The Annex Coffee and Foods

Lovely ambience and service. My cold brew was average. Long waiting on Saturday (20mins+). They have some outside seating as well.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

The Annex: Huge flavor, huge variety, and yuuuuge prices

Bigger isn’t always better — and a perfect example of that is The Annex. It’s a bakery of big extremes, and it’s big on both the positives and the negatives. The Annex outshines its competition by being in the top percentile in several aspects:

- Variety & Uniqueness: How many places do you know of in STL where you can get a lot of the classics, but still get something unique like a pear & frangipane tart or an ube white chocolate chip cookie?
- Taste: To offer something like a pear & frangipane tart is one thing; to be able to execute it and make it taste good enough that it’s one of the most popular choices at your bakery is another. The best of the best at The Annex is the best of the best in STL; the key lime pie is king, the beef & mushroom streusel is life-changing, the pear & frangipane tart was the ultimate pear-adise, and the blueberry streusel cheesecake might legitimately be the best cheesecake I’ve ever had.

But despite being so good compared to other STL bakeries in some areas, it’s big on a few negative extremes as well — and falls flat on its face versus the competition in other aspects:

- Price: Some of their offerings are the most expensive pastries I’ve seen in the STL area, and they’re even more expensive than all of the bakeries I visited in San Francisco a few months ago. And San Francisco is one of the highest cost-of-living cities in the U.S., which makes this even more confusing. The baked goods here are good, but $11 pre-tax for a slice of beef and mushroom strudel that’s about as big as my fist? Come on, lol.
- Inconsistency: Some of their bakery offerings are absolutely TOP-tier — arguably some of the best of what you can get in STL, like what I mentioned earlier. But some of their other items fall flat vs the competition:
- ube white chocolate cookie (dry)
- brownie (tasted like a brownie mix brownie from a grocery store)
- blueberry macaron
- cheese pierogi

Overall, this bakery is a great choice, and I’d 100% take someone here from out of town if they were in the mood for one of The Annex’s standout items I mentioned earlier like the key lime pie. But are you playing dessert Russian roulette when trying something new? Absolutely

Beef & mushroom strudel and blueberry streusel cheesecake > pear & frangipane tart and key lime pie > turtle cheesecake > pumpkin praline cheesecake > oatmeal creme pie > cheddar chive scone > lemon macaron > ube white chocolate cookie > fig bar > blueberry macaron > cheese pierogi > brownie

Food: 5

Service: 5

Loved atmosphere and coffee was done well..unfortunately my breakfast burrito had no seasoning at all so bland, but still cooked well, so will try another option. Great service!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

Ordered an iced latte with brown sugar and caramel. It was amazing! One of the best iced lattes I’ve had. Cool little cafe area to hang out in including an outdoor space

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

have never had an issue; love the service of the morning and evening crew but my experience tonight with the night crew completely changed my view of this establishment. barista foul language and mannerism was inappropriate.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

I really loved the Annex! The patio is lovely, and the inside has such a nice atmosphere with a beautiful spread of original looking products. There’s a great variety of cakes and pies, and they’re delicious. The coffee is good too.
That said, there are two things that feel like misses:
1. They serve you in a mug, but no spoon (which really blows my mind). They have wooden sticks. Good thing I always have my own spoon!
2. They expect a tip, but you’re essentially doing the work yourself…you walk in, order at the counter, wait while they prepare it, then carry it to your table. I don’t mind doing that at all, but I won’t tip in that setup.

I will be back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 3

The lemonade is delish!

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 3

Service: 3

Love it here. Food good, coffee good, people good.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I've visited this place multiple times in the past. They have a nice, simple variety when it comes to coffee, some bakery items, along with nice seating areas. I highly recommend this place if you haven't been inside before.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

100% recommend. My family and I stopped in for hot lattes and treats for the kids. Beautiful location. Love that it is open late! Free street side parking. The service was excellent ,super friendly barristas, and amazing experience!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Cool coffee place. Indoor and outdoor seating is nice.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Good vibes, decent selection of drinks (I had the royal matcha latte). I would try the matcha on its own as I wasn't able to taste it with the mint flavour in the royal matcha. There's also food available as well as coffee and tea to buy.

Service was okay and my drink came quick.

There's lots of seating indoors and outdoors.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 4

I absolutely love this place. I come here every Sunday after church. The coffee is great and the atmosphere is even better. Highly recommend!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Cashiers refuse to look me in the eye and the barista snapped at me when I asked if the drink they called for me was mine because they called the wrong name. Very very poor service. Waste of money.

Service: 1

$9 for an alright latte w/ oat milk hurts, but the covered patio is nice. I’ve never shopped the market items, but it’s cute inside too

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3