Bloom Baking Company

TLDR version: Be cautious using debit or credit cards here. I recommend paying only with cash, especially if your transaction is under the minimum $10. Ask for a receipt and check it before you leave.

I was very disappointed with my experience at Bloom yesterday. They were quite busy, which is normal for a Saturday morning. I realized as I was in line that I didn't have any cash with me. I asked the gentleman behind the counter whether they take debit cards, and he responded affirmatively but did not mention that there is a $10 minimum card charge. I didn't discover this until I got to the register, prepared food in hand, and my total was only $8.36.

I quickly asked the woman working the register what else I could easily add to the transaction to get over the minimum amount. She told me not to worry about it and she ran my card. I really appreciated this and thought it was very nice of this small local company to give a customer a break in a pinch. I wasn't offered a receipt, but I figured it wasn't important and I didn't want to delay the long line any further, so I collected my purchases and left. I actually walked away thinking happily that this was a great example of the terrific service that small businesses are able to offer their customers.

Not so fast!

Today I logged in to balance my bank activity and realized that rather than giving me a break on being short of the minimum transaction amount, the employee at the register had simply added $2 to my total and charged me $10.36 for my items, without asking me if this was OK, or allowing me to quickly select something like a baguette to tip me over the minimum. It's only two dollars, I realize, which is far from a large amount, but in principle it's incredibly offensive to have been treated this way.

Eight dollars is pretty hefty for a croissant and small coffee to begin with. The two dollar involuntary tip makes the price more or less unconscionable.

I would like to give this business the benefit of a doubt and assume that their employees have not been specifically trained to do this, but regardless, I will certainly never return to Bloom on the basis of this experience. Their food, although dramatically overpriced, is excellent. But unless you're paying with cash I would be very wary of them.