belgian Chocolate Mousse Cake ($7) was indeed super decadent, velvety and awesome! Cheesecake based with very rich chocolate. Bottom of the cake was solid, like a mix between chocolate cookie and brownie. After a few bite, I started to think it was a bit too decadent, even for me… But when you are sharing it with someone else, having half of a super decadent cake is not so bad. And it paired really nicely with bitter Matcha Latter.
Off to the real food… Just look at these beauties, if you didn’t know what happiness looked like, you do now! Their food is simply work of art, that can also warm up your soul and bring a smile to your face. Oh, how I wish if I were there right now…
I ordered Croque Madame ($12), made with their Housemade croissant, ham, gruyere and Mornay sauce. I asked the egg to be sunny side up, the classic, you know. It was beautiful and scrumptious, I loved that it was made with croissant! And the sauce drizzled over just makes it!
Having Croque Madame on croissant was quite unexpected, but since I love croissant, this was great! It was fluffy, flaky, buttery croissant gently sandwiching ham, egg and cheese… yum! The egg was cooked perfectly, just the way I like it. This was an awesome dish! You might think it “looks” tasty but it actually tasted better than it looks.
My hubby ordered Shakshuka with Lamb Meatball & Labneh ($14.50). It is a traditional North African dish with tomato sauce, bell pepper, eggs and feta cheese served with toasted challah. It was quite large, came in a nice pan, still bubbling, giving out the mouthwatering aroma…
It was powerful with spice and certainly wakes you up if you weren’t before. Perfect breakfast for any morning. Lambs were meaty and solid, and peppers had some kick to it. The sauce with lebne, which is mainly yogurt, calmed the spicy flavor down a bit, balancing out the whole dish. Egg in the middle was nice too. Bread is toasted perfectly, buttery, sweet and amazing. We loved dipping it into the sauce. Pure perfection.
They have three uni-sex bathrooms in the back with code key lock on the door. The one I used didn’t need any kind of code.
The inside was clean and spacious. I saw them using an old pipe as the toilet paper. It seems like this is the trend for bathroom nowadays? I see it everywhere now.
The staffs were very friendly and nice. They welcomed us nice smile, and didn’t rush us to order quickly. Well, it was not busy at the time when we walked in, so it was ok to take a little time. But then, within 30 min of opening, it was nearly full house! With their delicious lattes and food, no wonder they are super popular. They certainly had my heart after one visit, and I just couldn’t stay away… So, we went back again on another morning.
This time, we went about one hour after they opened, and it was packed! We did the same thing this time as well, getting lattes and dessert first while we wait for the food. I love my life!
We ordered the Seasonal Latte again, and House Latte, which was Honey-Halva & Cardamom ($4.75). The House Latte was kind of kind of herb-y, with tahini flavor. Nice sweetness without being overly sweet. Kind of nutty and very comforting, and yes, tasty!
For dessert, we decided to get something that is not cheesecake based kind. We so wanted to get the Pistachio Crush again, but we had to make ourselves to try something new. The first one was Stumptown Espresso Mocha Mousse ($6). It was so pretty, like a little gift with a bow on top.
It was super velvety and rich, not as sweet and decadent as the Belgian Chocolate Mousse Cake. It just melt in your mouth as your taste buds have a party. I really liked it!
The other dessert of choice was Pistachio Cherry Tart ($7). We just couldn’t let go of our love for pistachio… It was great tart with lots of pistachio and subtle amount of cherry jam(?). The crust is very thick and solid, a bit harder than I expected. Better to bite it off than to try cutting it with silverware. Very tasty, but I still prefer their Pistachio Crush.
For food, my hubby ordered the Croque Madame since he enjoyed it too at our previous visit. For me, I went with Croissant Sandwich ($9.50). It is made with egg your style, VT cheddar, sliced tomato, avocado, arugula on housemade croissant.
It was a bit similar to their Croque Madame, almost like vegetarian version of it. Very refreshing with thick sliced tomato and fresh arugula. Avocado on the bottom was a nice touch. Fluffy and flaky croissant and melty cheese… Awesome! I love their croissant!
On the second visit, the staffs on this day were friendly and nice as the ones from the previous day. Thank Tatte for having such awesome place for us to enjoy great latte, food and dessert! My new found love… I wish if I could visit every day… Maybe it is better they are not anywhere near me… But when I am back in Boston, I will be visiting one of your locations again for sure!!!
Tatte Bakery & Café – 399 Boylston street, Boston, MA 02116