Love that they use freshly milled whole grains. Tried the almond crossaint, chocolate almond crossaint, apple turnover and cherry pistachio. The cherry pistachio definitely stole the show. Crispy and delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Elizabeth Nguyen
Sub Rosa Bakery offers a cozy, welcoming atmosphere with a beautifully designed interior. The bakery features a unique selection of both sweet and savory baked goods. We especially enjoyed the sour cherry pistachio croissant, which was soft yet flaky and made with fresh ingredients. The chai tea latte was a bit subtle in flavor and could benefit from a bolder profile. Lines can get long and seating is limited, so visiting early is recommended.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Richard Borean
Best pastries in RVA. Some of the best period.
Update 2026 - back and better than ever!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sonia
Not too busy at 8am on a Tuesday! The coffee au lait, iced latte, and pastries (pan au chocolat, ham and cheese croissant, salami and cheese croissant) were amazing! Flaky and high quality. They even sell their own flour. Wish I lived close bc I would be here everyday.
I walked over yesterday, hat and gloves, around 2 PM after waiting outside in a 40 degree weather for three minutes. We finally walk in, and what do I find? NO food left except for some stale chocolate almond croissants. I was there with my friend, and we were probably the fourth and fifth in line—nothing outrageous. We stood there for about five minutes, and then one of your baristas has the nerve to come over and yell, “Only 4 people in line, everyone else has to wait outside.” Excuse me?! That’s how a small business should treat its customers? Are you serious? I get it—you’re busy, it’s a bit crowded inside, but there were still seats available. Why on earth are you forcing paying customers to freeze outside? A proper explanation would be the bare minimum if it were a capacity issue—instead, you shamefully dismiss us. I won’t be spending a single dollar here ever again. My first experience was equally disappointing—stale croissants and a “cappuccino” that felt more like a latte. I don’t usually bother with reviews, but as a local who’s literally within walking distance and trying to support a small business, I feel completely disrespected. Do better—your vague excuses and rude behavior are unacceptable. This isn’t good customer service; it’s an insult.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Wesam Elhawabri
They don’t have anything after 2pm.
Mia S
I had the the chocolate, almond croissant and it was amazing!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Gabriel Gorin
First time trying it and we were not disappointed. The baked goods were excellent and the hot cocoa was chocolatey and not overly sweet, which was great! The atmosphere is wonderful to chat while eating or drinking. Definitely a place to go back many times!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kathryn S
The staff are awesome. I can tell how hard the shop is trying to provide us the good quality food.
Eliza Sandra
Glorious! Try the Turkish feta pastry; amazing. The sesame rye bread is so delicious.
I have visited many cities and many bakeries—this has to be the busiest places I’ve seen. 🙌 With the order line going out the door and fresh pastries 🥐 coming out as we spoke—you know it has to be good! I really enjoyed the chocolate croissant 🥐 and what is really cool is they use their chocolate paste in their mocha espressos! All wood fired to perfection. 🪵 🔥 🥮 In the back of their service area you can see the wood fired oven!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Zak K
I'm sorry, but the absolute audacity of leaving a bad review on a bakery that had to close after a fire and was serving pastries outside while they struggled to fix up the place is truly unbelievable to me. The person even acknowledged it was their pre-opening week and still went out of their way to punch down on a beloved local business that's been working to reopen for over a year. Why? Like, what could possibly be the point?
Sub Rosa is incredible, and a point of pride in this city and neighborhood. It's the first place I recommend to anyone visiting. Anything you get will be superb and fairly priced, and on top of that they serve the best cup of coffee you can get in Church Hill. In the past year, I have tried again at again, both in Richmond and in multiple bigger cities, to find a pastry that reaches the quality of what you can find at Sub Rosa, and I've never been able to. What they do is special.
If you feel the need to be a contrarian and leave a negative review so you can feel special and important for a few minutes, maybe save that review for a McDonald's. Or just go outside.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Angie A
A Richmond staple and my favorite bakery in the entire city. I like to try all of their sweet and savory hybrid treats, but the ham and cheese croissant is my go-to. Wonderful people own the place. Highly recommend you stop by— the line is worth the wait.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Veridicus
Have had multiple negative experiences here. Most recently, we ordered a 2 croissants to go but our name wasn't called for about 20 minutes. We politely asked for an ETA (it wasn't super busy) cashier got super offended and threw the 2 croissants into paper and handed to us without saying anything. No to go box or any sort of acknowledgement. You guys make croissants you arent that important
Love that they use freshly milled whole grains. Tried the almond crossaint, chocolate almond crossaint, apple turnover and cherry pistachio. The cherry pistachio definitely stole the show. Crispy and delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sub Rosa Bakery offers a cozy, welcoming atmosphere with a beautifully designed interior. The bakery features a unique selection of both sweet and savory baked goods. We especially enjoyed the sour cherry pistachio croissant, which was soft yet flaky and made with fresh ingredients. The chai tea latte was a bit subtle in flavor and could benefit from a bolder profile. Lines can get long and seating is limited, so visiting early is recommended.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best pastries in RVA. Some of the best period.
