• Contact Us
  • Events calendar
Entering Swellesley
Pinnacle, Wellesley

The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

  • Advertise
  • Business index
  • Contribute
  • Wellesley Square
  • Private schools
  • Camp
  • Eat
  • Schools
  • Top 10 things to do
  • Embracing diversity
  • Kids
  • About us
  • Events
  • Natick Report
  • COVID-19
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Athlete of the Week
  • Seniors
Needham Bank, Wellesley
Write Ahead, Wellesley

When Wellesley Tatte opens, don’t overlook the Viennoiserie display

June 6, 2022 by Bob Brown 1 Comment

Wellesley’s Tatte Bakery & Cafe, expected to open soon in Linden Square, paid a visit to the town’s Board of Health this past week to seek a variance allowing it to use an antique display case for its goodies.

I’ll confess to being oblivious to the word “Viennoiserie” or the existence of such display cases for breads and pastries, but for Tatte, this piece of “millwork” is a signature element of its bakery and cafe design. At the 165 Linden St., location formerly home to California Pizza Kitchen, customers will see it almost immediately upon entering the shop, slated to open June 15.

As planned, however, the piece Tatte had in mind wasn’t going to cut it in the eyes of health codes or of Vivian Zeng, the town’s senior environmental health specialist (aka, health inspector).

The Wellesley Board of Health convened a short special meeting (see Wellesley Media recording) on June 2 to address the matter.

According to Zeng, the display case was not depicted in the original plans, which isn’t unusual, but she did notice it during a construction walk through. The case would sit between food servers and patrons, and showcase baked goods behind a plexiglass sneeze-guard. A couple of drawers might stick out toward customers and would contain grab-and-go items, like cookies, mugs, or other merchandise.

tatte display case
Photo of proposed Tatte display case shared by Health Dept. (Wellesley Media recording screenshot)

 

The health concerns over a piece like this involve the cracks and crevices that food can sneak into and fester in, allowing for viral and bacterial risks. Also, it showed some splintering of the wood and features protrusions, like drawer knobs, that can spike patrons or employees as they brush up against it. Such surfaces that require frequent cleaning need to “be constructed of a corrosion resistant non-absorbent and smooth material. Typically in commercial kitchens we see stainless steel, sometimes ceramics; wood is very, very, very seldom used,” Zeng said.

Brendan Boyle, VP of development for Tatte, manages construction and facilities. In seeking the variance to allow use of the display furniture, he gave the board an update, showing an image of the equipment after being sanded and receiving a couple of coats of polyurethane. Tatte has proposed in addition to this, the business would coat the top with an epoxy resin coating similar to that used for bar tops. Shelving within the unit on the service side will be used only for paper goods, not food.

Tatte, which has a couple dozen locations across Massachusetts and the Washington, D.C., area, also undergo quarterly health and food safety audits via a third-party outfit, Boyle said.

Boyle said issues with the wooden display pieces haven’t been raised in getting approvals for buildouts in other locations, though Zeng said Tatte has been cited in Boston for having non-porous wood surfaces and has treated them with coatings as a result.

The arrival of Tatte will continue the reimagining of Linden Square, which looks forward to new restaurants Karma and Oath Pizza as well, plus a redesign outside of Wellesley Tavern.

More: Restaurant visit: Next best thing to a Wellesley Tatte bakery—the Newton Centre one


Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]

  • Consider contributing to Swellesley to sustain our independent journalism venture
print
Share

Filed Under: Business, Restaurants

Comments

  1. Katie says

    June 7, 2022 at 8:38 am

    And was it tested for lead? I wouldn’t want my food anywhere near that.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You have to agree to the comment policy.

Linden Square, Wellesley
Dedham Country Day School
Wonderful Wellesley, see what's new

Tip us off…

Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]

 

Advertisements

Wellesley Square
Wellesley, Jesamondo
Edge on Science
Sexton test prep
Feldman Law
Fay School, Southborough
Wellesley Theatre Project
Volvo
Cheesy Street Grill
Admit Fit, Wellesley
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
Never miss a post with our free daily Swellesley Report email
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

You can subscribe for free, though we appreciate any contribution that supports our independent journalism.

