S C.
Yelp
This review is for the newly added Wayzata location. I went there on Thursday 9/19/24 with my mom, we were there at 10:45 in the morning. I went in excited, always looking for a great bakery and prefer to support local businesses.
This location is in an area with a very tiny, hard-to-maneuver parking lot, although this isn't the fault of Thirsty Whale, so we were still excited to find something yummy for a late breakfast.
Upon arrival, one of the six young women behind the counter greeted us.
We picked out a Chocolate Cherry Muffin and a Croissant. They had a lot of other choices, but everything in the very small case was placed so closely together that the frostings on the donuts and other items were transferred to the item next to it. It wasn't appetizing and I should have listened to my inner voice and walked across and up the street to Benedict's, but I didn't, so we picked a Muffin and a Croissant thinking these were the safest options.
And then it got worse. The muffin was cold, as if it had been frozen or refrigerated upon opening the store that morning, it was not baked fresh that day as we had expected it would be and after tasting it, it was probably a couple of days old. It was not moist; the chocolate cake was crumbly and had no richness to the flavor. The Croissant was barely baked, the outside was soft, and it was not flaky. So disappointing.
Our items were placed in two white bags, we were not asked if we were eating there or taking it to go. No napkins were added to the bags. The downside is that if we had indicated that we were going to eat it there, we could have been given picnic-style red and white paper hot dog trays to put our sweets into. So, eating a muffin that was already crumbly without a plate, became very messy.
We were asked if we'd like anything to drink. I asked for hot chocolate, they had a rather extensive coffee menu, so I was sure they'd have the supplies to make a hot chocolate. I was told that they didn't have hot chocolate but could put some mocha syrup in milk and heat it, umm no. So instead, I ordered a peach smoothie, which was too peachy, like it had peach flavoring, in addition to, some real fruit. It was made with cream that was not the same temperature as the rest of the items because it began to separate in my glass as we sat down to eat. Into the trash, it went...
Also, there isn't a designated pick up location for your drink order. They just shout the type of drink you ordered. No name on the cup or order to identify it. You have 6 people behind the counter, drinks could be delivered to the table. When you go up to the counter to grab a spoon, you can choose your spoon from one of three containers that contain plastic, cheap, flimsy "silverware" with all of the spoon, fork, or knife side up. So, everyone could touch every spoon, fork, or knife each time you need one, or could sneeze or cough in the general area and all of the utensils would be showered with germs. So, unsanitary and gross. Each of those employees should have to go through Serv-Safe training. They haven't...
The ambiance of this location is lazy. They put some fake flower vases in the corners but did have some small vases on the tables with fresh flowers. However, every table in the area where we were sitting had fallen petals on the tabletop, so that tells me that no one wiped down tables before starting for the day. If you are going to do fresh flowers, at least change the water daily or change out with freshly cut flowers. No one was wiping down tables as people moved in and out of the location. Too busy chatting behind the counter, I guess.
The clientele in this area will expect real plates, fresh flowers, and tables that have been wiped down. Hopefully, this place is given the attention it deserves otherwise it will get left in the dust by the Starbucks two doors down and the multitude of other places to get breakfast pastry or scoop of ice cream. P.S. I did take some pictures if anyone from the company would like to see them.