Bear’s Cup Bakehouse pastries taste as good as they look, but in some cases they cost almost twice as much as at other quality Capital Region bakeries.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
Bear’s Cup Bakehouse opened on Broadway in Saratoga Springs at the end of last year as the Bolton Landing-based bakery’s first year-round location. Four months along, the restaurant has already found its crowd, but the space and the price point tell different stories.
Baked goods move fast here, and the almond croissant is the one to grab before they’re gone. At $9 for one, this pastry is covered in toasted, slivered almonds that shattered on contact, with flaky layers and a custardy almond paste at the center. Nothing about it is dense or heavy — each layer is softer than the last.
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The quality of the offerings at Bear’s Cup Bakehouse are high, from the Taylor ham-egg-and-cheese, left, or the savory roast beef bagel sandwich.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
The quality of the offerings at Bear’s Cup Bakehouse are high, from the Taylor ham-egg-and-cheese, top, or the savory roast beef bagel sandwich.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
The Bacon, Tomato, Scallion sandwich works well for breakfast or lunch. It stacks thick-cut applewood smoked bacon against scallion cream cheese on a kettle-boiled bagel with a chew that demands you work for it. The bacon stays snappy through the cream cheese, and the tang lingers after each pass.
Taylor ham, made in northern New Jersey, is a cult favorite in metro New York City and is featured in Bear’s Cup’s 201 sandwich, named after a Jersey area code.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
Danishes show off the layers that are hallmarks of laminated pastries at Bear’s Cup.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
The jaw-stretching Hot Boy sandwich stacks roast beef, cheddar, red onion and lettuce between bagel halves.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
Roast beef, cheddar, red onion and lettuce comes stacked between bagel halves in the Hot Boy. Housemade chipotle aioli grounds the whole thing, adding a smoky accent without taking over. At $18, it’s the most expensive sandwich on the savory menu, piled high enough that the sandwich barely holds together. (All sandwiches are available on a bagel, brioche roll, croissant or gluten-free bread.)
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Named for the area code in northeastern New Jersey, the 201 sandwich puts Taylor ham at the center of a loaded breakfast bagel. A cured pork breakfast meat with a cult following in the metro New York City area, it’s classic and salty, layered with jammy eggs and sharp Cabot cheddar on a sesame bagel. For anyone who grew up on the original, it’s a faithful version; for everyone else, it’s an introduction worth having.
The expansive, handsome interior of Bear’s Cup Bakehouse is often so full that lingering with a laptop and latte can feel like an an intrusion — if you can find a seat.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
When I visited, Bear’s Cup Bakehouse was loud and full — couples, families, mothers with young children, friends over coffee, a steady stream of orders. Exposed brick, cast-iron columns and an embossed tin ceiling hang over the room. Sage-green millwork frames the counter on the far right, with arched menu displays and a striped awning over the bread rack. Oddly, pastries are displayed near the pickup area, out of sight from the order line. I noticed them while waiting and had to double back to see what was available before placing my order. A few items were sold out, with nothing to indicate whether what remained was the full selection or the last of the morning’s batch.
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All orders are taken at the counter and everything comes wrapped in parchment and foil, whether you’re staying or not. When sandwiches are priced at $18 and pastries run $9 to $12, the takeout-style presentation raises a question about what the price is buying.
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Whether customers are staying or going, their food is wrapped for takeout.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis with no reservations, and it’s limited to two long tables by the front windows, a bench along the far wall and fewer than 10 round cafe tables. We ended up perched at the corner of a high-top after moving two tall chairs out of the way. Seats did eventually open up at our table, but we stayed put, ceding them to a rush of mothers and young children who needed them more. Patio seating opens in warmer months, but inside, if you’re planning to meet someone for coffee, you can’t count on a place to sit when you get there.
A tap system behind the counter pours cold brew, nitro and vanilla-oat matcha alongside a standard espresso menu. A cold case stocks bottled drinks. Monthly features rotate; four April specials were on the board during our visit. A pistachio latte was smooth and slightly nutty, topped with pistachio crumble. The $7 Nitro London Fog came with vanilla cold foam and dried flower petals on top, creamy and bright enough to taste like the season turning.
Orders are placed to the right of the coffee station but pastries are on display at the other end of the L-shaped counter.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union
I expected the spinach and feta croissant to skew toward spanakopita — heavy on greens, sharp with feta. What I got was closer to a creamy, cheese-forward filling with spinach playing a supporting role. The croissant itself was flaky and well-made, and it works as a savory breakfast pastry. It’s a matter of proportion rather than execution.
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Bear’s Cup Bakehouse
Address: 543 Broadway, Saratoga Springs
Hours: 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, closed Monday
Price: Coffee, $3 to $8; pastries, $6 to $12; sandwiches, $9 to $18
Info: bearscupbakehouse.com
Etc.: Parking lot. ADA-accessible.
Dietary considerations: The menu notes that all items are prepared in a kitchen that uses wheat, dairy, eggs and nuts; individual allergens and modifications are not listed per dish. Several meat-free options are available.
The Saratoga outpost is the second from owners Danielle and Louis DeSantis, who opened their first in Bolton Landing seven years ago. The Broadway location occupies the former Jacobsen Rugs space. A third location is expected on Route 9 in Wilton later this spring.
New York City-style bagels are harder to find in the area than in the past, and Bear’s Cup does them well. Beyond that, with established bakeries, some nearby, offering lower price points, whether Bear’s Cup warrants a dedicated trip is a tougher call. It’s not a place to open a laptop and settle in, nor is it purely grab-and-go. It sits somewhere between, and that in-between is where the friction lives. Racing season will test whether the experience can catch up to the food before the crowds do.
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The Bear’s Cup Bakehouse building was a rug store for many years.
Stephanie Gravalese/For the Times Union