Our first visit to Val’s Bakery (25 S St Clair, Downtown)
People have suggested I try Val’s Bakery ever since they opened a few years ago. Val’s started out sharing space with Dished! in Kettering. After only 8 months, they opened their own location on Brown St. Just 6 months later, they had outgrown the space and are now in a larger space downtown.
A few days ago, Val’s Bakery won Best Bakery in the Best of Dayton competition, and I decided I really needed to try this place out. We went Saturday morning when downtown parking is free, and found a line outside waiting to get in. We used our time in line to talk to other patrons about what we should order. We opted for a plain croissant, an almond croissant, a blueberry-lime scone and a chocolate chip cookie.
We were glad to see that there was lots of seating, so we sat and tried two of our treats right away. My scone was amazing, and the plain croissant we ate that evening was as good as any I’ve ever had.
I don’t normally do food photography, but Val’s website talks about the importance of the laminations in making their European-style pastries. They say their treats have “hundreds of flaky layers that melt in your mouth,” so I thought I’d show a cross-section of one of their coconut chocolate croissants. I bought that at Val’s drive-through coffee bar (5707 Bigger) a few days after we went to the downtown location. I cut this one in half and shared it with my wife. We both licked our plate, so we’d get every crumb.
After people suggested Val’s Bakery, I waited a few years before I finally tried it. Then I bought their pastries twice in less than a week. That’s how good they are. I will be a regular.
Coffee Bar by Val’s Bakery
Drive-Thru
5707 Bigger Road,
Kettering OH 45440
Mon 7am to 6pm
Tues – Sat 7am to 3pm
Pastries come fresh from the bakery every:
Wednesday – Fri 7am to sold out
Saturday 9am to sold out
