Praline Bakery & Bistro

Pastries/​bakery items are heinnnn… OK…I’ve had A LOT better from other French bakeries in the area. I would definitely come back again for their dinner offerings. I would concur and piggy back on UNA L’ 5÷7÷2016 review; I would agree that the hostess (petite/​skinny older French lady) upstairs certainly needs to be retrained on customer service towards patrons with kids. I believe her name is «Francoise». When we first arrived; she really was not «inviting», inattentive and slow. For whatever reason; and although she was not our waitress; she later came over and asked about my daughter’s food that we brought from home in a 10oz thermostat food jar. and essentially verbally asked us why we had brought it into the restaurant. We responded with «is it not allowed» and she responded with «well…I don’t know… I am not the owner» and walked off. So we looked at each and agreed that if she didn’t know the rules and regulations, then why THE F%@# would she question us about this. Now mind you; the hostess had no basis for her questioning/​behavior. I’ve never heard of a restaurant (Praline is not a high end resto) banning patrons from bringing in food from home for the purpose of feeding their child (toddler); but the upstairs hostess’ questioning and behavior towards us pointed towards this. It seems that Kids annoy her or maybe it’s the fact that we didn’t order food for our toddler… IDK. Whatever the case, there’s no justification for her lack of and nasty customer service and we surely can’t put it on «oh, she was having a bad day», as she appeared happy and jovial towards other customers and co-​workers. SUGGESTIONS TO THE OWNER (S): Retrain your (uninviting & rude) upstairs hostess/​Francoise; so she remembers that she works in a Customer Service field and needs to proceed with her Service to Customers accordingly. Also, if the upstair hostess/​Francoises is not familiar with your Company’s rules & regulations; then she should not ask the patrons ridiculous questions; that will save her from looking clueless and ignorant! The risotto dish is excellent! so is the poulet grand-​mere!

I do not mind paying extra for a food, good pastry and excellent coffee however service is poor and coffee terrible and served cold. The job of staff is to make customers feel welcome and not act as if they are doing you a favor to serve you. After 3 times of bad service & terrible coffee, I am taking my money and spending it where care is given to its customers. A pity because the pastry, quiches and onion soup is great.

Was very disappointed choosing this place to celebrate Mother’s Day. I had made reservations a couple weeks ago just to be safe. When we got there at 1pm, the place was not packed, yet they placed me, my husband and daughter at a two person table with a third chair. Service was terrible. It took 10 minutes for our server to come to our table to take our drink order and we decided to go ahead and place our order since we didn’t know when we’d see him again. I ordered a Belgian waffle that was supposed to come with strawberry coulis, but didn’t and I asked for it and he never brought it. He never came back to ask about dessert, so we decided to head elsewhere to get better service but had to wait forever for the check. The one nice thing they did was hand a rose to each Mom for Mother’s Day, but would have traded that for better service. So disappointed, so much potential, will not be returning.

I’m disappointed to give this place one star since I actually do like the food. But the service and the attitude of the hostess at the bistro upstairs is unacceptable. We tried to get a table right at 10 am on a Saturday for two families (four adults 2 toddlers). The place was entirely empty. It’s always empty at that time– I’ve been there several times at that hour. We were told that there was no space and we could not be accommodated. Disappointed, we went downstairs to the bakery and ordered there. An hour later, the place was still ¾ empty. It’s clear they could have accommodated us.
My guess is that the hostess doesn’t like small children. I’ve been there a few times with just my daughter and she’s definitely given me attitude then, too. Which is fine– you are entitled to your views. But it’s a friggin bakery, not a fine dining establishment. There is really no basis for denying service to families with small children.

Unexpected little French bistro (considering we were in total suburbia!) and since I’m a francophile, I was excited to eat here! We went there for brunch and sat outside upstairs and it was very pleasant. :) The waiters were great and were patient with the way we couldn’t pronounce anything on the menu without sounding like country bumpkin americans lol. My eggs benedict dish was good but I think I prefer my eggs benedict with the classic english muffin and I think they used something a little more like a mix of a buttery dessert/​pastry/​bread thing which wasn’t bad but not my thing. :/​My friends had savory crepes and other dishes which they all said they liked. The charcuterie appetizer plate was decent but I didn’t know half of what we were eating on that plate: D The bread they served before the meal was «ok» and they gave us what seemed like half an ounce of butter lol. But when we asked for more butter or more bread it was all pretty timely to get to our table. My coffee was good and then we had the mini-​macarons and brownies downstairs and we liked them all! I’ve been to France a few times and I’d say their macarons were just as good as the ones from the Paris stores (^.^)

Former White House pastry chef Patrick Musel delights with wonderful desserts, including seasonal White House cookies that you and your family can enjoy even if you didn’t pick them up at a White House party.
Great new crepes menu too!

