"Between October 2019 and January 2020, I found myself working in Hammersmith at a job that I hated. The workload was completely unmanageable so every day in the office was frantic. I worked flat-out but at the end of each day, I hadn’t got any nearer to getting on top of my workload than I was at the start of the day. This was a miserable chapter in my life to be sure but one of the few good things about this period was that I discovered Bäkehaus, a German bakery and coffee shop. My place of work was located just behind King Street so I used to escape my desk at lunchtime to go to Bäkehaus for something to eat. This restaurant became my little sanctuary during this time, a place of calm and cosiness which was the perfect antidote to my horrible office. As the name suggests, Bäkehaus bake their own fresh bread every day. In addition to bread, there are pastries, cakes, filled baguettes, salads, fresh oven-baked pizza and hot dogs available to buy. The food here is fantastic. I usually opted for a baguette and my favourite was the chicken and avocado, which was crammed with thick slices of both and garnished with salad leaves. The baguette bread is just as it should be: crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. The salads are really good, too. They usually consist of the same contents as the baguettes, except they’re served in a box without the bread. I used to like the chicken and avocado salad, too (what can I say, I’m a creature of habit! , and thought the little pot of balsamic vinaigrette included in the box was a really nice touch; it’s lovely to drizzle on your salad or to dunk a freshly-baked bread roll into. My only grumble about the lunch options was that they didn’t have many sides to go with a baguette or a salad. They only sell one flavour of crisps but even these weren’t always available and the only other option was a yoghurt and granola pot, served with either chopped strawberry or mango. The yoghurt was delicious but not something I wanted to eat every day so it would have been nice if there were some other options available, for example soup of fresh fruit. I only tried the pizza once but this was a hit, too. Served piping hot out of the oven, you get a very large slice for a reasonable price. I had the pepperoni topping and was really impressed with it: picture a crispy crust and strings of gooey mozzarella as you take a bite. There are lots of other toppings to try as well if you don’t fancy pepperoni. I didn’t try any of the hot dogs because I was trying to eat healthily (and they are also quite pricey but I definitely want to go back to try one because they looked delicious. They serve a really good cup of coffee that is presented to you in a modern china cup and saucer (better than the paper cups you get in some other establishments and the hot chocolate is rich and velvety and a lovely treat on a cold winter’s day. A perfect companion to one of Bäkehaus’ hot drinks is a slice of one of their freshly baked cakes. Actually, slab might be a better noun to use rather than slice because the cakes are enormous and you get a really big piece for your money. I tried the apple pie which is really good; the pastry is subtly sweet and there a big chunks of apple inside. As I mentioned above, the atmosphere in Bäkehaus is lovely, especially in the run up to Christmas, which is when I visited most often. The staff greeted me with a smile and were always helpful and polite. The restaurant is lit with warm yellow lighting and was decorated with lots of white fairy lights for the festive season. When looking from the inside out on to the cold blue light of King Street, it felt really cosy inside. Added to this, Christmas classics like “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Let It Snow” played on the stereo, which gave it an almost magical feel and many times I didn’t want to leave. Bäkehaus is a real gem offering something a little bit different in terms of food and atmosphere compared to the other usual suspects that appear on King Street. I quit my awful job at the end of January and am much happier in my new role. I’m so grateful I discovered Bäkehaus because it was a sanctuary for me during this time and I’ll always have fond memories of it."
