Pane E Formaggio

I’ve been curious about Pane e Formaggio for a while, and was finally able to make a stop by. This was my first time in today, and I was not at all impressed by the rude and dismissive behaviour of staff. There were no other customers to be helped at the counter, and the staff (who were just chatting amongst themselves) did not seem to be busy with much else. I understand some poor service can occur if an establishment is very busy or a staff member has a lot going on, but there was no excuse for the attitudes this afternoon. A simple smile and the effort to give a customer the light of day will go a long way.
It sure sounds like a great place with plenty to offer according to other reviewers, but after the service I received it is enough to tell me I will not be back. Unfortunate, but we all have different experiences and I’m sad to say mine was not positive.

A pt grey gem. Best manchego cheese and love the breads. The antipasto is to die for. One of the best little shops on the west side.

Wow… I can’t believe some of the reviews below… I wish I could review the reviewers back:
Example: Shila B. (below) gave Pane 3 stars because… wait for it…“they were very busy…” and she felt like having a coffee, but didn’t want to wait for a table because they were all full of happy customers… WTF?!? Sigh!!! How is that the establishment’s fault? In my book, I’d call that a sign that things are going right over at Pane De Frommagio!!!
And boy are they ever: this place is a classic (and classy!) little Pt. Grey gem. I highly recommend them both on the deliciousness and on the customer service front. My favorite place to stop off whether staying to enjoy a perfect capu with a friend, or for stocking up on really profoundly delicious gourmet sandwiches for a hike or picnic. Pane is truly part of what makes this neighborhood special.
(And bonus! You won’t run into ‘Shila’ there because she walked off in a huff… likely to the empty soul-​less place down the block. ;-))

I’ve had the bread and cheese here, and it’s all right, but in all honesty, I am all about the cake. My dad insists I have the lemon shortcake waiting whenever he comes to town to visit, and it really is spectacular. Whenever I need a teatime treat I usually head over for a scone (cranberry-​orange is the best!) or their apple crostini.
Once I let the owner talk me into the lemon brule, which was, in all honesty, a disappointment. But that’s really the only miss I’ve had. Sometimes when I go in I get a free baguette or a little extra portion of cake if it’s the end of the day!
Really nice people behind the counter who usually want to know how your day was.

After reading some of the other reviews of Pane E Formaggio, I felt compelled to write my own.
This is a CHARMING café filled with wonderful pastries, a good selection of cheese (both local and European), fresh bread and other assorted treats. The coffee is strong and perfectly made, the service personable and the décor is fabulous — feels like a little slice of Tuscany.
Some of the other reviews mentioned that «cheese and bread is cheaper across the street at Safeway» and «there is a better selection of goods at Granville Island». While technically true, those comments miss the entire point of a place like this. How lucky we are to have a little shop in Point Grey that isn’t a chain and stocks high quality local goods.
PS — their specials are fabulous.

Part cheese shop, part deli, part dessert shop and part coffee shop = whole love. The customer service and selection was decent. My only major complaint was that on a rainy day like today I really wanted to sit and have some coffee, however, it was really crowded and full. One couple took a large table just to conduct business and stay there forever which for a small shop like this was a little bit of a piss off and I was turned off from getting coffee that day, therefore, will have to come back. It’s not a special find in the city as I was hoping for but it is a great addition to the block.

I wanted to like this place. Cheese, bread, coffee, muffins! What’s not to like?
Well here’s one thing: they don’t have a very good selection of bread for a place with ‘bread’ in the name. And I’m not even convinced they make any of it there. It doesn’t seem to run as a bakery — more as a «bake off» centre where things come in frozen and they finish them off in their ovens in the back (? who knows!). This is the *perception I have, not a known fact — but shouldn’t I at least smell sumthin’ baking when I walk in?
Getting past the no-​bake bakery feel, their selection of cheese is «meh» at best. Again, for a place with ‘cheese’ in the name, I was expecting a bread and cheese Mecca! A paradise I could take refuge in when the 100 or so option in the average Vancouver deli (from Granville Island to the multitude of small grocers around town) start to bore me. Yet the small case did not even come close to impressing.
And the final nail in the coffin for me – we tried some of their red velvet cake and sad to say, the IGA bakery sells a better (moister, flakier) red velvet cake with better (smoother, more flavourful) cream cheese frosting.
Disappointed. Won’t make a trip to the store, but would pop in if desperate and in the neighbourhood… and unable to walk across the street to the Safeway where bread, cheese, and cake are cheaper.

