Atelier on Trade

Atelier is wonderful from start to finish. The croissants are artfully and deliciously made by the baker every day. Coffee is delicious. The service is always quick and very kind. The staff are hospitable and excellent. They remember the regulars and this is a wonderful place to relax or meet friends. In warmer weather the outside seating (just two tables) is my favorite. Pablo is the baker and he is a great business owner. He comes out and talks with people and is generally available to answer questions. You can often catch his daughter running around the shop making friends. The shop also ha great seating. Lots of different sizes tables for groups or individuals as well as a couch area with some toys for kids.

Very disappointed. I loved this place and went their often. The owner/​baker agreed to bake a custom cake for me several months ago for a very important event. I have tried to contact him for weeks to finalize everything (the event is in a couple of weeks). He would never respond to texts, phone calls, emails — finally, I called and one of his workers told me that he wasn’t baking the custom cake — he didn’t have the nerve to tell me himself. At the last minute, I have been scrambling to find someone else to do this special, custom cake!!! I will not be telling everyone to go there. I will not be going — sadly. Not dependable.

We stumbled on this place on a Sunday morning when we were in town at a nearby hotel. It was amazing.
We didn’t actually expect much when we asked for the croissant as most places don’t bother to make them in-​house, never mind make them with real butter. Then we tried both the traditional croissant and the cinnamon-​sugar croissant and both were out of this world. I felt like we had walked into a bakery in Paris.
I don’t know for sure how any of their other things are, but since croissants are difficult to get just right — I can only imagine everything else also receives the same level of love.

I almost don’t want to review this place because I love always getting a table to work and have AMAZING breakfast! Today I’m eating a cinnamon croissant, and trust me: these are worth getting up early for. The bacon mozzarella spinach pastry is also especially tempting always. And don’t even get me started on the cheesecake or the lemon tarts! Wonderful pastries. (Really: artistic productions that are a refreshing addition to Winston’s scene). Wonderful owners. Wonderful space. (Unlike Camino, you have table space. Unlike Krankies it’s not too dark to work!) Enjoy.
Also they’re open consistently now, but you can also check on facebook!

I’ve only had pastries from here — they are DELICIOUS, beautiful, fresh — everything. My beef with them, and the reason for only 3 stars, is their really limited hours. I’d love to bring dates here or do work on weeknights, but alas.

Fantastic pastries. A bit pricey for Winston-​Salem, BUT this is the rare place in town that has the quality of a good big city spot. Everything appears to be made daily, which is both the good news and the bad news. Bad — because the selection is limited to begin with, and they often run out of multiple selections.

Amazing French patisserie in downtown Winston-​Salem. The chef is amazing and has delightful danishes, pastries, cakes and pies that are next to none. The pan de chocolat is Oh So tasty and they make wonderful coffee and coffee drinks from my favorite roaster in the United States… Counter Culture. Come try something. They do have weird open hours from Wednesday through Saturday.

This is by far my favorite place to be. I am an employee here at Atelier and have been since day one. I had been to a few bakeries in my life before and have since been to a thousand more but this bakery has something special. The atmosphere is like coming home after being gone too long. It’s refreshing, comforting, and quaint… it’s home. Imagine this… As you walk through the door you may here a little bell tinkle above your head. As you look up to pin point the sound, you notice motion in the back of the building… A barista walks from the kitchen to the register with a warm and welcoming smile and asks what she can get started for you. You take a few more steps inside the space… all the while noticing a large mural, small trinkets, old and new books, lights, solid wood tables, and pastries… oh my gosh… as you look from window to window your mouth starts to water as you see how pretty these things are. I mean… you had heard a few stories about them from your friends but goodness! Sheet pan by sheet pan. Filled croissant by filled croissant. They all look so yummy! Finally, you decide on a croissant and look to the espresso board, which is just over the barista’s head, for a beverage to go with it. You tell the barista what you have chosen, she rings you up, and you start towards a table to sit. As you sit, the barista brings you the beverage you ordered, silverware, napkins and a glass of water just in case you would like it. She makes sure you’re doing alright and she takes her leave. As you bite into your treat your senses suddenly become overwhelmed. It is as if you have entered an alternate universe; A land of milk and honey. As you are finishing your pastry, you find yourself picking up and eating the crumbs you dropped along your journey. Not one can go to waste. You wonder if the chef would be appalled or flattered if you were to lick the plate… you let that thought go… As you stand to take your things to the front counter, you notice a gentleman working something on a large wooden table in the kitchen… you inch closer to get a peek. He’s making something… something yummy… you realize this is the man that made that scrumptious pastry you just devoured. You want to run up and hug him and perhaps also stroke his beard but instead you settle for a hand shake as you rave about his product. He is an interesting man. He seems sharp as a knife but also incredibly humble. He talks to you for a while. An incredibly talented, internationally trained chef chatting away like he’s just a friendly neighbor. You feel good. No matter the mood you entered the space, you leave it feeling lifted, happy, eager to go out into the world and make an impact just like the little bakery you stopped at for breakfast.

