Best croissant I've ever had. Perfectly baked, buttered, flaky. It'll remain as one of my favorite memories of Boston. Serendipity brought me to Clear Flour, and I'm so glad that I found it while being in Boston. I've spent many Saturday/Sunday mornings walking to Clear Flour and walking back home with an armful of bread and pastries. I always went in the mornings when everything is fresh. Best time to go. My Favorites at Clear Flour 1. Croissants 2. Olive Bread 3. Baguettes 4. Financiers 5. Cinnamon Raisin Bread They bake everything on site, and you can tell the bakers are hard at work all day. Employees are sweet. Lines can get pretty long, but it's worth it. read more

I have been here way too many times that I'm not even embarrassed by it. I love their pastries.. Especially their raspberry and cranberry ones.. UGHH Every time I go the scent takes me and and refuses to give me away. Oh my goodness is this heaven?! read more

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I discovered Clear Flour when I lived in the house directly across the intersection from it, more years ago than I care to tell you. Their morning buns are a special treat, as are their scones. Last weekend I had a great mini quiche, an olive roll and a macaroon as treats. Love the atmosphere, love the people. read more

How did I know this place would have a high number of stars? My GF and I were on a mini-tour of Brookline, and getting kind of hungry. We hadn't planned on stopping in, but needed something to tide us over until lunch. And it was the next "stop" listed on the tour card. Holy crap this place is amazing; now I understand why it was listed!! The guy behind the counter was attentive without being annoying (which would be easy in such a tiny place). There was a huge selection of breads and pastries. We only grabbed a garlic breadstick, and deeply regret not getting two. I also regret living in Quincy, which makes coming here a bit of an inconvenience. I guess we'll just have to stock up when we go back in couple of weeks. read more

Wow! I have yet to get a croissant here, because I'm always too late and they're out of them. However, everything I've ordered from here is excellent and fresh. The lines in the morning say it all. The bakers are imaginative and very competent. If I lived in this neighborhood, I'd be as big as a house. The trouble is that there's nowhere to savor these wonderful baked goods, except a bench outside. There's coffee on your way in, served out of carafes in paper cups, that is hot and pretty good, but it's awkward to manage it all in the cramped store while in line, so I just take the baked goods out and get my coffee elsewhere. The staff is not only extremely friendly, but adorable. They wear these Mennonite like white caps on their heads and they're all very knowledgeable about the interesting array of bakery items. I can't wait to try the breads. They look amazing. So far, this is the best bakery I've been to in the Boston area. read more

Best bakery in town hands down. Not only do they have delicious Canele which saves me from going to New York to buy them but they also have real authentic Bavarian Pretzels on Saturday. Just be prepared to wait in line for ~10-15 minutes on a Saturday morning. But every minute is worth the wait as you'll be rewarded with the best baking goods around read more

Chocolate chip cookie: standout. I think my favorite CCC in Boston. HUGE. Financiers: Amazing. My favorite cookie to have with afternoon chai. I look forward to these all week! Chocolate croissant: best in Boston. Best pastry to chocolate ratio in a croissant I've had in recent memory, and the chocolate filling is superb. The pastry itself loses to bien cuit in Brooklyn, but BC loses to clear flour on the filling quality/taste and ratio of pastry to chocolate. Morning bun - amazing flakiness, love the walnuts. Just right amount of sweet. Paris night bread - excellent. I'm going to try getting these in rolls next because the smaller loaf was just too much bread for my husband + me to finish. Bouchon: Ok. Missed the mark for us - a little dry. read more

We arrived around 2pm on a Sunday and unfortunately they were already out of all of their croissants... Sad face... I settled with an apricot/blueberry tart and an olive bread. Both were excellent. The place is tiny. Just like a French bakery, you buy everything "to go". I wish they would open another bigger location near Boston city center for tourists like me! read more

Wonderful bread and pastries. wish they would move to a larger location.

Came here the morning before Thanksgiving to pick up some pastries while I had company in town. When I got to the door there was a table blocking the entrance so I waited there thinking that's where they were taking orders now. Turns out they were only doing special order-ahead Thanksgiving orders. I know this isn't uncommon around the holidays, but before making the trip I had checked google, Facebook, and Instagram to make sure their hours hadn't changed during the holiday week and there was NO mention anywhere that they were only taking special orders. I used to really enjoy getting clear flour pastries on special occasions or when I had company, but they aren't worth the trip if you can't even reliably know when they're open. Good pastries, but if you're too lazy to keep your customers up to date when you make changes to hours or your ordering system, you're going to lose their business. read more

I love this little neighborhood spot. There is always a line around the block, but the employees are always pleasant, prices are fair, and the bread and pastries are amazing. The only thing that would make it better is if they served coffee too! read more

