Crisp croissants baked with butter sourced from France. Bakes Saigon is a bakery café where you can savor authentically made French pastry in Ho Chi Minh City. The freshly baked goods arriving from a workshop led by a French executive pastry chef have earned high praise from Western expatriates.
| Genre | Bakery |
|---|---|
| Origin | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam |
| Coverage area | Ho Chi Minh City |
| Number of locations | 5 outlets |
| Signature menu | Freshly baked croissants and assorted cakes are the signature representatives |
| Official site | https://bakes-saigon.com/ |
What is Bakes Saigon? An authentically made French bakery
The founding story
Bakes Saigon is an authentic French bakery and café born in Ho Chi Minh City. Led by French executive pastry chef Brian Gartner, it pours into Saigon's cups and plates the experience he honed at top hotels like Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton. Its croissants, made with French tourage butter (laminating butter), boast the crisp layers of the real thing.
At the 1,000-square-meter flagship workshop in the Thao Dien area, 25 bakers bake pastries in two shifts, 14 hours a day, seven days a week. This quality-first stance generates devoted fans among Western expatriates and gourmet-minded affluent Vietnamese.
Savor freshly baked goods sent direct from the workshop
Bakes Saigon's strength is serving pastries baked at its own workshop in their freshly made state. For croissants, the just-baked crispness is everything, and the earlier in the morning, the more you can enjoy their true taste. It's known as a place for an authentic French bakery experience in Vietnam.
The interior is a classical design reminiscent of a Parisian boulangerie. Gazing at the pastries beautifully arranged in glass cases, you can spend an elegant breakfast or brunch. With Wi-Fi available, it has become established as a morning spot for Western expatriates.
Bakes Saigon's signature menu and flavors
The signatures are freshly baked French viennoiserie. Centered on crisp croissants, it spans widely to cakes and French confectionery. Enjoy them paired with coffee.
Croissant
The signature is a classic croissant baked with French tourage butter laminated in. From the many crumbling layers rises a rich buttery aroma. With a crisp exterior and a moist interior—an authentic texture—it's a standout praised by Western expatriates as among the best even in Ho Chi Minh City. To catch them fresh, mornings are by far the best.
Pain au Chocolat
A French viennoiserie staple alongside the croissant. Chocolate wrapped in croissant dough, where the toastiness of butter and the gently bitter sweetness of chocolate become one. It pairs superbly with morning coffee, making you want to compare it with the croissant.
Other popular drinks
| Drink | Characteristics |
|---|---|
| Coffee (espresso-based) | An authentic cup based on Italian espresso. Pairs well with the pastries |
| French press coffee | A slowly extracted French press. Enjoy the beans' flavor at leisure |
| Café latte | The mellowness of milk and the aroma of coffee in harmony. A breakfast staple |
Food and sweets
Bakes Saigon's stars are, above all, the richness of its French pastry and confectionery. Alongside the signature croissant and pain au chocolat, there's authentic French confectionery like brioche, Tarte au Citron, and Gâteau Opéra. There are also items that take classic French confectionery as a base and incorporate Vietnamese ingredients and flavors, and the beautiful-looking cakes line the glass cases.
Whole birthday cakes and gift items are also available, with a wide range of uses—from freshly baked pastry to anniversary cakes. The flagship is a three-story glass building: the ground floor is bakery and coffee, the second floor a bistro serving cocktails, light meals, and savory dishes, and the top floor a workshop that produces the pastries. Taking a freshly baked item out to a nearby park to enjoy a Paris-style breakfast is a way of savoring it unique to this place.
Cups that win over reviewers
We have rounded up the well-reviewed items that come up again and again in travel and food-site reviews (focusing on dishes praised across multiple reviews).
| Menu | Why reviewers rate it |
|---|---|
| Salted Egg / Salted Duck Egg Croissant | A croissant of French cultured butter paired with a runny salted-egg-yolk filling—named as a popular item that often sells out early |
| Op La Cake | A baked good repeatedly cited as a shop staple, well regarded by pastry-seeking visitors |
| No-bake cheesecake (Opla Pho Mai) | A cheesecake praised in reviews for its airy, moist texture |
Bakes Saigon's locations and tips for stopping by
Scale and coverage area
It has multiple outlets in Ho Chi Minh City, located in areas where foreigners and gourmet types gather—the Thao Dien area (a Western expat district), around Turtle Lake (Ho Con Rua), Ham Nghi Street, and Phu My Hung. With a system where goods baked at the Thao Dien flagship workshop are delivered to each outlet, you can enjoy consistent quality at any of them.