Amazing! This shop is so cute! Went in tonight with some friends during the gallery hop. There was live music by Will Jones. While the place was filled with customers, it never felt crowded The service was great. I ordered a pastry with strawberries on top. It was light and fluffy and delicious. My friends enjoyed their hot chocolate. You should check out Atelier!

It’s been a while but this experience with Pablo and his staff calls for an updated review. Last week my partner was getting ready to celebrate her 24^th birthday, weeks leading up to this event she would hint at the fact that she wanted a cake from Atelier. She saw a cake he made on his Facebook page and immediately told me about it and how delicious it looked. Since I know how to take a hint, I walked down to the bakery and spoke with Pablo’s lovely wife and told her about getting a cake. She asked what flavors I wanted and then went off to talk to Pablo. Few minutes later Pablo comes up and asks for more details for the cake. I told him that I trusted his judgement and I knew he’d make something great but if he needed more of an idea, he can use the cake he posted on his Facebook as a «go-​by». On my partners birthday they went the extra mile and delivered the cake so that I could be able to surprise her. It wasn’t until I convinced my partner to cut this beautiful cake that I was able to figure out what he did. Lol. It was several layers of yummy-​ness. He combined, chocolate, pistachio, raspberries, and something else that was very delicious. I am just so impressed with the cake and the extra mile his team went to make Meredith’s birthday so special. I must say that it has been an absolute treat having Atelier in Winston.

Edible Art. Go here.
I made croissants once and it was the biggest pain in the a$$ and they were only ok after hours of work — you have to fold the dough once then chill it for 30 minutes then do the whole thing over and over again for sooo long! Anyhow between the work of doing that and knowing exactly how much butter goes into making one of the flaky delicious treats trust me its waaaaaayyyy better to come here where a master is a work. I’m not even exaggerating, Pablo is a master and his croissants, cakes, pastries are all phenomenal.
I know their hours have been changing recently so check before you go but I think they are currently open from 7:00 am to noon Wed — Sat. The last time I went was the Saturday after Thanksgiving at around 8:00am, prime time and they had a great selection of goodies for me to enjoy there and still bring home some (that were devoured in an embarrassing short period of time — but really its difficult to explain to a 13 year old boy how he should savor such delicacies).

Best bakery in Winston-​Salem hands down, and in my opinion the best coffee. The pastries and croissants are always changing so it’s great to always get something new even when you go there weekly. The cappuccino is a must and they do that cool thing where they make a leaf with the cream.
The abundance of great seating (couches, etc) creates a really homey vibe and as a grad student it’s a great place to get some work done. If you haven’t been here yet drop everything and go there now.

Come in here quite often for a morning coffee/​pastry before work, but am rather disappointed most of the time when they’re not ready with the pastries. Good example of this is today, went in and the pastries weren’t ready. After me, three additional customers came in and left because they still weren’t ready.
If something is to be offered, make sure it’s ready for your customers when they start to come in or you’ll probably lose a lot of loyal customers.

All I can say is I am ashamed for not coming sooner! I stopped in and immediately noticed the mural with the Eiffel Tower beside it as I continued to absolutely beautiful handmade pastries and breads! I got the Lime Tart which was refreshing and light, yet just enough sweetness! The pie shell was filled with fresh pastry cream with a lime tartness from fresh limes, then topped with fresh vanilla bean whipped cream and a perfectly place sliced raspberry! It was almost too pretty to eat! They carefully boxed it up and it stayed in tact until I got home! My husband got their vanilla bean cheesecake topped with whipped cream and even a cherry with gold flakes on the stem! We snagged 2 chocolate croissants for family and a fresh French baguette as well! I loved watching them make the coffee too with each a design to make it special! I can’t wait to return and hope to enjoy an éclair if I’m lucky! I also loved seeing Pablo in the back working his magic as he made another treat while we were there!

