Bon Ton Pastry & Confectionery

Notte's Bon Ton started in 1926, and originally opened on Granville Street. The first time I visited this establishment in 1986 it looked like time had stopped still. Actually, the decor never changed, not the coziest of places. However, the experience coming inside was not about interior design, or even for good service (some of the grumpiest employees in Vancouver worked there), it was about meeting Mr. Notte and enjoying his pastries and cakes, and maybe even a coffee reading session. Years later, Notte's moved to a new location on W. Broadway, and.it came with the same dull, old decor. Now, the coffee shop is in the process of moving again, this time to Alma St. (between W. Broadway & W. 10th Ave.), hopefully modernizing the place this time! That said, the expectation is that the quality and variety of their pastries will not change.

BT is temporarily shuttered while owner scouts 4 new location. Rent exorbitant at existing location so I heard. Now if wrong about temp closure all ears cuz I was about 2 head over 4 one of their chocolate custard killer cakes when I chkd website. It said 'temporarily closed' ;- (

Excellent product. Bought one of their diplomat cakes to take me down memory lane to remember my mom by

I get order a Diplomat Cake for my birthday every year, and dream about it for the other 11months:)

Went there today and doors are locked. Spoke to a worker outside the back who said they are closed and relocating but didn’t know where. Disappointed as there were no signs on the door or any updates on the website.

Perfect place for a sweet pick me up. Their smaller pastries are great—I’ve had the Jealousy, Napoleon, and Philippine. Also, I’ve grown up having Bon Ton’s diplomat cakes for my birthdays, so I definitely recommend those if you want to be the life of the party! Very helpful and attentive staff and I’ll definitely be back!

I feel somewhat awful in writing this review. Typically if I am unsatisfied with something I will let it go, but when I am unsatisfied AND I paid a fortune then I feel the need to speak up. I purchased a package of biscotti the other day, didn't check the price out because I didn't expect them to cost $15 for biscotti, but anywho, that's my problem. I open the package and try one and they are absolutely horrible. The texture is not like a traditional Italian biscotti (it's so soft it falls apart before your saliva has a chance to even sink into it), there is zero flavour, and it just tastes like soft cardboard in my mouth. It's fine if I didn't pay much, but $15 for something that tastes like soft cardboard? I feel horribly disappointed and ripped off. Perhaps their cakes are delicious and wouldn't mind trying in the future.

Our family tradition is to grab a Diplomat Cake for special occasions. There really is no other place that replicates it as good as Bon Tons. We drive almost an hour to get the cake!

If you enjoy stale and dry cakes, this is the place to be!
I ordered a chocolate cake in the morning, hoping that it would be a fresh batch. But no, it's was as hard and dry as a rock.

1/2 star - for the flavor which is generous.
1/2 star - for the service. Some newbie was trying her hardest and the senior staff was dismissive and condescending. Not surprised that they are still looking for staff now.

I won't recommend the cakes or working there based on this experience.

I'm so confused that I didn't read any reviews similar but wow are these cakes ever stale! Like it's not a little stale, the sponge is actually crumbly, hard, dry. If you're going to sell old confections atleast discount them or better maybe donate them? I don't even know. I got 6 cakes and they were so disappointing.

No sausage rolls available, but got an assortment of pastries and goodies to share with the family. Very tasty.

Terrible customer service! I ordered some goods for my mother in-law because she LOVES this place. The woman on the phone was alright. A bit abrupt but still friendly, however, the lady in the store when I picked up the goods was absolutely terrible. Didn’t greet me, didn’t say hello when I went up to the counter, didn’t ask how she could help me. I told her I was in to pick up a package and she asked the name it was under. I told her. She proceeded to point at the debit machine for me to pay without even saying the amount. No thank you, no have a good day… I would MAYBE understand if it was busy, but there wasn’t a soul in the shop.

Incredibly rude service when I called to order a cake. The staff member I was talking to made me feel as though it was a hassle for her that I wanted to order something. The only reason I still put the order through was because I had promised my family a Bon Ton cake for an upcoming birthday (we’ve been enjoying their cakes since I was a small child). This is the last time I will be buying anything from this bakery.

