Red Bench Bakery

Red Bench Bakery is an ideal drop-in place for breakfast, lunch, or a refreshing snack. It adds a lot to our downtown Excelsior, MN.

It is a charming little café for dining in with a friend or neighbor; it also has a pleasant street-side patio for dining during warmer months. Often, it is easy to buy a scone and coffee and enjoy them on the bench just outside the door. Dogs on a lease are welcome on the patio.

We’ve enjoyed several varieties of pastries, cookies, scones (my favorite is the Blueberry Scone), and cinnamon rolls – sometimes to go. Their selection of Artisan breads is the best around. Actually, they fill many pick-up orders for local families and businesses. Today, the daily offering of a filled brioche was raspberry. However, all the flavors are consistently delicious. The kids won’t miss having a donut, but I think the filled brioches are ideal for adults.

I also recommend both the Chicken Salad, Tuna Salad, Vegetable Quiche, and Ratatouille Quiche. The soups and salads taste just-made with the freshest ingredients. We always love the street baguette. For certain meals, the Cardamon Bread is flavorful and has an amazing crust! You’ll find an excellent range of coffee, tea, and cold beverages. And they have fantastic ice cream to go.

The staff is friendly and kind, even when super busy. They always extend a warm welcome! It is a small space, but they really offer great products. The décor is warm natural tones and feels a bit like places we’ve enjoyed in Europe. It’s definitely worth a visit!

There is nothing wrong with this bakery. The quiche was homemade with a light flaky crust. All breads are baked daily without preservatives. Nice indoor and outdoor seating. Everything tasted great.

Couldn’t be more grateful to have this amazing bakery in our community! The food is amazing and the pastries and everything else is delicious! Fantastic and always polite staff.

Delicious and the staff so kind
Best croissant ever !!

Great coffee, and the chocolate chip cookies are the best. Nice dog-friendly patio.

Great cinnamon roll and breakfast sandwiches. Service was quick and very helpful and patient with questions

We were in town for the Klondike Dog Derby race over the weekend, and the Red Bench Bakery was a pleasant little cafe to have a place to sit in warmth and enjoy some treats and coffee the day before the race. (We also appreciated the free cups of water we could get as we waited on our items.) My family enjoyed the peanut butter cookies, chocolate chip cookies, scones, and the cinnamon rolls as well as hot chocolate and chai lattes. I enjoyed the ratatouille quiche. It was so flavorful and delicious and had an amazing crust! The staff was all so friendly and kind as well and made us feel welcome!

What impressed us even more was the day of the race...this business was booming, yet the staff was STILL so friendly and pleasant and well organized with the busy crowd! They were well stocked on all the pastries, breads, and treats which my family enjoyed yet again. I tried the chicken salad sandwich this time, and it did not disappoint! We look forward to coming back the next time we're in the area! We love to support local businesses!

We chose a variety of sweet and savory pastries to share as a group -- all were delicious. Best Americano coffee drink I have had in a long time. We'll be back soon.

Had a cup of coffee with a bit of heavy whipping cream and it was amazing! The service was fun and friendly!!!

What a fantastic bakery! I was in town for the Klondike dog derby and purchased food and a hot drink. The place was packed with everyone in town, but the customer service was incredible. The sandwich was delicious and so was my warm drink. I had a bite of their yummy quiche too! Definitely a place to check out!

I've been to Montreal, Paris, southern France, and the French Caribbean.all of which know how to make pastries. We are very lucky to have Red Bench in MN. They are absolutely on par (better in some cases) than the above countries. Love it; absolutely recommend.

Staff was so helpful and so sweet! Cute spot! Great place for a treat with friends! The Chai is delicious!!!

Seriously delicious bakery. Favorite items include the cinnamon roll, ham and Swiss croissant (warmed up) and the kouign amann. Also their iced americano is a strong kickstart to the day!

Great cookies and very friendly staff will definitely be back for more goodies.

Yummy croissants. Ham and Cheese is so tasty. Almond croissants with almond paste in them. I been looking for almond paste pastries These are good.

Excellent bread, you will not find better bread. They don't always have the kind(s) I want but they also make many versions you will not see anywhere. Pastries are also outstanding. Croissants, also, as good as you will find in Minnesota. Somewhat small place but also some seating outside that is decent. I have had a lot of their bread and plenty of pastries and coffee, but lunch only a couple times. Lunch was however, very good.

About a 4.7 - not 5.0 because I wish they were open more and more consistently. I have stopped by more than once only to be reminded by their sign they were not open that day, or at that time, and go somewhere else for lunch or for a coffee. It seems more consistent now, but also insufficient (for me). Definitely worth a visit.

Had a croissant which was perfectly flaky and delicious! I could get in trouble here. 😂

Andrew was wonderful to talk to! The atmosphere was cozy and the food was delicious!

Great place to have coffee and a good pastries. No sitting inside but the have tables outside :)
Excelsior is a great town to walk...

Delicious pastries, soups, breads, quiches, salads and cookies. They currently are offering pies for the Thanksgiving holiday. The service is always friendly. I enjoy the option to buy a quart of soup to bring home as well as just cups of their daily soups, which are delicious!!