Avalon International Breads

I like this place, but damn! Either fix that loud ass bread slicer, get a new one, or starting cutting the shit by hand!

Amazing breads and pastries! Can’t believe it took me so long to try it. I would suggest a cup of coffee — their expertise is in pastries — so a good old cup of joe is the best way to go versus an espresso drink.
Can’t wait to go back!

I grew up downtown (that weird polygonal apt. building at John R. and Hancock? Yea, there.) so, when I was a kid, Avalon was MY bakery. We used to get zucchini bread and carrot cake muffins every Sat. All the staff were friendly and accommodating back then. It seems now that they’ve changed that. I went in this morning for breakfast and asked about the smoked salmon sandwich. It was on a bun instead of a bagel which I was cool with but, when I asked if they could make me one without egg on it, I was told they couldn’t. The guy offered to «take it off» which anyone with a food allergy knows is useless. It was clear from his attitude that he had better things to do then to wait on customers so I didn’t press the matter. ANYWAY, long story short (too late), great pastries, fantastic bread, crap service. If you go make it quick, it’s clear the staff do not want you there.

This place is amazing! VEGAN FRIENDLY! I asked a worker to let me know what was vegan, he was so nice and let me know every bread was vegan but the olive bread and something else. Amazing! Almost ALL of their vegan treats like cookies, muffins, and date bars are vegan as well. It’s all 100% organic and DELICIOUS! I got the sourdough and cinnamon raisin bread and you get big loaves for the price! I also got a goodie box from my sister in law for Christmas from this place filled with all their sweets treats and they all tasted awesome. Go to this place!!!

Pretty solid place. Good service and tons of options. I bought 30 desserts, a loaf of bread and a slice of pizza.

I don’t know what they’re putting in the food or not putting in the food… But
everything that Avalon makes is the high standard of how food should taste.

Great shop in midtown. Best chocolate chip cookies that side of Mack. Amazing breads and brownies. Just go ahead and treat yourself to this amazing place.

the vegan chocolate cake is the bomb!

For my money, still the champion of metro Detroit bakeries. I’ve always thought Avalon more effortlessly hits the kind of vibe Zingerman’s is shooting for. The pecan sticky bun is my go-​to; I highly recommend getting one anytime you enter the shop. Focaccia is almost always a good option for lunch, a wide variety of the loaves are very good depending on what you’re looking for, and everything is cheaper the hour before they close.
Coffee is generally pretty solid. The «quirk» they’ve never fixed is the weird counter system. There’s often a flock of tourists hovering and many of the staff aren’t that assertive, so it’s generally a good idea to catch someone’s eye and order, then go down to the register and tell that person what you got (and you do your coffee down at that end separately:).

Nothing to report that hasn’t been written. The Avalon folk have their hearts in the right place and it translates into a comfortable and delicious bakery/​café experience. Avalon extends the spirit of the Cass Corridor and this makes it a true Detroit gem.

I se e k resturants that provide your delicioso Breads. Flytrap, Bastone among others. Thank you Avalon for your skill and will.

Ok, not great. I still would not trade it for give thanks!
Had some blueberry tart, mango brioche and salted chocolate cookie.
Mango brioche was like a 3.5. Idk, just lacked something. Maybe I wanted for it to be more crispy.
Blueberry tart-​regular Joe Shmoe meijer or Krogers bakery type of deal. Pass
Salted chocolate cookie everyone raves about. Ehh too salty, not my thing.
This bakery is just ok for me, I liked the interior. The lady just walked away after scanning my CC without telling me I am through or you know the usual «have a nice day». Thought that was kinda rude. Never gave me the receipt either, not that I would want one, but courtesy check would have been nice.
I’ll save this place for coffee.

Very nice bakery /​coffee shop !
The staff is very nice and the atmosphere is lovely
Definitely a must in Detroit
The bread is nice and the cookies are A M A Z I N G !!

Get the Motown Multigrain. It’s perfect. I usually freeze most of the loaf and it’s still delicious defrosted and toasted in the oven.
I’ve tried the vegan cookies, muffins and cakes. Everything is great so you cant really go wrong. Favorite sandwich is the gardenworks sandwich.

