A little piece of Vienna, Austria, just landed near the Verizon Center in the form of a Viennese-inspired coffeehouse and bakery dubbed Bakers & Baristas. The project is from Aaron Gordon, whom we snapped on the café’s bleacher seating inspired by the nearby National Portrait Gallery. He noticed people love to sit there and take in a quick snack. The snacks at Bakers & Baristas, however, are sophisticated. “The danishes are especially extravagant and delicate, sometimes requiring 30 layers of pastry,” he tells us. “It takes so long, that’s why no one does it.”
In addition to apple, blueberry and strawberry danishes, you can treat yourself to bready butterkuchen topped with almonds, a brioche bun filled with orange blossom cream or a cinnamon snail, to name a few. Blue Duck Tavern’s distinguished pastry chef, Naomi Gallego, consulted on the menu, but Lindsay Meehan will run day-to-day operations. The coffee that goes along with their treats is from local roaster Compass Coffee, which we’ve introduced to you. Bakers & Baristas opens Wednesday, Jan. 21, with a full lineup of pastries. Lunch sandwiches and desserts will follow.
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