Certainly not the best selection of cheese I’ve ever seen, and I don’t buy expensive cheeses often enough to really be able to determine whether the prices are competitive (I suspect not given the westside location), but my wife bought a ‘deal of the day’ coupon of some sort online which was a good reason to go a bit out of our way to check it out. They sell one of the most interesting cheeses I’ve ever had (le cendrillon) and some of the tastiest pain au chocolat around. The sourdough we bought wasn’t anything amazing, but it was decent enough. Beautiful photography on the wall — I think this is definitely a place I might stop by in the summer en route to a picnic at the beach…

So this place has me by the throat every Christmas time, and I tap out every instance!
This weekend was no exception. I make my annual trip out here to get the short bread. They have two varieties. One is half chocolate dipped (available plain as well) and they have this other one that is sort of melt in your mouth, appropriately named «melting moments.» The melt in your mouth one is dusted with confectioner’s sugar. Both the chocolate and melting moments one is about the size of my palm. I ate three in one sitting. Deadly.
Now I have to really haul myself to the gym this week.

Great coffee and tea (especially the London Fog) and excellent pastries. Especially recommend the paninis and cheese selection. A neighborhood favorite

Its so nice to see so many Vancouver cafes stepping up to the plate when it comes to offering their customers gluten free options. Its nice for me, as I get a treat, and I also no longer have to leave the house with my own cooler of food:) On the way out to UBC, there are several places to check out. Today my focus was Pane e Formaggio. It is a beautiful little café with a huge variety of quick eats to please everyone. In the way of gluten free, they carry some vegan treats by Eightfold Eats. I had the quinoa almond butter cookie. It melted in my mouth deliciously, and I told myself it was healthy because of the quinoa. Next time I want to try the carob bar.
check out this website for a list of local cafes that carry their vegan baked goods:

Yum yum yum French food YUMZ.
So I went here couple months ago, and I think their sandwiches are great. I ordered one of the chicken sandwiches, and their bread is delicious. The toastiness is just right!
I wanted to try out their baked goods too but I was too broke then… sob… but I’ll be back here!
It’s fairly priced I guess, around $ 8 for a sandwich. It’s decent sized. Service is alright too.

The hot grilled sandwiched are pretty good. The bread is expensive and not as good as Terra Breads.
The staff are not that organised or polite. They never serve people in the correct order. Whenever one of the Point Grey Matrons walk in the staff ignore all the other people who have been waiting in line.
No longer worth my time and aggravation.

A tasteful place in a great neighbourhood. Perfect for that afternoon snack.

Excellent Paninis on perfect focaccia bread! And they’re pretty big. They’re a bit pricier than at La Grotta… but the quality is there. They have the selection of cheeses as well as other Italian/​European goods. It’s a small little European Deli with the Point Grey/​Kits feel to it. So expect it to be pricier. I had the Italian Club for $ 8.39 incl. taxes. It was huge and filled with all sorts of goodness.
However, they have nice croissants and good coffee as well. And it seems to be independently own, not part of a chain. So I’d prefer supporting them, than the deli across the street. :-D

Cheese and bread always stops me in my tracks! And this was no different. Racing home from my weekly UBC farm visit, my tires screeched as I saw something cheesy out of the corner of my eye.
How I wish I had read Shain R’s review. I had got my hopes up, also thinking I was discovering something special. The cheese selection was small, the condiments were many (the whole wall!) and the bread? A little too rich for my wallet.
But not to despair, I still hadn’t had my morning java so I opted for a small Americano and thoroughly enjoyed it’s mild flavour.
While waiting for my brew, I noticed a gluten and wheat free cookie that I couldn’t resist trying. Not that I’m allergic, but I know there are a few Unilocalers who are, so I thought I’d do a taste test. Meh — it certainly looks impressive: almond on the inside, pine nuts on the outside, but the pine nut flavour overpowered and for $ 1.30, the 3 bite cookie just wasn’t worth it.
But I wouldn’t mind lounging on their cute little tiled tables out front!

I guess I might be a hard guy to impress when it comes to cheese shoppes… I spotted this place from across the street one day and darted in like some kind of crazy cheese addict trying to get my next hit of brie… gimme the cheeeeese… but then stopped dead in my tracks. this was no cheese shoppe… it was a caffe/​condiment/​sandwich cheese shoppe. My dreams of discovering a new hidden gem were dashed by this discovery. I made my way to the back of the store to see what they in the way of fromage… the usual suspect… nothing I hadn’t seen before… and… and… it was way overpriced. I have seen the same cheese, in other shoppes that were considerably less. This couldn’t do, I couldn’t buy any of this cheese, and let me tell you for me to leave a cheese establishment with no cheese… not a red letter day!