Estelle Bakery & Pâtisserie
A UC Davis alum's French patisserie — macarons, Mont Blanc, and morning lines on Fifth.
Can I work from here? In a pinch — it's a bright, window-lit room with marble tables and a patio, so you can post up with a coffee and a croissant, but it's a pastry counter first, not a dedicated study café.
Bring kids? Family-friendly. Glass cases full of pastries (brioche donuts on Fridays), a welcoming room, and dogs allowed on the patio — an easy stop with kids in tow.
Under $20? Doable for a pastry-and-coffee run, and a genuine splurge for the cakes and tarts. Estelle uses organic flour and French butter and prices accordingly — you're paying for the technique.
Estelle is a homecoming. Owner Esther Son — a UC Davis grad — already ran two French bakeries in Sacramento before bringing the concept back to the town where she went to school, taking over the Fifth Street space the long-loved Konditorei Austrian pastry café left behind when its owners retired. There were lines out the door from the first week, and they haven't really let up.
The pastry case is the main event: flaky almond and strawberry croissants, cronuts, macarons in a rotating run of flavors, and the showpieces — a Mont Blanc tart the staff swear by and an island passion-fruit cake. There's a French-leaning breakfast and lunch too, from French toast and quiche to soups, salads, and the ciabatta club, plus proper baguettes and sourdough if you're shopping for the table.
The room matches the food — bright, big windows, marble-topped tables, dogs welcome on the patio. It leans premium (organic flour, real French butter, and a price point to match), but it's become a Davis fixture fast.
Brioche donuts only show up on Fridays, and the Mont Blanc tart is the staff pick — the cases sell down through the morning, so come early for first dibs. Local trivia: 'Estelle' is owner Esther Son's name in French (a teacher's nickname that stuck), and the shop sits in the old Konditorei space — the second beloved European bakery to live at this address.
East Davis — Fifth Street, in the former Konditorei space
2710 5th St, Davis, CA 95618
Check current hours before you go
Macarons · Almond & strawberry croissants · Mont Blanc tart · Island passion-fruit cake