Scandia Bakery & Coffee Shop

Affordable, yes — but the quality lacks

Time to bring up the ratings here a bit, Scandia was EXCELLENT, not only in service, but the chocolate croissant and cinnamon pastries I got were some of the best I have had ever!
Perfectly flaky dough, I didn’t get around to eating either till late that evening and they were still like freshly baked, really loved every bite.
The place itself is a bit dated and dark, but the location by the beach is fantastic and there is tons of easy metered parking out front.
Huge selection of cakes and pastries, I will have to be back and try more when I am in the area again, but for now the croissants are more than worth returning for!

Best place ever… I love the chicken with the superb lime on it, and the Mac & cheese is very very lovely it made my mouth water with joy.
–Damien

Doesn’t even deserve one star. I love cake and was excited to try their desserts. Super disappointing. The latte and the red velvet and the chocolate cake were so dry an stale and were we didn’t even eat it. We spent $ 15 but threw it away because it wasn’t worth the calories. If you are looking for good dessert DONT GO HERE. Go to the gelato places nearby.

Walking by all the shops in Laguna Beach we decided to hit this place up for a quick meal. Not just a bakery, they sell all sorts of items from desserts, pastries, hot food, salads, and sandwiches. I’m not sure why I ordered lasagna from a bakery but it wasn’t bad. Light on meat but heavy on sauce it was «artfully» plated on paper plates and microwaved. Maybe I should have gotten a sandwich instead.
Desserts fared slightly better. The oreo cake was mostly cloyingly sweet cream with thin layers of cake thrown in. Carrot cake was just above the quality you’d find at a grocery store. Lightly spiced, tiny slivers of carrots, and subtley sweet cream cheese layers made this a decent version but not one I’d probably get again.
2.5 Stars

I’ve walked by this bakery dozens of times in the past and have always wanted to go in but have received the evil eye from my wife. So I keep walking. Today I took advantage of her being distracted while shopping with a friend and made my way here to grab a treat.
Everything in the display case looked delicious. Needing something to quickly grab and go (time was of the essence so my indiscretion wouldn’t be discovered) I had to forego the tarts and other potentially messy items and asked for something basic that looked appealing — a big ol’ chocolate chip cookie. I made my way to the register while my cookie was retrieved and bagged…
A few blocks away from making my purchase I opened my bag and pulled out the cookie and took a big bite. To my horror I’d been given a raisin cookie, not the chocolate chip cookie in the display case that was calling my name. I hate raisin cookies. To make it even worse, it was extremely dry. Granted, it was toward the end of the day and I shouldn’t expect something super-​fresh but this was so bad it shouldn’t have been sold. It’s was the kind of cookie you’d give to someone you didn’t like as a mean practical joke.
One bite and it was in the trash.
The inept guy who gave me the raisin cookie instead of chocolate chip was friendly, at least.

Stopped by this bakery with my friend in the midst of roaming around the busy streets of Laguna Beach and we were craving some quick sweet pastries. We got a pecan ball, apricot cookie, and a piroshki. The pecan ball and apricot cookie were ok. nothing to write home about. They were a bit on the dry side, and too sweet… so they would probably go better with black coffee or plain hot tea.
We then saw the Piroshkis in the ready deli on the side, and we were excited to try one! However, instead of heating them up probably so the piroshki remains flaky and crispy… they microwaved it! So the skin was all moist and soft…

They have delicious and fresh croissant, I really like their almonds croissant.

We and a crowd of people ducked in this cute bakery to get out of downpour.
It was incredibly loud do to the huge amount of people, the guy taking our order was having a hard time hearing us but the whole time he had a smile and was very pleasant.
We got some pastries and hot chocolates, all were very good.
This place saved us from the rain and filled us with some tasty treats.

Ok this is not a Scandinavian bakery, FYI. I know some of you are probably laughing BUT I had some vague hope that I’d find some fellow Scandies and maybe some lefse in the OC. Clearly that is not the case when a place called «Scandia» is selling doughnuts and pasta salad.
I did have to soothe my broken heart with some cheesecake, though, and it was just so-​so. The ambiance sucks and the employees were not friendly.

I like the ham and cheese croissant. Nothing mind blowing but it’s pretty good every time .The coffee is… well…coffee …nothing special… no organic this or that. I’m sensitive to noise so I’m thinking this place has been around a long time but there isn’t anything they can do about the noisy compressor for the refrigeration that permeates what would be a nice ambiance. If they did do something you might be able to think or hear the Sinatra in the background. Lots of choices and the service is friendly. Worth a visit!