Update 2026 - back and better than ever!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Not too busy at 8am on a Tuesday! The coffee au lait, iced latte, and pastries (pan au chocolat, ham and cheese croissant, salami and cheese croissant) were amazing! Flaky and high quality. They even sell their own flour. Wish I lived close bc I would be here everyday.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Croissants, Mushroom \u0026 Cheese Croissant, Salami and Cheese Croissant
I walked over yesterday, hat and gloves, around 2 PM after waiting outside in a 40 degree weather for three minutes. We finally walk in, and what do I find? NO food left except for some stale chocolate almond croissants. I was there with my friend, and we were probably the fourth and fifth in line—nothing outrageous. We stood there for about five minutes, and then one of your baristas has the nerve to come over and yell, “Only 4 people in line, everyone else has to wait outside.” Excuse me?! That’s how a small business should treat its customers? Are you serious? I get it—you’re busy, it’s a bit crowded inside, but there were still seats available. Why on earth are you forcing paying customers to freeze outside? A proper explanation would be the bare minimum if it were a capacity issue—instead, you shamefully dismiss us. I won’t be spending a single dollar here ever again. My first experience was equally disappointing—stale croissants and a “cappuccino” that felt more like a latte. I don’t usually bother with reviews, but as a local who’s literally within walking distance and trying to support a small business, I feel completely disrespected. Do better—your vague excuses and rude behavior are unacceptable. This isn’t good customer service; it’s an insult.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
They don’t have anything after 2pm.
I had the the chocolate, almond croissant and it was amazing!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
First time trying it and we were not disappointed. The baked goods were excellent and the hot cocoa was chocolatey and not overly sweet, which was great! The atmosphere is wonderful to chat while eating or drinking. Definitely a place to go back many times!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The staff are awesome. I can tell how hard the shop is trying to provide us the good quality food.
Glorious! Try the Turkish feta pastry; amazing. The sesame rye bread is so delicious.
Restaurantji Recommends
Muffuletta was much too salty :/
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
I have visited many cities and many bakeries—this has to be the busiest places I’ve seen. 🙌 With the order line going out the door and fresh pastries 🥐 coming out as we spoke—you know it has to be good!
I really enjoyed the chocolate croissant 🥐 and what is really cool is they use their chocolate paste in their mocha espressos!
All wood fired to perfection. 🪵 🔥 🥮 In the back of their service area you can see the wood fired oven!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I'm sorry, but the absolute audacity of leaving a bad review on a bakery that had to close after a fire and was serving pastries outside while they struggled to fix up the place is truly unbelievable to me. The person even acknowledged it was their pre-opening week and still went out of their way to punch down on a beloved local business that's been working to reopen for over a year. Why? Like, what could possibly be the point?
Sub Rosa is incredible, and a point of pride in this city and neighborhood. It's the first place I recommend to anyone visiting. Anything you get will be superb and fairly priced, and on top of that they serve the best cup of coffee you can get in Church Hill. In the past year, I have tried again at again, both in Richmond and in multiple bigger cities, to find a pastry that reaches the quality of what you can find at Sub Rosa, and I've never been able to. What they do is special.
If you feel the need to be a contrarian and leave a negative review so you can feel special and important for a few minutes, maybe save that review for a McDonald's. Or just go outside.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A Richmond staple and my favorite bakery in the entire city. I like to try all of their sweet and savory hybrid treats, but the ham and cheese croissant is my go-to. Wonderful people own the place. Highly recommend you stop by— the line is worth the wait.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Have had multiple negative experiences here. Most recently, we ordered a 2 croissants to go but our name wasn't called for about 20 minutes. We politely asked for an ETA (it wasn't super busy) cashier got super offended and threw the 2 croissants into paper and handed to us without saying anything. No to go box or any sort of acknowledgement. You guys make croissants you arent that important
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
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