The Southfield Store

A lovely store but Owner and employee were just downright rude.
We stopped in at 5:15 on Sunday for food to go and there was a man running around with his head cut off, was not very helpful, too busy setting tables. (Open sign out front) He yelled over his shoulder that I could have only quiche and/​or dessert and that’s it. No sandwiches, no dinner to go so I ordered Quiche and he refused to heat it up! Again, no time. The place was empty. Then a Woman (Owner) came out and he asked her to help me. She finally agreed to heat the quiche up but was annoyed. When it was time for checkout, I picked up a dinner menu from a pile just printed and she yelled at me that those are for the menu cases, not for taking. I thought I was on candid camera at this point. I should have walked out then but I plopped my $ 31.00 down for quiche, 2 desserts, water and left totally insulted and perplexed.
Sadly, the food was good and we could have used them for a large catering event we are having in October. Not now!
The store is adorable, food is good, but these two people ruin the atmosphere and drive you right out of the place. They are just too crabby and need to treat their customers better. Not the New England hospitality we are accustomed to

Surly service, incorrect sandwich order

This is a charming place for a country breakfast or lunch. Beautiful room with lots of natural light and well spaced pine tables. Food is reliable and fresh. Pastries are baked in house and are amazing as is the wonderful coffee.

Great place to dine for lunch or dinner. Friendly staff. I remember when it was actually the general store and post office.

I’ve hesitated writing a review of The Southfield Store because while the baked goods are like world-​class, the people who run the place have made visiting their shop a sometimes painful experience. Hey, I don’t want to be greeted like Norm on Cheers, but it sure would be nice to not have to enter a world of remarkably negative vibe, one where the staff has the look of deer in the headlights or the memories of being chained to the keel of a Viking warship. Because, you know how it is, you drive away and the car chatter is consumed by WTF Was That All About? It got to the point where we would roll in, silently and fearfully point to what delightful baked good we wanted, accept the fact that sometimes you could get a large coffee and sometimes not, put the money on the counter, and slink out with our vestigial tails between our legs. But I’ll say it: the baked goods and coffees were so good that it was worth having to deal with the gulag thing. It got to the point where I would over-​tip because I felt bad for the staff, some of whom had a thousand yard stare accompanying a painful little smile. But suddenly, a few months ago, something changed. There had clearly been some kind of seismic attitude shift in the management. We walked in one day and the boss greeted us like we were her long lost sibs, all chatty and happy, talking about the weather. We looked at each other and wondered if we had entered the Twilight Zone. And we got a large coffee without being dismissed as being foolish for asking (in front of a stack of large cups). So … since around the holidays in late 2014 … it’s been nothing but smiles and good service … let’s hope it lasts … because the bakery is really really really good. And the roads to get out there are a driver’s dream. So, in the Gulag Days they’d pull 2 stars (5 for the food minus 3 for the pain of getting your hands on it); in the Post-​Epiphany Days, let’s roll a 4 subject to a future relapse or not.
PS — the pumpkin pie, the key lime pie, the brownies, chocolate chip cookies, raspberry tarts, and croissant … wow, just wow.

Stopped in for lunch as I was driving through Southfield (a pretty rural area). Saw what looked to be a nice place (not much else around) and went in. I was very happy to see a really nice room, baked goods, coffee and a menu board and specials menu that contained three or four items that made me hungry. The person behind the counter was hand making the sandwiches to order and looked to be taking great care in the presentation.
As the room was nice, I decided to sit and eat in. I ordered the El Puerco sandwich (see menu picture) which was excellent along with a bottle of cream soda which made a nice sweet offset to the somewhat spicy sandwich. Ordered an oatmeal raisin cookie to go for the ride home.
The Southfield Store is an «oasis in the dessert». I would certainly stop in again and even make the detour to this place as a destination for lunch. I was told they serve dinner during the summer months as well so maybe that will be my next venture there.

This probably should be two reviews: lunch and dessert. Had the turkey sandwich; just a sandwich and a pickle. Chips, fries, coleslaw would have been good. Average quality, less than average quantity at an above average price. Had the blueberry crumb cake for dessert. Excellent quality, average quantity, above average price. So a 5 start dessert averaged w a 3 star dessert equals 4 stars. Next visit will be just dessert.