The food is acceptable if you are hungry but it is nothing special. There are better places to go eat with better tasting food. The sweet crepes taste horrible! I will never order any of that stuff again if I ever set foot in that place… which I doubt.
The waiters are polite, but the french owner is always pushing people to leave, even when the place is almost empty. She is very rude and she acts like she is making people a favor to let them eat there. I wonder if she has problems with certain type of people eating at her «restaurant».

Dear Praline,
I tolerated spending an exorbitant amount of money on your teensy pastries because I thought they were okay and my daughter loved the experience of going to a «bakery» after our sushi dinners at Passion Fin. Tonight, however, you lost a customer (and her family) for good. When we came in, I asked the teen-​aged employees behind the counter what the topping on the bread pudding was. It looked like raisins and, as I have a severe reaction to raisins (itching, hives, etc.), I would’ve chosen something else. The young lady assured me it was chocolate. One bite in I felt a big squishy raisin in my mouth. When I tried as politely as possible just to let the young lady behind the counter know that the topping was indeed made of raisins, she looked at me with incredulity and annoyance. She asked me nonchalantly if I wanted to swap it out for something else. I said «no thanks.» When I go to a «fancy» Bethesda bakery and you serve me something that makes me sick, after lying to me and telling me that it does not have something that will make me sick, I would greatly appreciate something more than «would you like me to swap it out?» All done, Praline. All done. From now on, I go to Safeway next door. Same pastry. No horrific allergic reaction. No lies. Less expensive.

French bakery and bistro. I’m sold.
Americans don’t give enough attention to crêpes in general, let alone as a meal. Let me tell you that if you have not eaten a savory crêpe, now is the time. I recommend the Norwegian, with smoked salmon, spinach, and crema fresca for a satisfying treat.
Also, as a perk, The french tradition is to have a hard cider with the crêpes, and I can see why. The two compliment each other superbly. Give it a try!
Finally, if you do not go with their signature cakes for desert, you should question your life choices. The exec. pastry chef uniquely crafts them to perfection. You will not find their signature cakes anywhere else.
Good eating!

What the heck happened at Praline? I had lunch there yesterday and it seems to have turned into a creperie. No mussels, no bouillabaisse, no escargot. Main focus now crepes (sweet or savory), quiche, omelettes. Was told by waiter — «new menu –everyone likes it.» Well, I tried the seafood crêpe and it was terrible. Over cooked bits of shrimp, scallops and fish with a runny cream sauce on a wimpy wheat crêpe. Was so disappointed.

Came here for a family holiday weekend visit as it was recommended by our family that lives in DC. We enjoyed their brunch menu very much. The prices were quite reasonable and portions were very fair. The plating was very good and the good itself was very tasty. We just had family come back from Paris and they said the food was very comparable. That’s quite a compliment.
We had a party of 15 so we sat upstairs in a semi-​private room. The waiter was very helpful and attentive and everything came out perfectly. We enjoyed almost every menu item from the croque monsieur (which was a hit), frittata, waffle, benedict, steak & eggs, and more. Everyone was quite satisfied. I was surprised this place only had a 3.5 Unilocal rating at the time. I would easily give this place a 4.5 in quality and presentation. It’s a little gem in a small plaza and you would least expect the brunch offerings from outside! I would highly recommend this place if you don’t want to fight traffic/​parking in downtown DC/​Georgetown area.
I would definitely come back here again! Highly recommend!

I’ve tried both the restaurant and the bakery here, and both exceed expectations, especially given the modest, out-​of-​the-​way location.
In particular, the bakery is a true gem: when we are craving or really need some high-​end pastries, we love being able to just walk in and select from the single portion servings of many of their incredibly delicious desserts. For special occasions (birthdays, guests, etc) we stop by and pick up one of their specialty cakes (*anything* with chocolate is always a huge hit, and my personal favorite is the melt-​in-​your-​mouth walnut dacquoise cake … Literally heaven dancing on your tastebuds). Not surprising as the pastry chef used to be the White House pastry chef. (They’re coming out with a book, in fact, about gingerbread at the WH!) The bakery savories are also very tasty — the single serving quiches and pizzas are particular faves when I’m on the go.
Warning, though — this place is expensive. But hey, expect to pay for quality.
Additional plus: Starbucks is in the same shopping center, so this is a great trip to get your coffee *and* dessert in one shot. Just sayin’ …

