Taste of Scandinavia Bakery & Cafe

If you are in the mood for a good Scandinavian/​USA breakfast then this is the place to be they have the breakfast croissants, donuts, quiche, cakes, coffee, tea… The place is Busy on a Saturday morning there is limited seating luckily they have takeout service. In the summertime they have outside seating in the garden/​patio area.

One of my favorite places to get bakery items for work meetings and parties. Stopped here the other day for Christmas cookies — my goodness, what an outstanding selection! My co-​workers were very impressed. Have also found the various coffee cakes a hit. Their breads are recommended, as well. For breakfast or lunch a good selection of sandwiches, egg dishes, etc. Note that on the weekend the dining area is very crowded.

They have a small but unique menu. Just a different take on classics. Nothing to out there or spicy.
But the main draw for me is the cake! High quality, high end, delicious artisan cakes. I always get my birthday cake here. Try the celebration cake-​you won’t regret it. Worth every penny.

This is my go to breakfast spot in town. Classic breakfast is great. The salsa that comes with it is slamming. I never thought to put salsa on my toast but this hits the spot.
They also have doughnuts, cookies, and other pastry items.
For lunch or dinner I would get the chicken lefse melt.

This café is fantastic. We had pumpkin pancakes and an omelette, and were given very good service. It’s usually a busy place any time of the day, so you may need to wait for seating sometimes.

Went here with a friend for dinner. The beef pasties were dry and tough, and we realized when we were almost done that they should’ve had gravy on the side but didn’t. The prices are too high for the quality of the food and the tone of the restaurant. I’d lived in the area 19 years and had always wanted to try this place. If I’m ever back I’ll get some baked goods to go.

Upon moving to Shoreview I was tremendously excited to see a local bakery-​café, and a Scandinavian one at that. Unfortunately, TOSBAC is more of a supermarket bakery than a patisserie (not surprising, since it supplies local Festival stores) the café is pretty average, and it’s only marginally Scandinavian.
For example, the chocolate croissant is really a bear claw with buttercream frosting inside and chocolate icing on top (I found it heavy and not in the flaky, buttery and sugary-​chocolate-​chippy way). The rest of the bakery menu is mostly donuts, cookies and Danish– good, but not exceptional– and a few Scandinavian specialties.
The café is decent but not too special. The basic breakfast plate has bacon, eggs and «oiled» toast (as opposed to buttered – weird – ) for around $ 7. For a little more you get grilled lefse. It’s expensive and not exceptional, but the atmosphere is nice and they play classical music. The coffee is reasonably good.
I would point out that the bread is flavorful, fresh, and a good value. It’s a good local alternative to packaged bread.

GREAT FOOD!
Love the breakfast and free samples!!!
Only reason it is not a 5 star is because it can be quite spendy… PLEASE give it a try! It is delicious :))

My husband and I popped in for dessert to go one evening. Surprised to see many desserts available at a bakery this late into an evening. We purchased several different small dessert items and had them at home with some hot tea much later that night. AlI that needs to be said is to visit this bakery ASAP. You will not regret it. Looking forward to a longer visit and eating their café foods.

Guyyyyys… a single loaf of cardamom bread with raisins should never be $ 10.99.
I was in a rush, and desperate for a potluck item, so just pointed at the bread and bought it. I nearly choked when I saw the price an hour later. It’s really not a fancy bread– it’s egg, and flour, and raisins. Braiding the dough doesn’t take an hour of an employee’s time per loaf. Cardamom isn’t freaking saffron.
Plus, it was dry, and got progressively drier and by the third day it was only good as toast.
I’m sure the rest of the baked goods are lovely– but seriously, work on that bread.

The donuts are way too dry, but the coffee is excellent.

Took the kids and family to this unique Scandanavian breakfast house after finding this place on Orgadeal. Pastries are truly fresh and offer you a small twist on a normal American style breakfast. Food was great but the only downfall was that it was a little busy and seating was limited. Find the right time and it should be a nice quiet breakfast retreat.

Amazing Baked goods and pretty great food! Everything is a step up here. Nothing is ordinary here. The only thing is that the menu is so huge, it’s really hard to decide what to get when you first get here. They have you order at the counter, so it’s easy to feels rushed, as there is always a line. Check the menu before you go! :)

Taste of Scandinavia used to be one of my favorite places to eat a meal or get treats. Not anymore after a few bad experiences. The salmon sandwiches I got was just horrible and this has happened on atleast a few occasions. Bread was not fresh and overpriced.
Also, the staff are not friendly anymore; crabby and impatient.
I will not go back!

The 2 stars are for the service, not the food. The colaches are the best as well as most of the breads and pastries.
The staff is a whole different deal. It can be crazy busy with the elite North Oaks folks so engage your wait person as often as is necessary. Good luck.

I managed the old Como Location which is now Finnish Bistro (Soile is the proprietor of this location). I still stop in at the North Oaks location from time to time and it is still very good. I encourage people to go to dinner there. The selection is great and it is low key. I had a burger of all things there last time I went and it was fantastic.

I went here for the millionth time yesterday. I have tried many things on the menu and my faves are the decadent cardamom French toast, the sweet Taste of Scandinavia house salad, and the turtle chocolate cake. Besides cakes, cookies, bars and danishes they also sell tons of different kinds of bread.
This is the perfect place to meet a girlfriend for a fancy coffee and a treat! If you order breakfast or lunch they give you a number at the counter and bring it out when it’s ready. You get your own pop and can refill your own coffee. No guilt if you want to stay all afternoon!

I had the fortune of working at ToS for a year or so back in college, and can attest to it’s authenticity; the owner Soile (who was on a Food Network special with Alton Brown) has a scandinavian accent so thick you have to really focus to understand her.
The cookies are amazing (try the raspberry filled shortbread) and the pastries are wonderful (the kolaches are my favorites here). They also offer wonderful cakes (The Scandinavian Strawberry Torte makes occasional appearances in our family, it’s delicious, and has just enough fruit that you can pretend its healthy).
Yeah, the best part of that job was all the freebies. Mmmmm wonderful!

i have driven past this place many times and never really thought it would be worth it but Hubby and I were pleasantly surprised when we stopped in to check it out. They had drinks, bars, desert assortments, breads (white bread and spinach rolls are the only two I remember the names of that they had on display for purchase), gourmet cakes, soups, muffins and salads you could purchase. Prices were right in line with other café establishments out there. I believe that the cakes are also sold at Festival Foods. Nice sized establishment — a lot of room. I ordered the Turtle Latte and Hubby ordered regular coffee and mint brownie. Brownie had a nice fluffy frosting — YUMMY!!! We ate that in about two seconds. Only issue I had with the place was they had so many food display cases and the register was right in the middle so it was hard to look and know who was in line next. Will definately stop by again. BTW they also serve breakfast.

This is a nice little bakery café featuring Scandinavian food (as in the title). I have no idea how authentic it is, but don’t get the beef pasty. Mine was dry, and the meat was overcooked and tough. One of my fellow diners got lasagna, and that was delicious. They also offer a wide selection of delicious-​looking cakes and pastries I did not have the time to try. They’re fairly fast, and the eating area is reasonably large and nicely lit so I think it’s a nice place for a quick brunch. There are also two other locations in Little Canada and Bloomington.