No :-( Jennifer's review (Apr 30th 2006)

The lone man at the front table was looking for Sara. A remark I hear often around town. Usually it’s Shannon, not Sara. If I ever meet these girls, we need to have lunch.But the friendly stranger made good conversation as I stood waiting nearly fifteen minutes to order sandwiches and coffee in the almost empty Alpine Bakery & Bistro on north Monroe. Apparently, some inside joke was remarkably funny behind the counter. I wasn’t in on it. Maybe it had something to do with the episode of Tyra blaring on the television. Or maybe I just looked like I was there to watch. Either way, I wish I would have left instead of reaching around the cash register and taking my own order when the wait became entirely too long.

I knew my chances of a good cappuccino were pretty slim, it wasn’t even listed on the menu, so I ordered a plain latte. Alpine uses locally roasted Uccello’s Coffee, but unfortunately my latte was almost entirely milk. I have no idea if the coffee was good or not; I couldn’t handle more than two sips. Warm, frothy milk just doesn’t float my boat.I’d love to say the sandwiches were much better. But I’ve never seen iceberg lettuce so wilted and brown. Turkey so slimy. Or focaccia so dense and pasty. Honestly, it is hard to remember a sandwich much worse. Maybe Sara knew something the rest of us didn’t.
This Bean Scene post is part of an ongoing series.

No :-( Remi's review (May 22nd 2006)

The thing about bakeries is that you can always be reasonable certain that their baked goods will be fresh. I mean, come on, that’s kind of the purpose of a bakery. And maybe that’s why I was a bit perplexed when the focaccia sandwich I tried at Alpine Bakery and Bistro was stale as dirt.

Not that the sandwich would have set the world on fire had the bread been fresh. With lettuce that looked like it had been laying out for days and meat that tasted like something out from a package, this was just a very very sad sandwich. Trying to mask it all by going overboard with the mayo did not help the case either.

Nothing is a whole lot worse than a wasted lunch, and that is exactly what you get at Alpine Bakery & Bistro. Avoid.

No :-( spocoug's review (Jun 13th 2006)

Ah, Alpine. For those who work in or near the courthouse, there was joy when it arose from the ashes of the much beloved Genova. They had bought Genova’s bread recipes, it was heard. They were bringing in the pastries that were popular at their location north of Mead (the strangely named Nifty Fifties). There was much anticipation. Then Alpine opened, and it’s been all downhill since.

When I was there in early June, Alpine was almost empty. The slow service was now well known, but I had to see if it was still the case. It is. Where early in its life Alpine would fill up very quickly, on this day one person was in there. And this was at 12:15. I ordered a sandwich, and the wait began. I timed it – 25 minutes. And this was with one other person in the room. Someone else entered briefly, but then left as soon as they came in. The signs supporting district judge candidates didn’t help the ambiance, either. The only saving point was the smell of baking bread.

The sandwich was below average, the bread not standing out. Yep, Alpine was living down to its reputation. I waited 25 minutes for a below average sandwich.

I still get the occasional pastry there. The scones and donuts are good. But I get them to go – the service seems faster. But the pastries can’t save the place.

And I still miss Genova.

No :-( Michelle's review (Jul 7th 2006)

Wow, well it seems that our experience was not abnormal. We’ve made a habit of trying out the restaurants reviewed in the newspaper and/or The Inlander. We were sadly led astray by the review of Alpine Bakery. I have to agree with the reviews here. Slow service despite being the only people in the place, poor ambiance, and poor food. What a shame.

Yes :-) Cassidy's review (Jan 10th 2007)

I thought I better stick up for my neighborhood place…
I love their apple fritters. These are the real thing. Their marbled rye is great.

I like their panini and their biscuits and gravy. I had a chai there the other morning it was great. I can’t say anything bad about it except no place to park and it’s a bad neighborhood.

But I live here, so can’t complain too much.

Yes :-) Brian's review (Mar 19th 2007)

My wife and I ate here the other night and we really enjoyed it. The bread was outstanding. (We bought more and brought it home to eat the next day—and that was so good, we bought more tonight). Since there are not that many little cafes on the North side, we figured we’d give it a shot for its new dinner.

We shared two appetizers—the bread with dipping oil and the stuffed mushrooms. The bread was great and the mushrooms were quite good. Then we had salads—I had salmon and greens, and she had grilled chicken caesar. These were both very good, nice salad, and her chicken was good, too. All the while we had wine. While the food was not exactly quick, it merely made it a pleasant sit—and they gave us extra bread and free refills of wine while we sat. In short, it was a very pleasant evening. At the very least, I suggest people give their bread another shot—especially the sourdough.

No :-( Ron's review (Mar 24th 2008)

Terrible service and mediocre food

Yes :-) sharon's review (Aug 12th 2008)

OK, so i don’t go there as often as i would really like to, but, hey, i would like to think that my pants will still fit and if i keep going in there, they won’t. The pastries are out of this world, and the 7 layer bars…....WOW!! One of the few places that doesn’t use almonds. Some of us just don’t like almonds. My coffee was great i just wish the seats were a little more comfy, cos i would be there all day, wondering where to buy bigger pants. :):):)