Finally, a bakery that rivals all the wonderful ones that I encountered when I lived in the Bay Area of California. My friend Priya introduced me to this place and I am so happy that there exists a place in the Boston area to get really good bread, pastries and sweet treats that is authentic and has charm. I live in Cambridge but I will make special weekly trips over to Brookline just to get a loaf of bread for the week. For example: Sesame sticks with herbed butter - heaven in your mouth, savory, garlicky, fun to eat sour dough bread with crunchy seeds Whole wheat loaf - excellent texture, slightly sweet but not overpowering buckwheat walnut - dense, earthy texture that makes you feel good and wonderful for sandwiches brioche - wonderfully eggy, not too sweet, just the right amount of glaze, rivals those at the Cheeseboard in Berkeley I want to try everything from Clear Flour and intend to by the time I leave Boston! read more

Wow wow wow. I don't know how to explain it any better. I don't think I could. I tried one of almost every pastry they had available. My favorite was the currant donut...melt in your mouth softness. I wish I had bought some bread to bring home with me. Seriously, what was I thinking? read more

I picked up a loaf of Miller's Bread (half white flour and half wheat flour) and some whole-grain muesli here yesterday. The bread is a transcendent experience: moist yet airy on the inside, with a thin and crispy crust. It makes the best toast I've ever had. I have yet to try the muesli, but it contains about six different kinds of dried fruit, so I'm sure it's good! If the only kind of bread you've had is the plastic-packaged, pre-sliced bread from the grocery store, please come here and try some fresh-baked goodness! Also, props to the people working at Clear Flour, because despite that fact that it was 90 degrees yesterday, and felt about twice that temperature inside the store, they were really friendly and patient. read more

I grew up in England and there, we used to get fresh-baked bread twice a week from the local baker. This wasn't a huge quaint deal, mind you, but it was a real, true bakery (baking done on premises) and was a local chain. In other words, fresh baked bread makes me happy, homesick and nostalgic. I went to Clear Flour for the first time and it was like coming home, sans cheese and onion pasties, cream cakes and other edibles only a Northern English lass could love. You walk in and it's tiny, warm, bready and smells like baking and deliciousness. Anyway, the bread (not the crazy French creations) is crusty, undeniably fresh and tastes amazing, the sweet things are sweet and wonderful. So now we go about once a week to take home, slice up and freeze a loaf for the week...plus walk out of the door enjoying one of the bakery's amazing chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are amazing. They're as good as my grandma's. And that's a whole other story. read more

My wait outside in the rain at Clear Flour Bakery was well worth it. I happened to find myself at Clear Flour after an unsuccessful apartment hunt in the area. I knew it would be good because a baker friend from home had worked at Clear Flour many years ago (she makes the best sour dough from the Clear Flour starter) I ended up getting a nectarine scone, some kind of walnut morning bun as well as a loaf of sour dough. The bill came to around $10. They take credit cards and I didn't see a posted minimum charge. Everything I bought was delicious and fresh! I would definitely go back and wait in line again (even if I have to stand outside in nasty weather). read more

Wow! We visited on a weekday with no wait. Fresh croissant was heavenly. We also picked up a chocolate hazelnut tart which was divine.

Great Olive Rolls -chocolate chunk cookies to die for. They're also found every Thursday at Brookline's Farmers Market read more

Went here for the first time yesterday with the GF. Probably could have picked a better day to dip our heads into a bakery, as it was hot out (80 degrees in early April? What?) and bakeries are not known for their air conditioning, but after reading the reviews and realizing our mutual desire to indulge in all things bread, we set off to find this bakery. After some brief wandering, we found Clear Flour. It was easily identifiable by the long line of customers extending out the door, around the corner, and down the adjacent sidewalk. A staff member came outside while we waited with samples of some unknown sweet-tasting pastry. I have no idea what it was, but it had sugar and poppy seeds and a bit of raisin and it was delicious. Finally got inside and purchased the following items: 2 morning buns French baguette arugula, goat cheese, and onion quiche strawberry rhubarb tart large rosemary focaccia Cost was $21 -- not what I'd call cheap, but certainly reasonable. Originally the plan involved taking these items to the park and having a mini-picnic, but because of the heat, we instead retreated to the apartment, laid a sheet out on the floor, and had our picnic indoors. Dug into the quiche first. I'm not a quiche person, but I'd gladly have another one of these. If I have a criticism, it's that all the arugula and onion was concentrated at the top. Could have seen some more of that throughout the rest of the quiche. The texture was wonderful, though, as was the crust on the outside. I had really high hopes for the morning buns and was slightly underwhelmed. I was hoping for something stickier. They were quite good, just not what I was looking for. Still enjoyable. One word description of the strawberry tart: Yum. A bit more detail: Not overwhelmingly, cloyingly sweet. More of an understated sweetness, balanced by an appropriate amount of, well, tartness. Tarts should be tart. How insightful! GF's favorite type of bread is the French baguette. She was very pleased with this one. Not the best she's ever had, but an appropriate amount of crustiness on the outside, light and airy inside. I agreed -- it's not amazing (and I think it's hard to be blown away by a baguette), but it is very, very good. My favorite item was the rosemary focaccia. I LOVE focaccia, and this is definitely one of the better focaccias I've had. The rosemary is very noticeable and adds some extra flavor. In retrospect, I was hoping to be "wowed" by at least one of these items, and that never really happened... but everything was good. Even the morning buns, which, if you're not in search of obscene amounts of sugar, you will enjoy most thoroughly. The wait (maybe 20 minutes?) was worth it. There's a couple of other area bakeries I want to try, but we'll be back. read more