Main cities where you can enjoy this store:Ho Chi Minh City. You can check each city's tourist information from its city page.
Stores easy to visit while sightseeing
The flagship in the Thao Dien area is a three-story glass building with a 1,000-square-meter workshop. Pick freshly baked goods at the ground-floor bakery, enjoy cocktails and light meals at the second-floor bistro, and watch pastries being born at the top-floor workshop. It's the hub where you can experience the entire world of Bakes Saigon.
The atmosphere at Bakes Saigon and how to spend your time
Features of the interior and design
The interior is a classical French style reminiscent of a Parisian boulangerie. In a calm space using wood and marble, the colorful pastries lined up in glass cases shine. Open from early morning, it's perfect for spending an elegant breakfast time.
Because the pastries are also visually beautiful, you'll want to snap a shot with your coffee. The clean, bright interior is easy to enter even for first-timers.
Wi-Fi, power outlets, and how easy it is to linger
Wi-Fi is available, making it easy to work between an elegant breakfast or brunch. But the morning hours fill with customers after freshly baked goods, so seats tend to fill up; if you want to spend time at leisure, choose a weekday morning or an off-peak time.
Bakes Saigon's price guide and payment
| Menu | Price guide |
|---|---|
| Croissant | 45,000-65,000 VND (about 300-450 yen) |
| Gâteau Opéra | 85,000–120,000 dong (about 580–820 yen) |
| Coffee drinks | 55,000–85,000 dong (about 380–580 yen) |
Reasonable for an authentic French bakery—it feels cheaper than buying equivalent goods in Japan. Many outlets accept cards and QR payments in addition to cash.
Prices can change by store and season. Check the latest at the counter or on the official menu.
Bakes Saigon takeout and souvenirs
Freshly baked pastries and whole cakes are all available for takeout. You can also enjoy the Paris-style approach of buying a croissant and having breakfast at a nearby park. Birthday cakes and gift items are available too, easy to use as a present.
Bakes Saigon: map, access, and ordering tips
It has multiple outlets in Ho Chi Minh City, located in areas easy to visit on a sightseeing or café tour, such as the Thao Dien area and Pasteur Street.
Vietnamese phrases for ordering
Here are the basic phrases that come in handy locally. Pointing works, but adding a word makes ordering smoother.
| Vietnamese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Cho tôi một … | One [drink], please |
| nóng / đá | Hot / iced |
| ít đường | Less sweet |
| không đường | No sugar |
| ít đá | Less ice |
| mang đi | Takeout |
| ở đây | For here |
| tính tiền | The check, please |
You can check the latest menu, prices, hours, and store listOfficial sitehere.
What to know before visiting Bakes Saigon
How to enjoy it smartly
To catch freshly baked croissants, 7–9 a.m. is supreme. In the afternoon, popular items can sell out, so an early-hour visit is recommended.
Weekends tend to fill with families. If you want to choose calmly, a weekday morning is a good bet. At the flagship, you can enjoy a full day including the workshop and bistro.
Points to note
Because it emphasizes serving freshly baked goods, the items on offer change by time of day. If you have something in mind, visiting early in the morning is surest.
Each outlet differs in scale and attached functions. To experience the bistro and workshop, choose the Thao Dien flagship.
🗺️ If you also want to compare it with other cafés,Vietnam's 30 Popular Cafés: A Thorough Comparison Guidelets you browse from a single list.
Frequently asked questions
- What kind of shop is Bakes Saigon?
-
An authentic French bakery and café born in Ho Chi Minh City. Led by a French executive pastry chef, it offers freshly baked croissants and French confectionery made with French butter.
- What is the signature menu item?
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Croissants laminated with French tourage butter. With crisp layers and a buttery aroma, they've earned high praise from Western expatriates.
- Are there sweets and food?
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There's a rich range of French confectionery—pain au chocolat, brioche, Tarte au Citron, Gâteau Opéra, and more. Whole birthday cakes and gift items are also available.
- What's the main clientele?
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Many are Western expatriates, gourmet-minded affluent Vietnamese, and tourists. It's beloved as an elegant breakfast spot.
- What's the trick to enjoying them fresh?
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For croissants, the just-baked crispness is everything, so a 7–9 a.m. visit is recommended. In the afternoon, popular items can sell out.
