Sweet Ambrosia

Oh, sweet sweet Sweet Ambrosia.
Somewhere, in MBA courses across America, there is a professor sporting a blazer and Converse (because he thinks he’s cool), teaching a class full of aspiring capitalists the concept that simply because one is good at a particular trade, doesn’t mean one automatically has a brain for successfully running a business revolving around that trade. So in GED, layman’s terms — being a good baker isn’t the same thing as being a good business woman. Case Study #1: Sweet Ambrosia.
When this place first opened, hubsy and I were rather excited at the prospect of supporting a local bakery/​café/​restaurant. We live just outside of Forest Heights, and having been slowly brainwashed by the suburbs since 2005, we liked the idea of not driving into NW for breakfast every weekend. (Related note — we were preggy w the first sweet’ums at the tume. Now we go to breakfast «every weekend» the same way we spend every weekend wine tasting… so NEVER.) We dropped in for breakfast ordering something like ommelettes, and it took no less than 25 minutes to get our food. There was one other table occupied in this small space. I remember we kept whispering to each other, «Do you think they just forgot?»
Anyway, over the years, I have been to this place probably a handful of times (recently, two weeks ago), and it’s interesting to me that A) this place stays in business, in spite of B) the fact that nothing ever changes.
The baked goods are delicious, fresh, and expertly made. (OMG, especially the raspberry jammer thing — LAWD have MERSAY!) There’s no doubt the owner is a master baker. The problems are the inconsistent hours, the lack of help in the store, the crazy amount of time it sometimes takes to have one’s order taken, followed by an even less acceptable amount of time spent waiting for any food that wasn’t in the pastry case and had to be prepared. Their coffee is good, but good luck finding the half and half. A friend told me recently that if she’s ever craving a baked good from Sweet Ambrosia, she calls ahead to make sure the place is open, and see if croissants have made it out of the kitchen that day. Brilliant.
So, should you go here? Probably. The baked goodies are divine. Just go with the full expectation that the owner has no idea what it takes to make a business thrive. And as you’re standing there for way too long waiting to get your croissant and coffee, you’ll have some time to excersise your smug sense of self-​satisfaction assuming (correctly) that you would turn this little business into a billion dollar empire were it to be yours.

This little bakery/​café is tucked in a strip mall in the wilds of Forest Heights. I didn’t even know it was there until I spotted in on Unilocal.It’s only 8 minutes from my house, cool!
Hubby and I went in on a Sunday morning thinking we’d get a coffee and a croissant or something, but the hot breakfast menu sucked us in. Before we knew it we were tucking into a $ 8.50 denver scramble: eggs, onions, red bell peppers, cheese, ham, chives, and green onions. It was delicious! It came with homey toast, jam, and some cottage potatoes. The potatoes were seasoned nicely with paprika and pepper. The coffee was good (not great) and they also have french press if you prefer that.
They had some other scrambles on their menu, also waffles, eggs and bacon, we saw some killer looking cinnamon rolls and muffins.
If they’d had espresso we’d have given this a five. It was a quiet little place, only a few people in and out. We liked the friendly server and the nice woman who cooked our food while she was baking and working in the back.
We took home an apricot scone for my mom, it was crumbly and delicious, she gave me a chunk to try. It wasn’t overly sweet or enormous like some poser «scones» you see these days. Yum.
I think we will be back. They have lunch specials ($ 3.95 for a half sandwich and soup), cheesecake that looks really good, and crepes at dinner time. There is a big wine refrigerator we spotted in a corner… hmmmm. Promising!

This is a hidden jewel not known to a lot of people outside the Forest Heights neighborhood. That’s a shame! It’s a bakery but also serves breakfast, lunch, and Friday night dinners. The atmosphere is small, (7 or 8 tables), casual, plenty of light coming through the windows and a large patio for eating outside in warm weather.
Everything I’ve had from this bakery has been absolutely delicious. The muffins initially drew me in. Fresh out of the oven (yum!) or sometimes day old for ½ price. I then started eating the meals and have never been disappointed. Desserts are simply yummy!
Not only do I like the food but also the quieter atmosphere than the next door Starbucks, especially if I’m going to do some work (wifi is free). I often grab a latte at Starbucks and then head over for a muffin, a meal, a cookie (or two), or a bunch of muffins to take home and freeze. My Seattle friend says they’re the best muffins he’s ever eaten so always buys a bunch when in town and takes them home to freeze. I have yet to eat dinner there but can’t imagine it would be anything but delicious.
Thanks to owner Mary for providing such a great spot, wonderful food, and an always friendly greeting.

Great atmosphere. Small but terrific menu. Good coffee and the food was top notch. We really enjoyed sitting outside for breakfast. We will definitely go back.

I went in around 9 am on a Saturday. Since no one was at the counter, I called out to see if anyone was there. A woman came to the counter to get my order, and I mentioned that I had never been to Sweet Ambrosia before and I wasn’t sure what I wanted yet. I wasn’t offered any advice or suggestions or information, instead the woman went right want into the kitchen. I ended up ordering a breakfast sandwich, because everything else (which wasn’t much, not the «chocolate croissants, cherry danishes, banana muffins, strawberry scones, apricot scones» mentioned by a previous reviewer) was still covered up and there were no labels to tell what was what. I really wanted to be wowed by this place — it is very close to my house — but I really was not very impressed.

Really great bake good, the owner works very hard to make it great! She also does nice dinners on the weekend and has a decent lunch. very small inside maybe seats 15 but worth it never busy because it is in our forest heights neighborhood so pretty quiet.
Yummy Choc cupcakes:)

I did some work in this neighborhood last summer, and Sweet Ambrosia was my favorite place for lunch. The sandwiches, soups, drinks and desserts are all delicious here. Just don’t expect lightning fast service and you’ll be happy. They take a bit of time to grill the sandwiches to perfection, and there is limited staff. Free wi-​fi!
The café is clean and has nice outdoor seating. I felt a bit out of place among the well-​to-​do families and rich old ladies, but I didn’t let it get in the way. In fact, since I stuck out a little bit, I was usually able to stike up a conversation or two.
While you’re waiting for your food, you can drool over the gelato, cookies, cheescakes, tarts, cakes, etc. If you didn’t order dessert with your meal, you will certainly be tempted to add it on later.
The place is tucked away next to the homeowners association and I just kind of stumbled upon it one day. I’m sure glad I did. On days that I was scheduled to work in the neighborhood, I moved things around to make sure I was there during lunchtime.

Scrumptious home-​made goods made right on the premises! The cranberry muffins taste nice ‘n fluffy.