My wife and I tried Praline Bistro for the first time and were impressed with the quality and authenticity of the cooking, which compares quite favorably with meals we have had in France and Europe. The bouillabaisse and braised rabbit and onion soup were excellent; the rabbit was better than any we have had in the US. We rate Praline 4 stars because we did not taste truffles in the rabbit dish. Praline needs to update its website and menus because the bouillabaisse is listed but, when we ordered, we were told it was no longer available on Fridays but would be offered as an occasion special. When the chef learned of our preference, he made the bouillabaisse for us and other patrons that evening.

Great little place with a gourmet-​priced bakery items. This place would have gotten a much higher rating however…
BUYER BEWARE: I recommend only paying with cash here. Their credit card practices are shady and a violation of their merchant terms and conditions with their processor.

Les pâtisseries et les viennoiseries sont fraîches et délicieuses. Je déconseille l’achat du pain: Vous en trouverez du frais seulement le matin. Le pain n’est apparemment pas cuit sur place et il n’y a donc pas diverses fournées durant la journée. Vous pouvez prendre un thé, un café ou un chocolat dans la salle du bas et déjeuner ou dîner dans la salle du haut.

My wife find out about this place and we went to go try their brunch. The food was good, I got the onion soup and the egg benedict. The soup had the perfect flavor, very cheesy and not overly salty. The hollandaise sauce was on point. My wife loved their pastries. We’ll definitely come back here again.

Came here to get some work done on a day off; spent $ 13 on two macaroons (pistachio is delicious), a small iced coffee (just brewed hot coffee they stuck in the fridge — avoid), and a small box of four chocolates (gift for a friend). Wireless completely non-​functional; employee said it was «working fine» and tried to help, but needed to run off and assist customers. Please don’t advertise ‘Free Wi-​Fi’ unless it’s functional.

Normally I like this place but whatever you do don’t try to buy a custom cake. I had to call four or five times and leave a message. When they got back to me they didn’t follow thru. In the end the person told me the baker was on vacation I said oh I guess I will have to get my cake elsewhere since you can’t do it (in three weeks… not a last minute request).
So don’t waste a week trying to get them to call you back!
Balduccis took the order got back to me in minutes and it’s done. Get your special occasion cake there.

Praline’s food is usually wonderful, especially the onion soup, salmon, duck, mussels and salads. Until a recent visit I would have given it five stars. But dinner there last week made me wonder if I would ever return. Our party of six was seated at a small table in a cramped room with a family with young kids who were running around, loud and obnoxious. The parents couldn’t have cared less that six adults were sitting 18 inches away. This was close to 8 pm. I asked if we could move and after some dithering by the waiter we were moved to a larger area of seating. What I don’t get is that if the table we were moved to was vacant, why wouldn’t the restaurant manager have seated us there in the first place? Please understand that six adults out for dinner on a Saturday night have no interest in being around Ill-​behaved kids!!! After the move I thought all was well until one of the diners in our party pointed out that his knife was dirty — and I mean it had not even seen the dishwasher. The waiter then forgot to remove it from the table and it was only removed after another waiter came to the rescue. In terms of food that night, the fries were soggy and the desserts were ho hum. The entrees were ok but not memorable. Oh for the Praline I remember and loved!

(3.5 stars)
So, reader, you might know about my preoccupation with the chocolate chip cookie. I went to Praline desperately seeking that magical combination of butter, sugar, flour, and chocolate, a DC version of, say, New York’s Levain.
The first thing to note about Praline is that it’s in a very suburban mall surrounded by Chico’s, China Pavilion, Safeway, and CVS. The exterior doesn’t exactly scream «bakery.» But once you venture inside, it’s clear that the proprietors have done their best with the space. The main floor features the bakery and a few tables, and apparently there is an upstairs (the «bistro»). The bakery display case is filled with macarons, cookies, croissants, eclairs, and the like. I had three cookies and I can say this — this wasn’t the best I had ever had, but it took an interesting approach to the chocolate chip cookie. Indeed, this was practically an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, and I didn’t mind that at all. The cookies are a bit small (for $ 1.85) so I’d suggest getting a few and sampling. These aren’t the most brilliant, but they are certainly good, and inventive.