I have fond childhood memories of sticky buns. They were more akin to cinnamon buns (sans painfully sweet frosting) and topped with a heaping amount of walnuts. Clear Flour's sticky buns (or should I say, morning buns) are nothing like the ones I remember. The bun ate like a pastry and had sufficient glaze and cinnamon. The finely chopped walnuts were icing on the cake; not nearly as generous as I'm used to, but enough to keep the balance between nuts, sweetness, and pastry in check. I'm glad I bought two of these gems, cause before I knew it I had completely devoured my first. I also took the chance to buy a cranberry scone, a coconut macaroon, and a apricot croissant. All very delicious, I might add. The scone was crispy on the outside and soft in the inside and had sufficient sweetness from the berries. The macaroon, packed with coconut flavor, was ever-so-crisp but very light. Yum. The apricot croissant was light, buttery, and flaky, with the apricot lending just the right amount of sweetness. It's a good thing this quaint little shop is so well-hidden, otherwise I'd imagine the line would be just downright ridiculous. read more

Excellent bakery with one caveat. Unless you can be there by 8:30 forget the idea of a plain croissant. I've been many times, (I work from home and never go out in rush hour) and the story is always the same. "Oh no, we're out of plain, but we do have chocolate, gruyere, and we may have one of our morning buns, which is made from the same dough, sort of." If this had happened once, great, no big deal. That it happens repeatedly leaves me to assume that it's a managerial disconnect. Tatte also has a great croissant, but they only make it on the weekend. I can only assume bakers have a mild resentment of the croissant for stealing all of their sales....perhaps being too run of the mill. read more

The best savory coissants I've had in a long time. The Paris night bread and the fire roasted tomatoe bread are fantastic. The pain de mie is always great, and can be made to last two or three days. Also, those almond macaroons. Wow. My friends really like the morning buns - I find them a bit too sweet. The holiday specials are especially worth having. Their easter bread is unlike anything I've ever had, their chocolate challah turtles are adorable (though a bit dry), and the decorative breads are actually delicious! Best to get two decorative breads - one to hang up and another to eat on the way home. Watch out for the wait. They can get long (20 - 30 people during the rush) and the line does not move quickly. read more

If you love baked goods, you have to find this place. It specializes mostly in wholesale goods so their store front is very small. They always have new bakery items and their bread is to die for. I don't make it out there that often, but if I am in the neighborhood, I will stock up. read more

This was my first time at Clear Flour. Definitely making this my go to bakery. Be prepared to wait in line, yes, it's worth the wait. The Italian bread! Just like NY's -Seasonal item, but try the pumpkin soufflé. read more

Best backery shop I've tried in Boston! Their almond biscuit and lemon tart are awesome. Try their oatmeal as well! Fresh and tasty. read more

Clear Flour Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

This charming bakery may not have a seating area, but the smell alone is worth the line-out-the-door wait. The staff is polite and the pastries/bread are wonderful. On a campus full of Starbucks and Dunkin, this place makes you feel like you've found your own little quality spot. read more

In my opinion, this is the best bakery in Boston. The people who work here are extremely nice!

Stop what you're doing and go here it's a must their bread will make you a better happier person a crossaint so flaky it'll make you believe in mankind again weirdos dont sell butter tho well that's not completely true they had mustard butter which was also bomb.com read more

Excellent bakery. Friendly staff. Recommend the pain au chocolat, French baguette, and bacon and cheese croissant. Easy to get to. Right off of Packards Corner stop. Coffee and macaroons available too. No gluten free options. Sometimes a line- moves quickly though. read more

Wonderful European treats. Best croissants and baguettes. Long line any time of day - for good reason!

