The Pastry Project

**Introduction / Overview: The Pastry Project – More Than Just a Bakery**

For residents and visitors of Washington State, finding a local business that perfectly blends exceptional quality with a profound social mission is a rare treat—and that is precisely what The Pastry Project offers. Located in the historic heart of Seattle’s Pioneer Square, this establishment is registered simply as a **Bakery**, but its true identity is that of a dynamic social enterprise.

Founded by two justice-driven women with deep roots in the local culinary scene, The Pastry Project was created to address barriers to employment in the pastry and baking industry. The core mission is to make pastry education and job opportunities more accessible to individuals who face these barriers. They run a comprehensive, free training program that equips students with in-demand technical skills, soft skills, and job placement assistance.

The delicious products and services they offer to the public are the crucial engine that drives this mission. Every purchase of their baked goods, soft serve, pastry kits, or participation in their classes directly helps fund the free training program. This creates a powerful cycle: local patrons get to enjoy expertly crafted, high-quality sweet treats while actively supporting economic opportunity and empowerment within the Seattle community. Whether you stop by for a quick, unique dessert or engage in their educational offerings, you are participating in a meaningful effort to "break barriers and bake with purpose."

**Location and Accessibility**

The Pastry Project is rooted in a central and easily reachable location in one of Seattle's most historic districts, positioning it perfectly for Washington locals, downtown workers, and Pioneer Square visitors.

The shop is located at **165 South Main St, Seattle, WA 98104, USA**.

This Pioneer Square address offers excellent accessibility features, ensuring a positive experience for all members of the community:

• **Excellent Transit Access:** Being located in Pioneer Square means the bakery is steps away from major bus lines, the Link Light Rail system, and the ferry terminal, making it highly convenient for those traveling from across the city or the Puget Sound region.
• **Wheelchair Accessible Entrance:** The property specifically features a **Wheelchair accessible entrance**, demonstrating a commitment to welcoming all customers into their space.
• **Quick Visit Planning:** For those on a tight schedule, the 'Planning' information suggests it is an excellent stop for a **Quick visit**, ideal for grabbing a coffee, a morning pastry, or a midday soft serve without extensive delay.

The location is known for its proximity to public parks, such as the garden noted by a customer, offering a perfect, nearby spot to sit and immediately enjoy your freshly acquired baked goods or soft serve.

**Services Offered**

The Pastry Project utilizes its retail space and social enterprise model to offer a wide array of services that cater to both the immediate desire for a delicious treat and the community’s interest in supporting a good cause and learning a new skill.

Available Services and Options:

• **In-Store Pickup:** Customers can place orders for baked goods or other products and retrieve them conveniently at the shop.
• **Takeout:** Quick and easy service for those who wish to grab a pastry or soft serve and continue their day in Pioneer Square.
• **Walk-Up Soft Serve Window (Seasonal):** A highly popular feature during warmer months, offering unique soft serve flavors (like their famous purple vanilla), ice cream cookie sandwiches, and blended 'quakes' with specialized toppings. This service is often seasonal.
• **Public Pastry Classes/Workshops:** The Pastry Project offers chef-instructed classes to the public, teaching skills ranging from laminated dough (croissants) to specialty cakes, which helps fund the free training program.
• **Pastry Kit Subscriptions:** Customers can subscribe to receive monthly bake-at-home kits, complete with pre-measured ingredients and instructions, bringing the joy and technique of pastry making into their homes.
• **Goody Box Subscriptions:** Subscribers can also receive a monthly box of fresh, seasonal pastries baked by the students and staff.
• **Flexible Payments:** Accepting major forms of payment including **Credit cards**, **Debit cards**, and **NFC mobile payments** ensures a smooth and fast checkout experience.

**Features / Highlights**

The Pastry Project is celebrated in the Seattle community not only for its commitment to social good but also for the high quality and inventive nature of its baked items and frozen treats.

Key Highlights and Unique Features:

• **Non-Profit Social Enterprise Model:** The primary feature is its mission: offering **free baking and pastry job skills training** to individuals with barriers to employment, with proceeds from sales directly funding the program.
• **Exceptional Soft Serve Ice Cream:** Customers rave about the soft serve, noting its balance (not overly sweet) and unique flavors, like the distinctive "purple vanilla." The seasonal nature makes it a highly anticipated summer tradition.
• **Creative Dessert Offerings:** The shop excels in unique combinations, such as ice cream cookie sandwiches and 'quakes' (shakes blended with toppings), often featuring fun collaborations for their unique toppings.
• **The "Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie":** The fundamental training begins with perfecting the classic chocolate chip cookie, a core item that reflects the high standards of the technical training.
• **Community Resource:** The space often serves as a community hub, reportedly including a free cookbook and tool library for the public to utilize, promoting accessible culinary education.
• **Founding Team Expertise:** The shop is run by co-founders with professional backgrounds in high-volume, high-quality dessert operations, ensuring both the training curriculum and the retail products are top-tier.

**Contact Information**

For Washington State users interested in visiting the bakery, booking a class, or learning more about the non-profit mission, here is the official location information:

**Address:** 165 South Main St, Seattle, WA 98104, USA

**What is Worth Choosing The Pastry Project**

For Washington locals, choosing The Pastry Project is a decision that offers a unique intersection of culinary excellence and genuine community impact. It is worth choosing for several compelling reasons:

Firstly, you are choosing to **Support a Sustainable Social Mission**. This is perhaps the most significant reason. The Pastry Project is a non-profit that uses its commercial success to offer a free, comprehensive, 20-week baking and pastry training program. When you buy a pastry, a soft serve, or a subscription kit, you are directly investing in job creation and economic opportunity for people in the Seattle community who need it most. It is the definition of "doing good while having fun," as the founders aim to show that social impact can be a sustainable business model.

Secondly, you are choosing **Award-Winning Quality Desserts**. The reviews highlight that the product quality stands on its own. Customers enthusiastically wait in line for their offerings, raving specifically about the balanced flavor of the soft serve and the overall deliciousness of the menu items. The fact that the soft serve is not "overly sweet" and the cookies are built on the foundation of a "perfect chocolate chip cookie" recipe speaks to the high standard of the professional-level culinary training that governs every item sold.

Lastly, you are choosing **A Unique Seattle Experience**. From the seasonally anticipated soft serve window to the ability to take a public class in a working pastry training kitchen, The Pastry Project offers experiences that differentiate it from a typical bakery. It is an ideal destination for a **Quick visit** to satisfy a craving or a deliberate trip to support a fantastic cause, all within the accessible and vibrant setting of Pioneer Square. You get to enjoy a truly exceptional treat and know that your dollars are actively building careers.

The Pastry Project

165 South Main St, Seattle, WA 98104, USA