Golden Hearth Bakery

An excellent bakery specializing in bread and pastry. I focus my reviews on the pastries. I had 4 pastries: A Croissant, a chocolate au pain, a blueberry danish and a lemon curd twist. All four pastries were notable for their excellent lamination Golden Hearth specializes in super crunchy flaky pastry and it was the joy of each of the pastries. If I had one critique it would be that they need to be more generous with the excellent fillings to balance things out. Both the lemon curd twist and blueberry danish had delicious punchy filling, but the filling was confined to such a small part of the pastry that it was somewhat lost. The croissant was excellent, and the chocolate au pain was my favorite of the four I tried. A few details to note about the shopping experience: customers do not have access to the store, but order from the front door. I am not sure if this is a COVID protocol or is the standard set up of the bakery. The staff were attentive and efficient but it means you should expect a line up outside, which can be a challenge on days with inclement weather. Though both richly deserve their four star ratings I inevitably have to compare Golden Hearth to Sabletine in the debate of who makes the best Croissant in town. My vote has to stay with Sabletine whose croissants were just as flakey but also a bit richer.

We finally get to try the famous Golden Hearth. Got 5 pastry items today. The pastry itself is very crunchy but there’s not a lot of flavours. The filling for the chocolate au pain was pathetic. The only one item that I would come for again is the double chocolate hazelnut. I would come again for their bread though it’s something we haven’t tried yet.

This was our first visit and it was such an enjoyable experience. We were helped to find something we would enjoy, and not told to hurry up because there was a line behind us. During COVID they keep the baked goods inside and the customers line up and order outside, so I feel like they are taking my health and safety seriously. And even on a relatively cold day like today, it wasn't uncomfortable. Even the other customers were friendly. There are certain items they aren't making during COVID, but their web site seems up to date so you can tell what will be available when you go. Looking forward to going back.