A really cute French café in such an unexpected spot! They have a variety of options including soup, salad, quiche, and desserts. I like to get French onion soup here and it’s always good.
They have outdoor seating upstairs for when there is nice weather. It’s really cute and perfect for a leisurely lunch.
The chef used to be the retired White House chef but the new chef is also great!

The service was great. The waiter made some good recommendations. My duck confit was a bit salty but otherwise good. The crowd there was a bit mature

What a cute place!
Its in a sort of strip/​square mall — so its tucked away — but do not hesitate to come!
The bistro is upstairs — legit french food. just go. get the escargots or the fish soup just so you can get the rouille.
bakery: whoa. very good stuff. I ordered the walnut dacquoise for a party and it was a hit. (perfect for non chocolate peeps) they also have a great selection of macarons, pastries and random frenchy goodies like Tessierie drink syrup.
Recommend!

Macarons! I haven’t had Macarons this amazing since Paris. Dare I say even a little better than the Macarons I had in Paris?!
Each cookie was the perfect texture. My personal favorites were: Raspberry and Apricot:-)
To make my visit all the more amazing– they were selling hot pink caulenders. The largest one-​Sold!

Went there for lunch today with a friend. Lovely space, also an open patio which they apparently can reserve for events. We dined on the Grilled Chicken Sandwich and the Praline Salad with Grilled Chicken. Then enjoyed the sorbet of the day (including mango and raspberry) & the cake of the day (lime mousse cake). They were gorgeous AND delicious.
And then there are the cookies which i brought home for later — their lemon drop, lemon ginger, and pumpkin cookies are good. Their chocolate mocha cookie is ridiculously rich one was PLENTY (and I love rich chocolate things). But their oatmeal cookie was RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME.
Oh, and their macaroons? Yes. Just, yes.

The coconut macaroon was excellent.
Disappointed that they were out of almond croissants, because I am currently in the middle of what some may say is a binge but what I like to call a thorough sampling of said croissants. I opted for a sticky bun which I ate later that night after a short warm up in the microwave, and it was solid.
Lunch was fine, but their outdoor upstairs patio is really lovely, a great place to hang out and have some drinks on a nice day.

I had lunch here while visiting family in Bethesda. It is right across the street from the condo where my grandparents live. Praline’s location is fairly unassuming (in a strip mall) but the interior is cute. The first floor is a French-​style bakery and upstairs is a restaurant, which is where we went. The weather was nice so we sat on the outside patio. Fortunately, you can’t really see the strip mall parking lot from the patio. I wasn’t actually very hungry due to having a large breakfast, so I just had a piece of lemon almond cake. It was delicious!
My family members seemed to think the lunch food was not as good as it used to be, but I was pleased with my cake, as well as the bread that came with the lunch entrees.
I also had a mini lemon macaron… it was awesome. Way better than the frozen Trader Joe’s macarons that I’ve been subsisting on until this point. Light and fluffy but still crunchy, with flavorful cream. It turns out that my grandparents had already bought the same lemon almond cake to have with dinner later. I had another piece because this cake was delicious. Interestingly, the piece I had at lunch tasted more lemony, but the cake I had at dinner was more almondy. I love both lemon and almond so this didn’t bother me, but there may be some slight variation among batches.
If I lived in Bethesda I would probably eat pastries from here every day!

The bakery itself has some great offerings. We have bought bread, pastries and even sandwiches, taken to go, all with great success. They have a lot of good things, and I think they bake everything there.
The restaurant upstairs was another story. We stopped in late for desert. There were plenty of people eating dinner, even though it was close to their closing time.
We were seated right away, and the host (owner/​manager?) came over and was joking with us. Everything seemed good.
I then took forever for a waiter to show up, and he was uninterested in explaining what they had, and he took a long time to get our coffee and water, as well as actually take the order.
Meanwhile, the staff was in full clean up mode, and twice they had propped the door open to a terrace, letting cold air blow right on us. I would ask someone to close it, then someone would open it again. When it happened a third time, I got up myself to close the door.
The deserts were good – though not great. No refills on the water, and it took forever to get the check paid.
If they were closing and did not want us there, they should have turned us away. Crappy service was not the way to go.

Absolutely loved this bakery. The cases display a variety of pretty French pastries, cookies, and jellies (made by former White House pastry chefs). The chocolate eclairs were creamy and decadent. My favorite was the oatmeal raisin cookie which was crispy on the edges and chewy in the inside. We ate our treats sitting next to the fire and sipping tea. This bakery was so cozy and the atmosphere was quaint. It’s a great place for a nice quiet cup of coffee.