My dad (Albert E. Magliocco) worked at the Bon Ton on Grandville back in the 1930's as a baker. Mr. Notte propositioned my dad that if he would come in and work a half day on his day off (Sunday) he would pay him 10 cents per shift.
My dad worked every sunday all summer and when he approached Mr. Notte to get paid up Mr. Notte said that he never said 10 cents he said 5 cents. So my dad had to settle for 5 cents per half day on his sunday.my dad ended up quitting shortly after that.
Today (Thursday May 12th. / 2022) my wife and I drove from Burnaby to the Bon Ton store which took about 1 hour. I'm 67 years old and have been eating the Diplomat rum cake since the 60's. I haven't had any for several years and just felt like a treat. I ended up buying the 7'' rum diplomat, it looked the same as before and the lady assured me the inside was all the same ingredients.
After dinner I cut off a piece and tried it. Now, it has been about 6-8 years but honestly it did not seem as rich as I remember but definitely did not have the big rum flavor as before, I could taste it but a lot weaker.
All I can say is they must have cut back on the recipe. It did still have that nice pastry in it and was enjoyable eating it
Being a wee bit disappointed I can only give a 4 star rating.
I do wish The Bon Ton Bakery good luck and success in our coming out of this terrible covid pandemic as it was terribly hard on businesses and Notte's Bon Ton Bakery is a Vancouver heritage establishment that survived the hungry 30's depression.

Mini diplomat cake‍️‍️‍️ (delicious crispy fluffy creamy but not heavy
Walnut coffee cake (like the cream texture, dense. But overall too sweet
Palmier

Honestly the absolute best place to buy any sweets, their diplomat cakes are the most amazing thing you will ever put in your mouth, and if you don't believe me try it yourself

We had reservations to have high tea at Bon Ton today. What a lovely experience! The hostess was lovely and attended to our order promptly and went beyond her means to make sure we were enjoying the experience and enjoying tasting their special cakes. Laurie at the front was pleasant and lovely to chat with. The decor and table settings was so pretty and beautiful, loved the cups & saucers! The bakery has some nice old world touches of grandpa Nottys original baking bowls, machines etc displayed on the floor with a little write up of these beautiful vintage items & history.
Highly recommend Bon Ton! Their Pastry & Confectionery offers a wide range of top quality pastries, cakes, desserts & baked goods, made from the finest ingredients. We will be going back for sure & will recommend to our friends & family!

First time here, we typically get our cakes from a neighbouring bakery and we were extremely disappointed. Got a cake for my daughter's birthday yesterday, went to a nice restaurant for dinner and thought we have a nice looking cake for dessert at home so didn't order any dessert. Came home and cut the cake and we literally took 2 bites out of the cake and didn't want to go back for another bite as it was grossly sweet. Couldn't taste anything but sugar. The cake was called the Chocolate Vienna by the way.

After reading lots about the famous Diplomat Cake, we finally tried it for the first time. It can be described as a Napoleon cake with a hint of rum flavour. Texture-wise, there is a good contrast between the sponge layers (+butter cream), and the flakey/crispy puff pastry layers. Rum flavour is subtle, and overall the cake has just the right amount of sweetness (anything more would be overpowering). It's a dense cake, so it goes well with coffee or tea.

Price is a bit steep for the small (7") Diplomat cake with butter cream. At $49, it's almost double the price of the Diplomat cake without the butter cream. Nonetheless, it was worth trying at least once.

The quality was not at all what we expected given the reputation of this place. The cake was dry and tasteless, but overwhelmingly sweet. Likewise with the little pastries. Pretty sure everything on display had been sitting there for a few days- it all looked sad and faded.
*After my initial review, the owner contacted me to express disappointment that the bakery had not met my standards nor theirs. The tone of their emails was gracious and genuine. So while I was disappointed when I visited the bakery, I have not been disappointed with the customer service as a result of my review. This shows dedication to customers and to the business. It also shows that they take these reviews seriously and will do all that they can to make things better.

I just recently ordered a dozen pastries from Bon Ton and was blown away by the quality! I definitely recommend this Bakery if you are looking for fresh tasting sweet treats. The Noisette praline pastry has become one of my favourites and the Eclair was not overly sweet and was one of the freshest I have ever tasted. This bakery is a perfect and reliable place to purchase both cakes and pastries for your family. I can’t wait to try their famous Diplomat cake next!

