I'll confess straight up. I am a HUGE bread snob. I like it a certain way, or I don't like it much at all. It's got to be chewy, have some heft and flavor, and certainly none of that Wonder Bread stuff. Oh yeah, and I'd like some variety too. And baked goods are always welcomed.
Our relocation person was raving about this place so we immediately went to check it out. I was really hungry, so we got a sandwich, a baguette (always the "test" of a good bread), a cookie-bar thing, and a slice of a tart (like I said, I was hungry!) The sandwich was good -- certainly better than your average sandwich shop but nothing mindblowing. The baguette was average -- not terrible, but not fabulous either. The tart was delicious -- they did not scrimp on the filling, which is always a good thing.
Since then, I've made several trips back to Bread and Cie and have essentially determined that a) they seem to have a monopoly on the bread business in San Diego and b) their bread is pretty good, but nothing to get excited about. Certainly not a Parisian boulangerie!
If you don't get the bread directly from their store (many grocery stores stock it), it will likely be on the stale side. I would recommend only buying loaves directly from the store.
Parking can be a pain, as they are located right on University and the parking lot is pretty small and shared by several other retail stores.
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