I’m sad that I can only give this lovely café two stars, because I suspect I landed there on an off day. Southfield is a cute little village to which one can only arrive by driving down small country roads. The promise of a tasty 3-​course brunch at the Southfield Store, a café that came highly recommended, lured me there. I decided to spring for the $ 24 brunch. Only a couple of tables were taken, and there were a few take-​out customers throughout the morning who were there for coffee and baked goods.
First course: fresh-​squeezed orange juice, dark coffee and coffee cake. Yum! When the waitress brought coffee, I asked for cream. «Of course,» she said. A couple of minutes later, she brought the coffee cake. «Do you need a fork for that?» she asked. «Ummm, yes.» [I thought but didn’t say, ‘Don’t most people eat their cake with a fork, and since when is it not common practice to simply give your guest a full place setting with a napkin?’]. I also said, «And the cream for my coffee?» I was trying to remain friendly but may have had a bit of an edge in my voice. Also, if I’m paying $ 24 for this breakfast, I expect decent service, especially when the café was not busy. «Oh, I’m so sorry,» and she got the cream, plus fork, knife, and napkin. I used the knife to stir my coffee. The food and beverages were great.
Second course: Fresh yogurt with fresh fruit and nuts. Simple and delish. No complaints here, although the waitress didn’t ask how the food was or if I needed anything.
Third course: I often try the huevos rancheros for breakfast, knowing that it’s a risky venture in this part of the country. This café has a Mexican chef who cooks Mexican meals on Thursday nights. He’s not the regular chef and probably not the one who prepared my huevos rancheros this morning – at least I sincerely hope not – but I REALLY thought it would be a safe venture here. And frankly, huevos rancheros are not that hard to make, especially if you have access to a Mexican chef who can give you some tips.
The dish was obviously prepared when I first ordered it, so it was lukewarm by the time it got to me – I’d taken my time with the coffee cake and the yogurt. The «tostadas» on top and under the eggs were very crisp and somewhat greasy. I really didn’t know how I was supposed to eat my eggs and the «tostadas.» The three eggs were cooked over hard.. . Over over over hard. I ate some beans. I broke up the «tostadas» and ate the guacamole and some of the eggs. As soon as I pushed the eggs away and put the coffee cake back in front of me to finish, the waitress came out with the check and asked if she could wrap anything up. Hey wait! Did you notice that no one came out to see if the food were okay, nor did anyone ask at the end how I liked the food? No one came out to ask to refill my coffee either.
Epic fail.
I wrote notes about a couple of these things on the back of the check – not nasty, just matter of fact. I’d probably go back to this particular place to try something else, although having left the note, I may be marked for life.

We have never been treated so rudely at a restaurant. After being curtly told it would take some time to figure out if we could get a table, and watching 3 large empty tables, with just 1 party ahead of us we waited 15 minutes for an update and then cautiously asked the person in charge if she had any idea how long the wait would be. She refused to speak with us at all. Not to say she was sorry, nothing. She only turned away and said she was still speaking with another party, but they had already started walking away from the counter. It is completely understandable to say you are slammed, or you aren’t sure how long the wait will be, but just to ignore your customers is not okay. We won’t be going back. Mediocre food and bad service. I am sorry if this lady is going through personal struggles. I am only writing this up so other people don’t bother trekking out or their way to this place for dinner. Lunch they have been kind of disorganized but not as horrible treatment of customers then.

Wow! My husband and I were NOT IMPRESSED with the rude unwelcome response from staff the afternoon of our visit. We were vacationing in the Berkshires from North Carolina. My husband is from CT and we were visiting friends and family in the area. The Southfield Store has been recommended to us by a local, so we stopped in on our way back from Great Barrington.
It was raining outside when we pulled in next to the store. When we walked in, we received no greeting. My husband asked if they were serving food and the young lady told us they had just finished serving lunch, but that they had baked goods and drinks in the back. A man then came out from the kitchen to ask if our car was parked out back beside the restaurant. We confirmed and were asked to move our car across the street. While I was moving the car, the older lady asked my husband, «Are you all just…» He answered before she finished «…just here to get out of the rain.» When we decided on a piece of quiche and tiny cupcake, there were no labels describing or providing the price for each product. As the man was ringing us up at the register, my husband asked when they served dinner to which the man responded arrogantly, «in three minutes.» If I had known how rudely my husband had been treated as I was out moving our car, I would’ve said, «On second thought, we prefer not to pay $ 10 for a slice of cheesecake and a one-​bite cupcake.»
We’ve never been treated so rudely, in such an arrogant, demeaning manner by a business. Word of mouth is the best business and even top food critics can be disguised as normal people stopping in. The atmosphere at the Southfield Store left a very bad taste in our mouths. It was as if we were unwelcome guests in someone’s home.

This is one of our favorite places to eat! Unfortunately, the experience that we had today was very disappointing. We waited 45 minutes for our BLTs; people who came in AFTER us got there take out order while we waited, The couple at the next table only got one order — the lady never got her sandwich. But worst of all was watching a girl with long hair not tied back making several sandwiches. I watched make a chicken salad meal, pushing her hair back, answering the phone, handling raw food. I hoped that her hair would stay out of the mayo! She wore gloves but it was the long hair draped on the food that really surprised me. I did want to say something but my partner constrained me. We were there almost 1 ½ hours for lunch.
The sandwiches were excellent and we will go there again. I hope someone there reads this and corrects the sanitation issue!

