D N.
Yelp
AVOID THIS TOURIST TRAP! Just because it's on Embarcadero does not mean it's good.
As we walked up to the building I was thinking the first red flag was the 100 signs all posted or taped all over the windows advertising everything they sell, or possibly the 10-days-past-Christmas flimsy decorations still zip tied to every corner of the building. But my "do not judge a book by its cover" mindset got the best of me.
The HUGE red flag we should have not ignored was the wall of pungent wet air mold smell that hit my face when we walked in. The only thing that could distract us from that was the loud drum vibration of air circulation machines running over time.
It's clear the pastries and treats are made in house, however during our brief stay we heard (and saw) a midsize dog barking and running around the kitchen/office area. Whoever's dog it was (worker? Owner?) was seen carrying the dog as well and seemed to be there to eat with the dog. Not sure if that's advisable? But certainly not helping the vibes.
Also not helping the vibes was the industrial tarps that covered the ceilings. It felt like we had walked into an oversized tent or construction project. Same with the walls that appeared to be original driftwood planks probably recovered from the sea decades ago (not charming when used for structural integrity). The carpet was worn thin and looks like it's changed colors naturally over the years of tread marks.
I walked around to look at all the trinkets for sale and was confused- there was a half stocked turn stand of necklaces from oriental trading company, shot glasses reading "Shark Bite", oil painting greeting cards from yester year and top ramen cup of soups mixed in with Kellogg cereal cups. Basically, if it can fetch a quarter, it's for sale here.
The worker was attentive and efficient, but clearly not cheerful or passionate for the work. We ordered two cups of coffee, but I guess we should have specified "hot" as it was lukewarm at best. It tasted worse than gas station coffee. We stood in line to get a refund, but there was a poor tourist family visiting from Sweden that was taking a really long time and I feel bad to think this will be their impression of Californian cuisine. We ultimately walked out, threw the coffee away and went to a coffee shop two blocks up the road (highly recommend going there and not here)