By Jenny Ledig

Bars Bakery, located in the Cathedral Hill neighborhood, has a great ambience and even better baked goods. Entering Bars Bakery, you feel like you’ve been transported to a smaller scale of Meryl Streep’s bakery in “It’s Complicated,” there’s just an air of upscale perfection, from the tasteful font, white marble countertops and tables, and fresh, seasonal flowers around the store – you know you’re in for a treat. Owned by the mother and daughter team behind Swede Hollow Café, it’s a great place to stop by for a luxury treat. There’s a variety of baked goods to choose between, ranging from caramel rolls and cookies to sweet and savory tarts. We tried Tony’s Doughnut muffin, a sugar coated donut consistency in the shape of a muffin, which was “mind boggling in a good way,” although we wished it had some sort of filling inside. The scones here are famous, and rightfully so. It’s hard to choose between flavors like lemon poppy seed or apricot almond, that have a good crust on the outside and are light, fluffy and buttery on the inside. The one downside was that there weren’t any toppings like butter or jam available. Also, to make the scone even better you could probably ask them to warm it up as they offered to do for some other pastries. My personal favorite was the decadent caramel pecan bread pudding, which was transformed after heated up; the flavors blended together to make one of the best deserts ever.

They also serve a rotating assortment of bars; I tried the apricot bar that I would highly recommend. Also worth noting: the cinnamon rolls and the savory vegetable tart that was filling enough for lunch.

As for the beverages, it’s primarily coffee and espresso based drinks, however there was hot apple cider, a seasonal special. Check out their interesting selection of pickled vegetables on the side that are probably worth a try, but not up my alley.

It’s a pretty small bakery, with a few indoor and outdoor tables, that could definitely accommodate you and your group, but you might feel awkward being the only customer camped out in such a small space.

The Cathedral Hill area is a fun neighborhood to explore, that’s within biking distance, so when you head over to Bars Bakery you can also stop by Mississippi Market, the co-op grocery store, or two trendy clothing boutiques on the same street. Definitely give this bakery a shot, but its prices are a little high, so maybe save it for a day when you’re ready to splurge.

612 Selby Ave.

St. Paul, MN 55104
Mon.-Fri. 7-6p.m., Sat. 7-3p.m.