We each chose a tuna melt with cheese on rye with a small bag of potato chips for about $ 10.50 a sandwich! The wee bit of tuna came from a can, the bread was a step above Wonder and not rye. The help was there if you left your table and sought it. For not that much more, a fresh, real tuna sandwich on great bread can be had at Union Square Café in very expensive Manhattan. In short, this was a low end experience at a relatively high end price in the middle of nowhere, Southfield, MA. And this is why restaurants fail — not rcause of market conditions but because they don’t understand customer expectations.

We like to take long drives and stop for lunch and put this place on the list to try. First impressions are pleasing for sure but in the end there are better options that inspire a drive. Many things are above average such as all the pastry we tried and the sandwich bread was very good and very close to being exceptional.
The carrot soup was bland and unseasoned and reminded me more of juicing carrots. The sandwich was too simple to be memorable and a critical menu ingredient was completely forgotten. The pickle garnish should be a small vinaigrette salad garnish to enhance the dryness and price value ratio. Maybe its unfair ti compare but our top favorite «Bread Alone» in Rhinebeck NY, makes the drive worth while –and i suggest be a good model for this place to follow if they want day trippers to make it a destination.
I would definitely recommend stopping for coffee and pastry which i found flawless in a nice atmosphere, and i would plan on it again one day. Location may be the challenge for this isolated hole in the wall full of charm and potential to be a great destination, but i encourage them to keep trying and i will keep coming on a sunny day.

We finished up our «Eat Our Way Through the Berkshires» with lunch at the Southfield Store. It was included with a TravelZoo deal that we got which included free lunch at the Store.
It was pretty busy when we got there, but the two-​person staff was very attentive and super friendly.
My boyfriend ordered a beet salad and a reuben. He said the beets were like candy and the salad was huge and really beautiful. His reuben was also great, not a ton of meat on it, which he likes because you can taste all of the ingredients and aren’t overwhelmed by a mouth full of meat. (That’s what she said.)
I had a mimosa, which was great, and ordered a «make your own» sandwich: a baguette with turkey, cheese and bacon, because when you are on vacation you can’t eat enough bacon. My sandwich was awesome. Their bread is really, REALLY good and I’m a bread whore.
We also got a dessert included with our lunch, he had a slice of pecan tart and I had a chocolate hazelnut mousse concoction. He loved his, I felt like mine was really rich, it was delicious, but I could only eat about half of it.
Southfield Store apparently is a commissary to the Old Inn on the Green, so you can expect the quality of the food there to be stellar!

deli/​bakery/​coffee shop/​café/​restaurant -
as great as the inn on the green in its own way. great sunday brunch — great baked goods — great coffee. great service.

Nice place to have lunch if you find yourself in that area. This is in the middle of nowhere, south of Great Barrington. Food was fresh and good. We had fresh mozzarella salad and sandwiches on crusty bread. They had a big case of pastries. The creamy sweet ones are too sweet for me, but the chocolate torte was perfect, They supply the pastries for breakfast for the Old in on the Green in New Marlborough, so we also had a number of their breadier type of things. They are rich and good. The croissant and fruit muffin were wonderful. Scones pretty good. too. Parking is a little awkward (it’s across the street.)

My husband ordered the triple layer Chocolate Devil’s Food cake with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting for my birthday last week. It had gorgeous pink swirls, styled with 1940’s rosettes — it looked like a big poodle skirt. Big and pink and swirling. But this one wasn’t just beautiful to look at, it was incredible to eat. The cake was moist, chocolatey, not too dense in weight, with the perfect pairing of the not-​too-​sweet raspberry buttercream.
He brought it all the way to NY and it fared just fine over its 3 hour drive. It served over 25 foodie-​type guests. Everyone loved it. And it looked great with the peonies we had in the room.
Most cakes do not have the texture, the flavors nor the style of this one. I would recommend it for dinners, birthdays and it would do well as a small wedding cake… any celebration!
Thank you Southfield Store! Definitely worth going out of one’s way for their food and baked goods!

I love this place! What a find! In a rural area with few choices for food this is a figurative diamond in the literal rough. It is a little pricey but that is where my complaints end. The coffee is excellent. The quiche lorraine is off-​the-​charts and the space is comfortable with plenty of seating. If you have ever been to western Mass you have been frustrated with cell signals (voice and data) which makes places like this with a nice strong WiFi signal a relaxing put productive spot.

This is part of a catering operation that also supplies the Old Inn on the Green. If you like healthy food that is well done this is the place for you
No free refills on ice tea.

Stopped here on the way home from a week long in the berkshires. perfect ending. had several items from the brunch menu and all were great. super cute place.