WOW. God bless the amazing people who run this place (with all due respect to hypersensitive atheists). I’m a cranky old curmudgeon, who loves to nitpick, and yet I couldn’t find a single thing to critique here. From top to bottom, this is a quality bakery that not only puts delicious food in your belly, but helps revitalize a neighborhood and put people back to work. Bravo, owners, bravo, you guys are my superheros.
Be warned, parking can be a bit of an annoyance here, due to the neighborhood and the fact this place is always jammed with fellow groupies by myself.
Inside the space is huge, with cavernous ceilings and exposed piping. They’re not trying to look especially café-​chic here, think more sunny and vaguely industrial. There are large trays of deliciousness piled in a line leading to the register, so you can see what baked goods are just coming out, and how many are left.
This bakery has a very wide range of stuff they make, from pastry to savory focaccia pizzas, to sandwiches to cookies to bread loaves. The different offerings seem creative, unique and yet not intimidating (in other words, you won’t see any anchovy pretzel cupcake bites here or other such craziness). Every darn thing I’ve bought here has been a party in my mouth, so my below list of stuff I tried is really just for my own mental masturbation than suggestion:
–Brioche with chocolate ganache. SWEET MOTHER OF RAINBOWS AND PUPPIES was this delicious. A bread that’s both pillow-​ey and slightly sweet and eggy encasing the perfect amount of creamy dark ooey gooey chocolate ganache. Normally an item many bakeries bungle, this was on point more than some brioche I’ve had in Paris.
–PB and J with homemade everything. This was wrapped in an adorable brown paper and string near the register, and I scooped one up. It elevates the childhood staple without making it too fussy, and has the perfect ration of jelly to pb.
–Savory spinach bread pudding. Very creamy with nice crispness on the top, both the spinach and tomato are punchy and stand out, and it tastes very freshly made.
–Carrot, raisin and nut bar. This was cakey, crumbly, with a nice slightly molasses brown sugar taste and hearty texture.
Did I mention this place makes amazing lattes, has free wifi, the coolest diverse Detroit crowd, has long hours AND is nice to vegans? I know, I should quit while I’m ahead, before this love rant starts to sound like a marriage proposal.
I love you Avalon. Keep doing your ‘thang.

Great place with a wide selection of breads, including stuff for vegans. Skip the monkey roll (muffin? — kinda dry) but the fruit bars and chocolate cake are awesome. Didn’t try the main bread, but a lot of options and good coffee, too. Great rustic café feel to the place.

What a neat little spot! The first time I came to this bakery was in the summer, where things were warm and cozy, people walking around and the sun was shining bright. Today, it’s still shining bright, but it’s also 5 degrees (F). The woman at the register, Gina, was full of smiles despite the long line making its way around the counter. She would take orders, cut bread, removing sandwiches out of the oven — pretty much just running back and forth. She does a great job satisfying every customer’s orders! I love that! GREAT JOB GINA!!!
Today, I ordered the Black Bean soupe du jour and my partner in crime ordered the Legato Sandwich which is similar to an vegetable omelet cut in squares, with goat cream cheese spread on a brioche bread — it was DELI-​YUMMY-​CIOUS! Also ordered a Cherry Bar with the 313 Blend, I’m assuming that’s the ‘house blend’.
I love coming here. There’s a sense of familiarity and comfort when stepping inside the place. It feels good to see people doing good things for the community.
Till next time!!!

I really, really want to love Avalon bakery and, frankly, it’s almost politically incorrect to say that I don’t… and I do like it for the atmosphere but I simply don’t think their breads are very good. What they call «brioche» — and there’s a big variety of bioche-​based products there — isn’t close to what brioche should feel (texture) and taste like. And their bagettes are so thick-​crusted and dense, it always feels stale even when it’s not. I don’t know if they’re just too over-​zealous in kneeding or choosing poor flours but, well, it definitely could be better. (I attended cooking school in Paris and apprenticed in bakeries and if I produced breads like that, I would have flunked…)
All that said, it’s a great place a hang out with a cup of coffee and one of their sweet options, like the cookies, brownies, etc. Just wish they’d work on their bread-​making skills a little more.

They always have a booth at the Wayne State farmers market on Wednesdays, and I usually just walk past drooling a lot but this week I just couldn’t resist. I bought two vegan blueberry bars for $ 2-​something each. Avalon’s breads seem really expensive, but I think their pastries are fairly priced as artisanal bakeries go. When I got back to the office I munched on my bar and immediately liked that it was not too sweet, tasting like real blueberries. It was super crumbly, but I frantically tried to eat up all the streusel oat bits that happened to fall in order to not miss out on any delicious dessert. I loved that it above all tasted homemade, like something a friend baked for you.
The booth has a subset of items from the actual bakery, which is within walking distance down a number of blocks on Cass and then right on Willis. The bakery has more items than the booth, but sometimes the booth still has items that the bakery has run out of so check both if you’re looking for something specific! Having been to their brick-​and-​mortar building I feel more motivated to buy their products when I see them in stores now.

Yum! I am in love with the Vegan Dequindre bars. I’ve had the regular Dequindre bars and by far, the vegan ones are the best. All of their vegan cookies are better than their regular counterparts. I’m not anywhere close to considering myself vegan.
The baked breads I’ve had were just ok. There hasn’t been one that’s really wowed me just yet but I keep on trying!
Get there early for the best selection and parking!