We always buy our cakes from here, along with all the other baked goods too. Their Tiramisu, mixed…read morefruit cake, and especially their fresh mango cakes during the season are heavenly. Their bakery items are so light, with just the right amount of sweetness, exactly how I like them. Everything is made fresh, so unlike other big chain grocery stores, you don't feel like you're eating something that's been sitting around for days. You can even save money by ordering the cake online through their website. Advance booking gets you a discount. Don't forget to try their Portuguese egg tarts. I love this bakery. Definitely recommend!

Limited time offer! Sprint don't walk to your nearest Saint Germain for this oh so buttery sweet…read morecorn tart. The crust was so flaky as well and you get 50% off if you drop by before the end of the month. Go now!

Warning that this is a cash encouraged place. I came here to get some beef rolls and some cheap…read morepastries. Prices are still reasonable than commercial bakeries. Customer service was okay. My order was simple that the language barrier wasn't an issue. Lemon cake was really really good. The layout kinda reminds me of Maxim's without the trays. Everything is individually wrapped which is appreciated and very very cheap.

The cashier could not communicate - she just pointed to the till after she keyed in all the prices…read moreand she just looked at our purchases. She did not say anything or even look at us. There was no service at all. Therefore, my sister told me to leave and as I was thinking about it, the cashier called a girl to come out from the kitchen to help her speak. I asked the girl if they had rice dumplings and she brought us to the freezer to show us. Then the cashier went to the front counter to check the prices of the rice dumplings before she keyed them into the till. I asked them if they took cash or credit/debit card, she said both. Then she asked me if my card was U.S. and I said no. I did not know why she asked. Then she told me they would take debit card. They should put a sign at the counter to let customers know the payment methods. Moreover, the tap function of their card machine was not working and they did not want to give us receipts until we asked them. The girl just gave us the receipt from the card machine but we also wanted the receipt from the till. Then the cashier said she could not give us both receipts because they would not be able to balance the till later (that was the only time that she spoke). It was not true; stores always give both receipts to customers (one from the card machine and one to show the transactions). The girl talked to the cashier and they put the receipt from the till unwillingly onto the counter then they both looked away from us and talked to each other without handing our purchases to us. Then one of them said, "It's okay" behind us as we were walking to the door. We realized after the interaction that the cashier was hard of hearing as the girl kept telling her what to do. If so, then they should have a sign in the store saying that the cashier was disabled to let customers know so there would not be any misunderstandings. Or they could give a tag for the cashier to wear with the words 'I'm deaf' so the customers would be patient with her. It was not about her work performance; it was about her attitude. She seemed like she did not want to serve. There were places that hired disabled servers and those servers were friendly. Also, those places alerted the customers of the disability to decrease the chances of miscommunication. Some people even went to support those places because they wanted to support those servers. The buns and the mochi tasted okay. The one star is for the service and the store setting. First, they turned off the light inside the bakery which was odd. Do they still want business? Second, half of the store was empty - there were no products on the shelf and there was trash and dust everywhere. It was better for them to simply close the store for the day. P.S. When I went to the bakery more than 15 years ago, the bakery looked nice and bright and it was full of products. I went there often and the store was always busy. The cashier was fine and they even had mini snowy mooncakes. I did not know what had happened to the bakery since then. It is pathetic now.

Cash only, but they do take American dollars in small amounts. Every time I'm in Canada, I always…read moremake it a point to stop at Maxim's Bakery inside Richmond Centre. They are all over the Vancouver area, but this is the closest location from my hotel. I love their kick ass pastries and edible cakes.Their baked goods are always fresh and they'd definitely excite your sweet tooth! The egg tarts are pretty darn good too. Your mouth would really love them, but your ass probably wouldn't.

For being one of the larger Chinese bakery chains in the world, this location of Maxim's is solid…read more They may serve the best baked goods ever, but they're certainly far from the worst in Richmond. It was probably a little presumptuous for me to think the food would be anything like the Maxim's chain in Hong Kong, but these were definitely on the average side. There is a small but decent selection of pastries here, one might fare better with the crossants, fruit cakes, cake slices, and mini pies than the Chinese goods. Be it egg tarts, random baos, almond cookies or moon cakes, most of the hardly impressive. While it's true I haven't had them in the morning (when all bakeries seem to be at their best), I also know quality buns last longer too. Vancouver-Richmond is way too expensive for its own good but at least for Maxim's, the price is right. Stop by after 6pm, the same day items might be available for as much as half off.

*THIS REVIEW IS SOLEY FOR THEIR CHINESE COOKIES*…read more I only come here for one thing and one thing only: Chinese cookies. They reign supreme! I never had this type of cookie ever in my entire life. One of my sisters in law introduced it to me about maybe 13-14 years ago and we haven't stopped coming here ever since. It's a must try! I don't know what's in this magical cookie, but it's sweet and savory with hits of umami. It's definitely giving lap cheong essence and we're here for it. Yum! Wish I had some rn as I type up this review. Whoever reads this please go get some and enjoy it for me! *cries in seattle*

There's a many Pine House Bakeries around BC but this is the one I've been searching for. We went…read moreto another Pine House Bakery but in Vancouver to look for the Chinese Cookies, also known as Phoenix Cookie or 鸡仔饼, but didn't have the taste I was looking for. I guess there might be different owners and chefs for each of these bakeries. There's different style and ways folks make the 鸡仔饼 but this specific location makes it super well vs others. The flavor is different, and I use this one to compare to others. They also have other pastries and goods like a pineapple bbq pork bun, pineapple custard bun, cakes, etc. This location is located inside Parker Place, and with lots of other small shops and restaurants. Lots of parking too.

