Bread Alley

A hidden bread speakeasy in Union Marlet DC that I heard about in social media, and is probably some of the best bread I've ever had!!!Bread Alley is small bakery tucked away on Morse Street NE! You need to ring the doorbell and explore their amazing, limited selection of breads. I recommend visiting early because the breads go quick! I went around 1pm and there were only 3 different sourdoughs still available, and a few croissants. I loved their Cranberry Walnut Sourdough and Gingerdoodle Cookie.

Bread Alley is tucked in an alley, and has a smaller storefront, as it looks like they make their bread in the back of the shop. They have a small selection of pastries, bread, jams and butter. Their sourdough bread is worth trying - my boyfriend and I opted for their sesame harissa sourdough, which has slightly too many sesame seeds and spice for my taste / comfort but I'd like to try another sourdough some other time. Their croissants are flaky and good! On our second time here, we had selected a croissant and a ham and cheese pastry. However, upon checkout, we were unfortunately told that they do not take Apple Pay. It definitely was a bummer - hopefully they offer Apple Pay as a form of payment in the future! In the interim, if you have a physical credit card, that worked for us the first time we visited.

The items they have are so good and I'm never disappointed! This is a place I came across not too long ago and I'll for certain keep going back. If you knew my family, you'd understand why I have no pictures... they eat everything so fast lolThe service is incredible! There was a young lady there, she had her head shaved on one side (not relevant but I thought it was cool). She was great, telling me what played well with what, recommending spreads and such. I'm not usually upsold, but I definitely walked out with more than I planned and she was definitely not wrong!It's a place on the smaller side, but cute. I felt like I was making some seedy transaction lol but it just adds to the greatness of bread being such a staple, but also a delicious treat.Never thought I'd rave about a bread place lol

Came to bread alley with a friend who is a baker visiting from CA. She'd pinned Bread Alley in her favorites because she'd heard really great things and had to visit. Bread Alley is literally in an alley in Union Market and the cutest little shop. We'd stopped by on a Wednesday around 2 ish. There was not much left except for cookies, a couple sourdoughs and a baguette. I opted for the baguette so that I could try something and it was good. Not the best bread I've ever had but still really good. I'd definitely come back for the croissants sometime soon. Thanks! Oh and they do not take Apple Pay as a heads up.

Alley seems sketchy but it's not, especially if the graffiti tag has a quarterback throwing a croissant All the bread is simply amazing-would have bought out the entire store but was only visiting for the weekend Grab a baguette and that salted Parisian butter and you're all set. Oh but don't forget the kouign amin, the best I've ever had...flaky, buttery, caramelized with a hidden taste surprise! Note: teeny, tiny but you can snag a table at nearby Union Market.

Let's get this bread (no seriously). I saw this place on instagram and wanted to try it for the novelty, bread in an alley? Sign me up! And it did not disappoint. This place is literally in an alley and we got there 5 min before they opened and were 5th in line. However, we were standing in an alley on a hot DC summer day so you can imagine the ~aroma~ wasn't great. But the line moved quick so we didn't wait too long. Warning they don't take cash or Apple Pay only physical credit card, which is a bit weird in this day and age. I got the normal croissant and my friend tried the harissa bread. The croissant was unreal. It's hard to make a plain croissant special, but it was butter and flaky without falling apart or compressing. Overall, I would definitely go back and try other things from them. This place is worth the hype.

I had been excited to try this place for quite a while and it lived up to the hype! We came around 9:30am on a Sunday prepared to wait outside but luckily there was no line! Perhaps because it was winter. The interior was really small though and only fits a few people at a time. Google Maps also makes it a little hard to find, but it's down a wide street alley and the outside is painted black. Bread Alley has the best croissants I've had in DC so far. I got both the chocolate croissant and plain croissant. They told me they don't have the triple croissant at all so maybe that was an item in the past from other Yelp reviews but not anymore. They were also unfortunately not serving the ham and cheese croissant on the day we went. I preferred the plain croissant over the chocolate croissant since the chocolate had hardened inside and wasn't gooey. It may have tasted better if it were heated up at home rather than enjoyed right away. The croissants were nice and flakey. I would return to order a plain croissant and try the ham and cheese if they're in stock. My partner got the Harissa and Black Sesame Sourdough Loaf and it was delicious! I wasn't sure what to expect of it since black sesame is usually a sweet flavor in asian cuisine, but this loaf was savory all the way and had a pleasant spicey kick to it. As a home sourdough baker myself, they do sourdough really well here.

So came here to try their bread which is sort of low key famous for DC folks who know of Le Dip...super fresh and tasty. Also they have wonderful customer service, we had a mix up of bread when we got it on Sunday, called them a day later, and they were so helpful in fixing it...that is five stars worthy alone.

I heard they are the suppliers of the delicious Le Diplomate bread, so I had to visit! I also saw their ham and cheese croissant mentioned on IG, and I was intrigued. During my first visit, I needed help locating the entrance, and to worsen matters, they ran out of bread. However, on my second visit earlier in the morning on a Saturday, they still had some of their bread, like the black sesame bread, cranberry walnut bread, some croissants, and baguettes. But they had already sold out of their ham and cheese croissant. So, I ordered the black sesame bread. It was surprisingly spicy but delicious. On a subsequent visit, I successfully obtained the ham and cheese croissant, which was very flavorful and tasted fresh as well. I would recommend it! They also have challah on Fridays. It was my first time trying it, and I did not know what to expect. The taste reminded me of brioche, and since I do not like brioche, I was not a fan. However, my sister enjoyed it with some Nigerian malt drink. They also sell some interesting butter, such as dark chocolate butter, which I have yet to try because the price is steep. Overall, it is worth a visit to satisfy your carb cravings if you are in the area!

Such a cute place!! The croissant was so good! This place is easily missed if you're not looking for it. It's a very small shop with a small selection, but everything there is well made. Even though there was a line, it moved quickly.