Click on Entering Natick sign to read our Natick Report

Entering Natick road sign

Most Read Posts

  • Family withdraws plan for large house near Wellesley's Brook Path
  • Wellesley Business Buzz: Merchants raise 'Parking, parking, parking' concerns in Wellesley Square; Lockheart Restaurant sign goes up
  • Bench near Wellesley High honors Tom Zinck
  • The Wellesley aqueduct bathrooms at Hunnewell Field have landed
  • Wellesley POPS Senior Profile: Jessica Klurfeld doubly talented as clarinet player & singer

Upcoming Events

Jul 6
10:00 am - 11:00 am

Open House at Boston Outdoor Preschool Network

Jul 16
10:00 am - 4:00 pm

Wellesley Square July Jubilation Sidewalk Sale

Jul 19
8:00 am - 9:00 am

Fay School admission information session

Jul 20
10:00 am - 11:00 am

Tour at Boston Outdoor Preschool Network

Aug 12
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Fay School admission information session

View Calendar

Popular pages

  • Wellesley’s 7 official scenic roads

Recent Comments

  • peter of wellesley on Hardy Elementary School project starting to feel more real
  • J on Family withdraws plan for large house near Wellesley’s Brook Path
  • Donna on Wellesley public works taking fresh look at RDF give-and-take area
  • Bubba on Wellesley Business Buzz: Merchants raise ‘Parking, parking, parking’ concerns in Wellesley Square; Lockheart Restaurant sign goes up
  • Branden on Wellesley Business Buzz: Merchants raise ‘Parking, parking, parking’ concerns in Wellesley Square; Lockheart Restaurant sign goes up

Links we like

  • Great Runs
  • Jack Sanford: Wellesley's Major League Baseball Star
  • Taquitos.net
  • Tech-Tamer
  • The Wellesley Wine Press
  • Universal Hub
  • Wellesley Sports Discussion Facebook Group

Categories

  • 2021 Town Election (24)
  • Animals (416)
  • Antiques (49)
  • Art (576)
  • Beyond Wellesley (47)
  • Books (365)
  • Business (1,501)
  • Camp (11)
  • Careers/jobs (48)
  • Churches (79)
  • Clubs (228)
  • Construction (295)
  • Dump (127)
  • Education (3,108)
    • Babson College (250)
    • Bates Elementary School (16)
    • Dana Hall School (34)
    • Fiske Elementary School (9)
    • Hardy Elementary School (44)
    • Hunnewell Elementary School (42)
    • MassBay (55)
    • Schofield Elementary School (24)
    • Sprague Elementary School (19)
    • St. John School (2)
    • Tenacre Country Day School (11)
    • Upham Elementary School (35)
    • Wellesley College (608)
    • Wellesley High School (961)
    • Wellesley Middle School (203)
  • Embracing diversity (69)
  • Entertainment (786)
  • Environment (749)
  • Fashion (141)
  • Finance (14)
  • Fire (162)
  • Food (342)
  • Fundraising (612)
  • Gardens (157)
  • Government (557)
    • 2020 Town Election (47)
    • 2022 Town Election (14)
  • Health (850)
    • COVID-19 (200)
  • Hikes (3)
  • History (388)
  • Holidays (405)
  • Houses (154)
  • Humor (47)
  • Kids (849)
  • Law (8)
  • Legal notices (6)
  • Letters to the Editor (62)
  • Media (70)
  • METCO (4)
  • Military (11)
  • Morses Pond (108)
  • Music (568)
  • Natick Report (29)
  • Neighbors (273)
  • Obituaries & remembrances (73)
  • Outdoors (642)
  • Parenting (62)
  • Police (757)
    • Crime (386)
  • Politics (551)
  • POPS Senior Profile (8)
  • RDF (6)
  • Real estate (331)
  • Religion (131)
  • Restaurants (332)
  • Safety (150)
  • Scouts (2)
  • Seniors (120)
  • Shopping (143)
  • Sponsored (6)
  • Sports (980)
    • Athlete of the Week (6)
  • STEM (107)
  • Technology (164)
  • Theatre (392)
  • Town Meeting (23)
  • Transportation (230)
  • Travel (17)
  • Uncategorized (1,230)
  • Volunteering (346)
  • Weather (177)
  • Wellesley Election 2019 (21)
  • Wellesley Free Library (276)
  • Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend (19)
RSS Feed Icon Subscribe to RSS Feed
Deland, Gibson Insurance, Wellesley

© 2022 The Swellesley Report
Site by Tech-Tamer · Login