The line is not nearly as bad as other well-known bakeries that I’ve been to in the Bay Area. They have a handful of various croissants and tarts to choose from. Enough to choose from but a condensed daily selection. We really enjoyed the staff while we were ordering and certainly the food that we got to go. Everything was delicious and exceptional if you are into French pastries. Highly recommend this place and will be one of my regular places to go going forward.
We loved these pastries. We were living with our friends in El Cerrito and they picked up a box full of goodies from Rotha.
Plain croissant, chocolate croissant, almond croissant, bostock, gateau au fromage etc Everything was delicious. I simply adore almond croissants and theirs was really good. Would love to visit the store and try more from their pastries :)
Hands down Patisserie Rotha provides the best croissants in the area, and I dare say better than most croissants you get in Paris. There is almost always a line before they open, sometimes halfway down the block. Half the time I practice my French with the (French) owner. Always friendly. When I’m in Berkeley, I usually come once a week. Love this place.
Service
Take out
Meal type
Other
Price per person
$20–30
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Recommended dishes
Kouign Amann
Best croissant I ever had! I was never a morning person but I forced myself to wake up at 7:30am that morning to check out this place. There was a 25min wait when we got there but it was totally worth it! Flaky outside + meltingly tender inside. I can still recall how tasty it is.
The best advice you'll get from anyone is to SHOW UP EARLY. There is a long line on the sidewalk and they run out of stuff quick. We showed up maybe 1.5-2 hrs before closing, and they had already had a sign that they ran out of croissants - our one goal that morning. We obviously opted for something else since we waited already.
The pastries are like food art. They taste great.
The facility looks very clean and orderly.
I just wanted a French croissant. It's rare these days to find a legit one, comparable to those in Paris.
11/21 update: They were DELICIOUS. It was like being in France again. If you don't care about all the butter that went into it, or you throw out all the rules of ettiquette and lick every bit of croissant flake off your plate, no one will judge you. I ate these so slow, listening to every flaky crunch. Standing in this line is 150% totally worth it.
This place is spectacular. Exactly the right experience, from start to finish. Pastries are perfect and done exactly right in the true French style. Only wish they were open on more days, but can't really fault them the days off. Fab spot. Delish!
Food: 5
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
This is small little bakery located in between el cerrito and Albany area. It opens pretty early and closes pretty early too. We had the pleasure to stop by here while visiting family in this area. The bakery items are made with great quality and texture is really, it is a tad bit on the sweeter side, would be nice if that toned down a bit but other than the flavors are delightful. First time I had the Portuguese tart with a coconut flavor to it, so it was refreshing and surprising. The almond croissant taste better imo than the chocolate one. The chocolate one needs a little bit more chocolate in it hit the flavor again is really good.
Definitely worth a stop if you in the area
Service
Take out
Price per person
$30–50
Food: 4
Service: 5
Atmosphere: 5
Recommended dishes
Bostock