La Voie Française

This bakery is one of balmoral/​sandringhams local favourites. While the décor gives the bakery a non traditional vibe the food you’ll find is everything traditional.
The coffee is good and the food is delish! I really love their breakfast buns, favourite savoury thing to get.
It gets crazy busy on the weekends now that lots of people know about it so get in early!

I was surprised by the unassuming atmosphere of La Voie Francaise, a little French Bakery in the middle of Dominion Road. The simplicity and fact that it lives on a road packed full of Aucklands best ‘no fuss’ eateries had me feeling optimistic.
We arrived late afternoon and the cabinet was understandably a little bare. However, we managed to get a few yummy morsels to take home. Everything was buttery and pretty scrumptious, perfect accompanied by a big cup of coffee. We chose little items to share, all of which appeared to be very simple and relatively similar. This first impression meant we were pleasantly surprised by the array of flavours and textures found within our selection.
Next time I’d love to arrive earlier and try a bigger range of delicacies, as my first visit to La Voie Francaise left me hungry for more!

I couldn’t be luckier than to live just a short walk from this bakery, a local heaven. They have a beautiful array of sandwiches, pastries, breads, all the treats you would want from the perfect bakery displayed in their cabinets.
Pictured is my favourite; nicoise — tuna, mayo and herb roll. Crunchy bread and a delicious filling.
This place is very popular, so get in early to have the pick of the crop! Make sure to try a canelè, rum flavoured baked custard, ¹⁰⁄₁₀. Everything they offer is delicious, baked perfectly, and looks as gorgeous as it eats.
I can always rely on this place for a lunch or snack I’ll never get sick of, it almost gets better each time.

Must I say more about La Voie Francaise? The pics do all the talking! This is a wonderful French bakery where Japanese baker Tetsuya Namekawa crafted his skill from patisserie artisan Pierre Herme.
This must be the quickest «Quick Bite» you could do on the run. I literally took the photos in the car so we could eat them on the way to our shopping trip haha. This is a first, they have a cute chalkboard with a list of when certain items come out of the oven so you don’t miss out and can eat them warm! OMG Yum! If you like blue cheese, pick yourself up the blue cheese, almond and honey scroll. It’s moorish and indulgent and its mind-​blowing. Definitely not something if your being healthy or watching your weight. The french baguette is like no other, amazingly chewy but crunchy. They also have beautiful sweet desserts on offer which were tempting to buy but with my no sweets month I had to give it a miss.
Go now! You can’t be disappointed with amazing fresh bread!
Rating:
Food: 9.75÷10 — only because it was very messy to eat in the car and we had no serviettes given.
Service: 8.5÷10
Value for Money: Very Good
875 Dominion Road, Mt Roskill
Opening Hours: Mon-​Sun 8am-​3pm

This is a really, super simple review because I really don’t want you going here. Seriously. It’s busy enough already — if you come after 12.30, don’t expect to get lunch because it will ALL BE GONE.
AW and I went for a stroll down at about 10.30 on Sunday morning. At that stage, there was a huge queue almost out the door, most of the sandwiches were gone, and people were stacking up on pastries.
So I recommend going first thing in the morning. Grab your morning pastry at the same time as you grab your sandwich for lunch (the chicken sandwich is so simple, yet so tasty), and your fresh bread. Otherwise you will be left with whatever most of Mt Eden/​Mt Roskill/​Balmoral did not want (which is not much).
As an aside, though, the coffee is terrible. Go elsewhere for that, because you come here for the pastry.

Now I’m no connoisseur of French baked goods, but this place is a definite pleaser. Someone brought home an olive bread from La Voie Francaise that got me hooked, so I decided to have a late morning pastry feast of my own.
A raspberry chocolate croissant, a chocolate brioche, and a canele topped my plate.
The canele was my highlight, crispy and sweet on the outside and gooey on the inside. The brioche was freshly warm and soft but not too rich. The croissant was on the verge, somewhat stale around the edges but still enjoyable.
The ups: these pastries and the olive bread were delicious. Prices are very reasonable too, only $ 10 all up for the three sweets. La Voie Francaise also boasts an inviting atmosphere that’s relaxing but well kempt.
The downs: I’m not convinced by these tastings that La Voie is all the rage, but that’s probably just because I’ve been spoiled by the French market in Parnell.
I’ll be back for a croque monsieur at some stage, maybe my mind will change.

This place is amazing! This is possibly the best bakery I’ve eaten at in Auckland and way better than any of the trendy bakeries that pop up everywhere. No gimicky milk bottles or paper straws, just delicious delicious food.
I tried the praline brioche which had chocolate and custard on top, it was buttery and divine and I now I will dream of this brioche forever. And only $ 3.50! Also tried the croque monsieur and this is the most amazing grilled cheese sandwich I have ever had in my life. Bread was beautiful, filled with bechamel sauce and ham, it was very very tasty. And the prices are so reasonable! Also had an almond croissant, and while it was still delicious, was not as amazing as the other things on the menu.
Would definitely go back again, it is so reasonably priced and the food is so delicious :) I do wish they had more space to sit down but I suppose its more of a bakery as opposed to a café. The people working here are also very friendly, I’m already planning my next visit!

This bakery has a solid reputation for pleasing french people. This is hard to do. And is refreshing considering all the kiwi run french bakeries that disappoint so often.
Although there is not much space to sit and enjoy the delicacies, it is definitely worth a visit. Mornings are best as everything is clearly fresh and the aromas are surrounding the space. Surprisingly it is also quite moderately priced. This business surely knows whats sells and how to sell it in a reasonable manner. A sunday morning visit must.

I haven’t yet been to France but I imagine it is just like this — with countless shops selling crusty baguettes, croissants and pastries. The cabinet is full of delicious looking treats such as these at The French bakery on Dominion Rd (the Mt Roskill end), making it a tricky decision between savoury and sweet.
Visit here in the morning and the bread is warm out of the oven. For the quality of the baking, the prices are crazy (in a good way) — a baguette is just $ 2.50.
The lady working told me not to worry about my figure because this what the French eat and French women are never fat. I think I’m going to take this on board and go back to try a danish or maybe a caramel éclair. Whatever I choose it’s sure to be tres bien!
Note that from what I can gather this place closes around 2pm on weekends. You don’t wanna be disappointed!