Bakeries
A Steveston Village patisserie doing classic French work: fruit tarts, chiffon slices, viennoiserie and cookies made fresh each morning. Regulars also come for the savoury quiches and the small freezer of prepared soups and meals to take home.
Pastry baked the same morning and pastry trucked in overnight are two different objects, and one bite of a tart shell settles the argument. That distinction is the entire case for a small independent counter in a village this size. A classic French repertoire runs to fruit tarts, chiffon, viennoiserie and cookies, with savoury baking alongside for anyone who wants lunch instead of dessert.
The location is First Avenue, a block up from the water, inside the grid of low buildings that makes up old Steveston. Walking is the point down here. Driving in August is a test of character, and the village is small enough that leaving the car towards the Garry Point end and coming in on foot costs nothing and saves twenty minutes of circling.
Village bakeries work on a sell-out model rather than a stale-stock model, which is a real consideration if you have something specific in mind. Go early for a particular thing. Go late and take what is left, which at a good pastry counter is rarely a hardship.
There is a specific Steveston situation this kind of shop answers. Coming back off the dyke on a wet Tuesday with no intention of cooking is a common way for the day to end down here, and somewhere within walking distance that bakes savoury as well as sweet solves the evening. The trail passes close enough that it is a detour rather than a separate errand. That is a fair description of most of the winter here, and the village is quieter and better for it.
In the Steveston neighbourhood of Richmond.
Get directions (opens in a new tab)Keep exploring
Other bakeries and nearby businesses in the Richmond directory.
A tiny family-run shop on Chatham Street making proper Liege waffles with pearl sugar, real butter and honey in about a dozen flavours, from vanilla through matcha and yuzu. They also take custom cake, pie and creme brulee orders for pickup.
View details
A family-run Steveston fixture since 1989, doing scratch breads, pies, cookies and custom cakes including eggless versions. The attached cafe serves all-day breakfast, sandwiches and a rotating homemade soup, so locals treat it as much a diner as a bakery.
View details
A Steveston counter frying gourmet mini donuts to order, with classic cinnamon sugar alongside a rotating list of seasonal flavours and filled versions. Mixed boxes let you try several, and they are best eaten walking down toward the boardwalk.
View details
Family-owned Steveston patisserie open since 1996, focused on European-style cakes such as tiramisu and triple chocolate mousse, plus everyday pastries. It is where Richmond people order birthday and celebration cakes instead of buying one at the grocery store.
View details
A neighborhood Chinese bakery of about a decade's standing at No. 2 and Blundell, run on self-serve tongs and trays behind glass. Pizza buns, mousse cake slices and moon cakes in season; whole cakes need a day's notice. Free lot parking outside.
View details
Richmond's kosher bakery, family-run and Filipino-Jewish, turning out challah, cinnamon rolls, croissants, muffins and donuts. The hours are short and it closes Saturdays, so plan around them. Bread is baked fresh rather than held over.
View details
From the blog
Longer reads from the editor, with the places worth a detour linked inside them.
Every October the fields east of Highway 99 flood and turn red. How the cranberry harvest actually works, where Richmond's bogs are, what the farm event involves, and how to go and look at all of it without annoying a working grower.
Read the guide
The Night Market's final season is the loud story. The quieter one: free admission at the Cannery ends Monday, Britannia keeps summer hours through Sunday, and Steveston does sunsets better than anyone.
Read the guide
Nothing on Alexandra Road is a secret. It is just in a strip mall with bad signage and no patio, which is why visitors never find it. Here is how I actually use Richmond's plazas and food courts, which specialists are worth the drive, and when not to bother.
Read the guide
Keep the directory honest
Own The Sweet Spot?
Claim the listing to confirm your details, add your hours and photographs, and keep what people find accurate.