Rao's Bakery Coffee cafe

Just moved to the area and the quaint atmosphere/broad menu selection here is amazing. It’s a great change from your average Starbucks or other chain coffeeshops. However, the drive through is very slow, and I’ve had a hand full of times that my order was wrong.

Always a fan of Rao's. One of our favorite local places. I met my husband for the first time there (Beaumont/Dowlen location), three years later he proposed to me at that same Rao's. They featured us on their Instagram and offered us a free cake. They are a wonderful local business. That was years ago. We now live in Nederland and are thrilled to enjoy the location near us. Their tea selection always keeps me happy and their cookies are my favorite. Our son loves the Blues Brothers that hang out at their stores. 😅
We will continue to be faithful patron of their establishments. Great coffee, great tea, great pastries, great gelato. Whether you want a quick coffee break or an intimate first date, you can never go wrong with Rao's.

This is a keeper! And you can't help but feel that you're in pastry heaven, even though they sell other things like soups & sandwiches, gelato, and gourmet coffee. I love their large Cinnamon Roll - I think it's the best I've had (remember to warm it up first). They have healthy pastries like bran muffins. And they have very nicely decorated cakes! You can also enjoy gourmet coffee (hot or cold) and they sell loose leaf teas. If you dine in, you have a choice of 3 or 4 kinds of coffee to enjoy (free refills). They have a huge Italian-designed dining room with tables for big groups as well. They have a drive-thru area. There's ample parking in front, side, and back. They accept credit cards.

I have been a loyal customer to Rao's Mid County for SEVERAL years, but lately, the staff here are a hit or miss. The looks of the cakes are pretty impressive compared to the other bakeries in the area, but the employees can be rude, short, or just not care. For years, I have always chosen to get my cakes here for friends and family. This year, for all the celebrations that I have purchased cakes, I can honestly say that each experience has been exhausting or humiliating and I will no longer choose Rao's Mid County as my supplier. It's hard to get any kind of custom writing on a cake there without getting that feeling that you are inconveniencing them. I asked to add a white strip of icing (as they sometimes choose to do) with writing on top of that strip that says Happy Birthday to whomever. Instead, I received a cake with red lettering that blends right into the chocolate/caramel crosshatch cake design and was illegible. Twice this year I have had this changed. Recently for a different birthday, I just ignored it and bought it out of frustration. I felt obligated to purchase the cake as is, because the lady continued to attempt to convince me that the cake was fine the way it was in its ineligibility and that they don't put white icing in the back to contrast the lettering anyway-- which was untrue. On another instance, while waiting in line, a staff member has acknowledged someone else who was standing behind me, took their order, and exchanged food and payment with me in between them. I was just waiting for her to get my sugar cookie, she could have prioritized my order first or asked me to move before making that decision. That was very rude and disrespectful! The other person seemed awkward about it too, but followed the command of the cashier. Another time, the older lady there is often very rude and made a huge ordeal about substituting anything on the toasted sandwich combo-- of which I received soggy. I explained to her that I understood the policy and that I will order the item as directed, but she continued to vent off about how I wasn't able to ever get any substitutions. I felt humiliated and the other customers looked embarrassed for me since she would not stop talking about it. I have tried several times to continue to come back and hope that these are just one time instances, but each event has just caused me to lose confidence in this location. I hope that this place truly considers emphasizing some etiquette, as there are several training opportunities to seize. Very unprofessional and not customer oriented. The staff seem more concerned about proving a customer wrong than to educate them on minor infractions. It is such a pity, because it does not serve justice to what great products are offered here.

Love Rao’s as an institution - great local business to support with very good coffee, good service, clean establishment. However, I do think that their Muffalata could be much better. It needs MUCH more olive tapenade, less oil, and a thicker, fresher bread.

Everything her eis so pretty. I wouldn't say that it taste as good as it looks but it's not nasty. I would recomend because everyone's taste is different. I would not buy here again but if someone else bought me something I would eat it. It smells like pure sugar as soon as you walk in and the people are very nice and pleasant here.

The gelato and baked good look and taste amazing, but the woman serving us was nothing short of rude. She was irritated at having to explain the gelato sizes to us, she was annoyed that we gave her our flavor orders at the same time as our size orders, and she argued about whether they had hazelnut despite the hazelnut label and the obvious hazelnuts sprinkled on top. When a coworker corrected her, we had the audacity to still want that flavor....

Very delicious carmilla coffee I love. The morning hot breakfast sandwiches are soo good with a cinnamon roll, & they offer samples of their cakes, just the right touch to top off breakfast. Yummy.

Preorderd chocolate cover strawberries, terrible, hard, partially green and hard. Very disappointing, went to HEB and got perfect white and dark chocolate strawberries.

I would not recommend this Rao's.

Excellent dessert, pastry, and muffin selections! Lots of coffees. I read a couple of posts before going, commenting on the staff. Their staff is great; they just need more people behind the counter.