St. Honore cakes here are the best! Always enjoy eating it and it’s become a tradition ordering one every birthday

Went in yesterday for the first time and ordered a dozen bite sized treats. They were very sweet and not the real butter creams I would have expected for the price. Staff is friendly.

Come on now, I would live there if I could. I am collecting money so I can buy Notte's.who's in?

Havent tried their cakes, just the small pastries - but wow, so good! Nothing else like it in Vancouver. Highly recommend.

Been a loyal customer as long as I can remember.used to go there as a kid with parents over 50 years ago

Always great.
Our go to bakery for special celebrations. Highly reccommend.you won't be disappointed!

My family has been coming here for over 2 decades. For our birthdays, weddings, and other important events, my family always comes here. The pastries are so incredible and unique, nothing I've ever eaten anywhere else comes close to its deliciousness!

Also, they have the best gelato I've ever had (in North America). It actually tastes like the gelato I had when I went to visit Italy and Spain, nothing else here comes close!

Great place to go, it's always a treat!

Their cakes were dry and hard, artificial-tasting and not yummy. They were not fresh at all and were probably sitting behind the glass counter for months.

My grandparents favorite, my parents favorite, my kids favorite, my grandkids favorite and my favorite.

If you're a fan of buttercream, you're gonna LOVE this place. If you're not.well, there are other options I guess. This place has a lost-in-time feel (and taste) that you're either going to love or not.

Continues to be consistently the best pastry cakes in the Lower Mainland~ the Diplomat butter pastry cake is simply unsurpassed.

As old-school European pastry shop as you can get. From the long wall of cakes to the packaging, it's a bit like going back in time - and that's a good thing. The bakery features a HUGE assortment of bite-sized cakes and sweets, cookies, full-sized cakes, croissants, etc. Maybe a bit too huge, though, since I was sad to find my cake not quite fresh.
- "Mimi's Cake Tour"

Get the DIPLOMAT cake for special occasions from this Vancouver famous bakery. Different sizes are available.
Plenty of other choices too. You will not be disappointed.

This is a Classic Pastry Shoppe!
The Diplomat Cake is an Experience worth the trip, all by itself. And then there are the miriad variety of Fancies! Of course, you can find Napoleon Squares. But be prepared to have your socks knocked completely off!
I saw dozens of treats, and can't remember even half. So I really want to go back!

It is hard to not find something here that will be your favourite. Their Diplomat cake is a delicate, sugary celebration cake that will be remembered. I like this place - it really does have a traditional vibe. The filled chocolate eggs are one of those Easter treats that kids and adults dream about.

My fav? The Japonaise. Delicious!

Don't listen to all the reviews from the overly sensitive reviewers here. Come here for the unbelievable delicacies (particularly the legendary Diplomat cake) be charmed by the somewhat rustic "old world" service. Walking through the Bon Ton's doors is like wandering through a portal to the other side of the Atlantic.

Wonderful service yet again. Again we Ladies indulged too much, as there were just so many Sweet choices!

The best cake in Vancouver as a family we have been coming to the Bon Ton bakery for over sixty years

Was excited to see a genuine bakery, not to many around these days! What I experienced was far from pleasant. I picked out two (expensive!) pastries, and enquired about sitting in the tea room to order coffee & enjoy the treats I purchased with my daughter. The girl I purchased the treats from told me that we "could not use the tea room" because we would need to "sit & order", abruptly & rudely another lady (? Owner) SNAPPED "You cannot buy the things then go and sit, you need to sit and buy from the menu and it is a $5 minimum for EACH of you! ". Taken aback, after just paying $6 for TWO tiny pastries that I would be spoken to in such a manner. I was willing to sit & order more if need be, but after being treated SO unkindly. I took my business to the Timmies down the street. To top it all off the cake I purchased did not taste fresh, and the florentines.chewy and stale.
Never again.

Rudest service ever! I'm not sure if she's the owner but the old woman with a nasty scowl on her face should not be working in any job dealing with customers. I went in 40 minutes before closing time but she tried to rush me out quickly and kept reminding me they were going to close soon. I took less than two minutes picking a few pastries so what's the goddamn rush? The closing time clearly says 6pm! She also kept sighing and rudely replied to my question about a cookie. Change your job or change your closing time if you don't want to accept more customers!