When we got there they were Out of Macarons, in Fact they were out of Almost everything, except Coffee! We got Coffee and we will come back for the Macarons! My eBay Bride and I are making a mild prediction in baking trends «The Macaron is the new cupcake»! I’m hoping the Macaron IS here to stay! We were glad they were OUT because that says to me that they do not have so much product made ahead of time, sitting around for days! Smart!
We liked the way the place looks and if I needed to I believe I could make more than a few friends (from the Literate Few, Drew Crew) here!
We will set our AlarmClocks next time!

Now that I’ve been here and have tried several pastries I needed to bump my review up to 5 stars. I’ve had several varieties of Pablo’s croissants and today I got to try a few of his pastries at the store. Everything I have had has been high quality and delicious. My favorite croissant is the fig, bleu cheese and orange. Today I tried the passion fruit macaroon which was delicious as well as the hazelnut cake and salted caramel brownie. Pablo is awesome! He really cares about his product and his customers. I got a chance to talk to him and learned about the selections and other things he was interested in. My almond latte was also perfect. I normally get bread and croissants at the farmers market which is a lot of fun. His baguette is also amazing.

My new fave café in Winston Salem!
Amazing pastries, great coffee (counter culture from Durham) and ample seating and outlets for those with laptops. I had a fig, orange and blue cheese croissant that was so wonderful. If possible, try and go in the morning when they have the fullest assortment. Since everything is fresh they may run out of items as the day goes on. Also really friendly staff!
Can’t wait to keep going back!

Seriously, this place is a problem for me. I just want to eat their delicious baked awesomeness all the time. I know when they first opened they had some issues with what their hours actually were and having product out, but that is no longer the case. Each time I have been in the case has been stocked. The last few times they have had much more than just croissants (although I think that would be enough). The pastries are seriously some of the best I have ever had.
Croissants: So, so, good! They are light, buttery, flakey, and have creative fillings.
Fruit Tart: Obsessed!
Salted Caramel Brownie: You are doing yourself a disservice if you don’t order one.
Eclairs: Pablo does not skimp on the filling and the vanilla bean really comes through.
They switch up their dessert offerings, be sure to check their Facebook page if you are looking for something specific. They are also at the Cobblestone Farmer’s market on Sunday’s and Wednesdays.
Closed on Mondays.

Overview: Atelier on Trade is a new (as of 2014) bakery located in the heart of Winston Salem’s downtown that makes several wonderful variants of croissants, and sells locally sourced coffee.
The Food: I tried several croissants (several berry options, as well as a smoked salmon option) and loved them all. Great texture (light, buttery), and good ratio of filling to croissant (such as in the smoked salmon stuff croissant). The size of each croissant is about medium, or possibly slightly smaller than other bakery croissants I have tried before, and thus their pricing is a little bit high in my opinion.
The Establishment: Clean, with a slightly hip, «Portland» vibe to it. Whenever I come here, there is plenty of seating. Parking is a little bit difficult (as all downtown places usually are).
The Service: Friendly gal behind the counter, but we didn’t get table service.
Conclusions: Atelier on Trade probably has the best croissants in town, but it’s a bit pricey and a bit inconvenient to get to. I wholeheartedly recommend it for people who are already making a trip downtown to one of the boutique shops nearby.

At last, I made it to Atelier on Trade when they had baked goods in stock! In addition to the fun location downtown, this place offers a wide variety of interesting croissant-​centered treats. The flavor combos, while excellently paired, are not what you expect to get in your croissant if you were to go to any other bakery– raspberry almond, brie with savory additions. For those of you traditionalists, I did see plain croissants as well as pain au chocolate.
I did wish there was clearer signage outside as to if the store is open and if they were sold out of baked goods for the day, because it can be a bummer to hunt for parking only to find out they are sold out.
While here, I ordered a plain croissant and a black and blue croissant (filled with blackberries and blueberries). They were top-​notch with beautiful egg washes. Some bakeries that I love unfortunately bake their croissants to the point of almost burnt, fortunately Atelier on Trade is NOT one of these places. The filling in the black and blue croissant had whole berries, great flavor, and wasn’t overloaded with sugar — just the way I hoped it would be.
Wonderful croissants overall; finding parking can be a problem, but don’t let that stop you from trying them out!