My partner and I have visited this bakery probably a half dozen times, every time the staff is cheerful and patient as we carefully select which delicious pastry to buy. Although you really can't go wrong! Whether it is savory, sweet, or both the pastries and breads are baked to perfection with no soggy bottoms! 10/10 would recommend, they even supply you with a schedule for when they bake certain breads! read more

Amazing. A taste of France in the middle of Brookline. I drive 15 miles through the city to get to this place, and it is worth every mile and every minute, no matter the traffic. I found them because their baguette was on top 10 baguettes in America in the Bon Appetit magazine. They were right. It's like eating at Le Panier at Pike's Place Market (although admittedly without the view, or the seating). Hands-down, the best pastries, the best bread in the city. The croissants are liquid butter suspended in a crispy cloud. The chocolate and cheese croissants stand up to the plain as well. Frankly, get one of everything, but don't pass up the baguettes and croissants. A ticket to the south of France never came so cheap. read more

Every time I walk into Clear Flour Bakery I am enchanted by it's atmosphere. All the breads are spread out front--right behind the counter, many with whimsical designs. Oven baked sweets scent the air. Of course, it's a small shop, homey, which I really like. My choice bread is the rustic Italian. What's great about it is it's texture: it's crusty where it should be crusty and softer in the middle. Sometimes I toast it too, but add a little water beforehand. That's delicious too--I recommend that. Prices tend to be on the high side side. Service is attentive and the clerk behind the counter has a sunny disposition. read more

I have never, ever, been to CFB without having to wait in a line that went out the door. That is the only reason I'm not giving it full 5 stars, because it means that on rainy or snowy days, no bread for me... The guys behind the counter are very lovely and patient (very patient - which I understand is part of the charm), but I just wish they'd help the line along a little bit more when the weather is rough! Fantastic pastries and tarts. I love the black-currant goodness! Yum! read more

Heard this place has great donuts so we stopped in to try some. Unfortunately, there were no donuts available. However, the pastries looked great so we picked up some coconut macaroons, orange brioche, and a brownie. All were delicious and the lady who helped us was very kind! Nice little bakery with great quality! read more

Best neighborhood bakery ever. You can't order anything bad here. The honey butter is insane

I lived minutes from Clear Flour for a year, but have now moved on. I definitely miss it, now that I'm multiple Ts away from it. Their cinnamon raisin bread is awesome. The buckwheat walnut is always great. I loooove the New England Night. Now that I'm thinking about it I'm going to have to make the trek back to Brookline to pick some up this week. Yummmmmm. Most of the staff are super sweet and helpful. However, I can't quite give it 5 stars. Their croissants simply aren't as good as I've had elsewhere (well, not in Boston, but in Germany). Especially their chocolate croissants. Also, maybe I'm strange, but I expect bakeries to be open at ridiculously early hours in the morning... so that I can go and pick up some warm bread for breakfast. But they don't open up till 8! I've been at work for an hour by the time they open. Plus, they have a teeny little shop and on a cold morning you end up waiting outside for a good while. Not fun! Further - they seem to artificially limit what they have - for example, the cinnamon raisin bread is almost always sold out when I get there. Why do they hate freedom? This is America damn it! But all complaints aside - it's a great bakery - and so far the best I've found in Boston. If you are close enough - go here and enjoy. And tell them to stay open longer!!! read more

Hidden gem that we should quit telling people about... It's soo good the lines are always long.

I'm a little surprised that I hadn't left a review of Clear Flour before -- but it goes to show my sentiments here: You can tell that Clear Flour is good bread. For all those who are not in the know, Clear Flour was a James Beard Award finalist, which is a Very Good Thing. I bought a loaf of sourdough here, because sourdough is my kryptonite. It passed the ratatouille test with flying colors, producing that wonderful crunching sound of the outside of the bread when you pinch the crust. While it went stale very quickly on me (as bread that doesn't have grocery store preservatives is wont to do), toasting it made it soften right back up. It also had this wonderful charred crust when I toasted it, and reacted really well to heat -- I don't know if this is supposed to be a sign of good bread, but it was certainly a quality of the Clear Flour sourdough. I didn't try any of the sweets -- I'm a savory girl. My ambivalence for Clear Flour shines through when I think about the value to me. I am not in the place in my life yet (will I ever be? unclear) where I can basically pay $5 a loaf . And so I pass Clear Flour on the way to my normal grocery store, and watch the lines out the door, and keep walking, relatively unenvious and unfazed. 4 Stars. read more

I don't even need to leave this review because everyone knows how amazing Clear Flour is but holy sh*t everything they make is delicious. The breads are amazing, huge variety, every size and shape. The pastries are OUT OF THIS WORLD. I may be biased as I still have the last bite of a chocolate croissant in my mouth but GOOD GRACIOUS I could have eaten 10 of these croissants! This place is a MUST! read more