Well Scandia bakery always gets my business because it’s in the heart of downtown Laguna’s Main Street. It’s pretty much your average bakery with a variety of individual slices of desserts, the whole cakes, napoleons, puffed filled apple croissants, cookies, etc.
The pastries range usually around 3.5 — 4 stars IMO. This last time I got one with dried out cake. Wasn’t happy. I think they are also definitely pricier than most bakeries in the OC or LA County.
They have a good looking prepared deli with all kinds of generally healthier looking foods to dine in or to go. The good stuff goes fast so come early.
My main problem here over the years has mainly been the service. I either get a friendly young women helping me or it seems like I get grumpy men who are slow and can’t multi-​task more than being told one dessert at a time. Also the guys are so slow at ringing me up. This is a bakery only. Just take my money! I have more important things to do. Seriously!
Anyway I would recommend them overall. They’re just missing the mark on 4 stars.
Unilocal Review #307

This bakery has a wide selection of desserts and pastries and is located in a cute place in Laguna. I had a craving for a chocolate chip cookie, and this disappointed. I would’ve bet the cookie was going to be a home run, but it was pretty dry and it lacked flavor. I also tried the cream puff and the cream was pretty good, it just tasted a little old.
I enjoyed a delicious caramel latte with my cookies though.

Pros cute homey location
Very friendly pleasant sfatt
Cons
Incredibly disappointing taste of virtually everything we have tried.
Eclairs and many other things just filled with just fluffy cheap whipped cream for instance
Incredibly overpriced for a bakery for this quality and taste
I’ve had better for half the price at Ralph’s
Go to wholesome choice in irvine for pastries 3 times better for one third the cost. Heck even go by Pavilions next door.

I use to work down the street and would come here every so often. The only reason I would come here on my break was proximity to my work — again, the ONLY reason. It is nothing special. There is a large selection of items, so that is a good thing. However, sometimes it is better to have a smaller selection and get it right.
Overall, their food just isn’t that great. It is expensive, but not too cheap.
I know this is a locals spot and that is great — I just wish the food was better.

We tried 4 different pastries and they were all terrible. We tried to like it, but this place doesn’t hold up.
And the guy behind the counter kept staring at my female companions. Not exactly the best business practice.

I could gain 5 pounds just walking into this place. The selection is just amazing! The three of us opted to share a crème brûlée. It had this beautiful strawberry on it, how could we not? And sharing it 3 ways made it seem acceptable and less evil LOL. It was delicious and totally worth the calories!

Cute little pastry shop!
Was walking down the street from shopping and I was immediately stopped by the pastry case from the corner of my eye. As a girl who loves desserts, I couldn’t stop myself from going in to take a look.
Interior was clean, somewhat dim. A few couples and friends here and there just sitting & chatting over coffee and pastries.
They had a wide variety of different pastries, from cookies, to cakes, to tarts, everything looked appealing! I don’t usually find these types of bakeries, and this one kind of reminded me of what Portos has to offer.
I ended up getting a Strawberry heart shaped macaron, a fruit tart, raspberry jam cookie, and a black and white cookie.
Macaron was big and somewhat of a heart shaped, but it sucked. The shell was extremely crunchy and the inside was filled with whipped cream.
Fruit tart was yummy! Fruit was good, crust was good, but the inside was also filled with whipped. I was expecting some sort of custard or even cake.
Cookies were delicious! Buttery taste and not too sweet!
I figured that this place probably fills their pastries with whip cream instead of actually using custard/​cream etc. to save on cost or whatever, but it really does make a difference in pastries. The fruit tart could have been awesome, but what’s the difference in dipping the fruit in whipped coming from a spray can at home? :(
Price is expensive, but not surprisingly expensive because desserts/​pastries run for this price.

Stopped here on the recommendation of a friend for breakfast while strolling along Forest Avenue. Scandia is really more like 3.5 stars for me, but my husband really enjoyed it and half stars aren’t an option (yet).
Our pastries (chocolate croissant, bear claw, cream cheese danish) were bigger than we expected. They were fresh & tasty. My croissant was beautifully buttery. There was something that was not-​so-​creamy about the cream cheese in our danish, but I really can’t put my finger on it. It tasted perfectly fine, just something a little off with the texture to me.
In reading some of the other reviews, I can understand how some might find their pastries to be a little on the stale side, especially in the late afternoon. That’s the ‘problem’ when pastries are made fresh in house. Happens to us from time to time at our favorite local bakery back home. It’s not the end of the world, but yes, it can tarnish your experience.