Decisions, decisions, decisions…read more I've been coming here more often than I really need to but not really because I want to. It's more a need to. The seniors like it. Especially the Old Bean, and it's proximal. Why does he like it so much? Breakfast. Scratching your head? I'm not, because I live in his reality. This is a bakery for cakes, pasties, and other HK style sweet snacks. Even the so-called savory items in here are slightly sweet, the wiener buns are an example. As the Old Bean is wont to do, this is what he consumes for breakfast. Pastries and cake, not congee. Although he'll go out for congee, but at home, it's cake. Chestnut cake, at 9:30AM, along with robusta bean pre ground coffee, aka MJB, out of a jumbo-sized tin or plastic tub, from a percolator, after a rolling boil of 20 minutes. Basically, a combination of bitter melon and sulfuric acid is the end product, generously seasoned with 6 heaping teaspoons of sugar, and a bit of milk is the way he likes it. This is not hyperbole. It's a gruesome brew in the morning, enough to kill the appetite and palate of a starving alligator or any reptillian in the Florida everglades. So this is why I'm here. It's my living certainty. I do eat stuff from here every now and then but not on any regular basis. I order B-Day cakes from here for occasions also. It's what the seniors are accustomed to. Helpful staff. Paid street parking in front and a couple of free spaces in the back. Grab and go place. Minimal interior seating. Cash or debit only.

This Maxim's stocks the standard selection of sweet and savoury Chinese pastries. A nice touch here…read moreis the hot steamed buns. Affordable prices. It looks like they also have cheap coffee and tea, but cheap in quality, not just price. Cash only. There are some tables inside or some picnic tables on the nearby closed street. The place looks a little dated and dim. I got a vegetarian steamed bun and a fruit cocktail cake. The steamed bun, kept nice and warm, was soft and the veggies inside were savoury and crunchy. I'd recommend this. It was my first time trying a Chinese fruit cocktail cake - I always would see them at Chinese bakeries and be tempted - so I have no basis for comparison on other fruit cocktail cakes, but I enjoyed the flavour. The cake was light with lots of fruit in the filling. It seemed a bit sweeter than the Asian cakes I'm used to. The sweeter cake and frosting in combination with the fruit cocktail, which is itself sweetened, made this a sweeter dessert than I would've liked. I'd be open to trying them again if it was in my neighbourhood, but it wouldn't be my first choice for Chinese desserts just based off this one cake.

If you're looking for Persian sweets, then Laleh is the place to go. They have top quality and…read moretheir service is impeccable. Very kind, efficient and quick. It can be a busy place from time to time but overall you will be in and out in a jiffy. They have everything from individual small desserts that you can combine into a box to bring to a gathering or even just choose small items for. They also make custom cakes, which is what I opted for. the cream was perfectly light and fragrant with rosewater. The cake was airy and fluffy at the same time. They can even make cakes extremely extravagant as long as you order well ahead of time. Great place for your sweet tooth.

So fresh, so soft, and incredibly delicious Your pastries…read moreare simply amazing! I honestly recommend trying it you'll absolutely love it!

One of my friends took me to Richmond Centre specifically for Saint Germain; was it this good?…read moreActually, I walked by and with discipline window shopped this bakery. A day later, I find myself back here, having an egg tart, Portuguese egg tart, double almond croissant, and banana bread. Both egg tarts were great. While the crust wasn't the crispiest and flakiest, this was preferred. (Maybe I'm the minority who dislikes when the flakes fly everywhere!) The egg portions were just sweet enough and eggy enough, not too thick and not too thin. The almond croissant was very generous with the almond slices, and it was a tasty croissant overall. It also wasn't too crispy or flaky, which was fine. I enjoyed how chewy the interior was. The banana bread slice was also very good. This one surprised me; it was definitely more spongey than I expected, though. Service was great, and they can serve in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English. Communication was interesting, since some staff only speak Mandarin, but it was a fun experience nonetheless. The staff were so friendly, and I know I'll be returning soon!

First time going to the St. Germain's bakery at Richmond Centre. I was apprehensive about getting a…read morewhole cake as i have had a couple of bad experiences recently at the Aberdeen location. We arrived there 10 ish and checked out the cake list. We opted for a mango pudding cake and they told us to wait 20 minutes as they were in the process of making it. I found the menu prices quite affordable and relatively lower compared to a lot of those dessert shops that sell cakes. When we opened the cake later in the afternoon, we all found it nicely presented. There was an abundance of fruits on top. The cake itself was also not too sweet which was perfect for us. The cake only had one layer of pudding and the rest of the layers consisted of sponge cake and minimal mango pieces. Overall, the cake does the job nicely at a reasonable price.

I got the Brioche matcha melonpan. The bread was fresh was very light and fluffy. The topping had a…read morevery mild matcha flavor (if any). However, I tend to prefer very strong and intense notes of matcha. 3.5 stars

I first found this bakery at pop up event. Their cheese cake looked very unique and loved…read morepresentation. So, I visited their vendor several times and always tried cheese cake. I liked coffee flavor. This time, I visited Japan market and found their vendor. What I tried - Brioche Matcha melon pan - rich brioche dough topped with a sweet, crispy cookie crust. Crunchy on the outside, incredibly soft and fluffy on the inside. I enjoyed melon pan's crispy cookie crust. And Brioche inside was very fluffy and soft with a little chewy texture. I really liked it. Brioche biscoff almond - Soft and moist brioche generously baked with rich Biscoff spread and nutty almond paste, topped with a whole crunchy cookie. My favorite was Brioche biscoff almond. Biscoff spread was over the brioche bread. I could taste almond paste. Combination was very rich. Brioche was very fluffy and item itself was not overly sweet. Overall, I liked their baking goods with unique idea and ingredient. I will visit and try new item again