Van's Pastry Shoppe - Grand Rapids

On 5/12/2023, I went to Van 's Pastry Shoppe to buy glazed donuts for myself and 2 family members. There was an older female employee who had been cleaning the windows outside of the bakery before I went inside. When I went inside the bakery, there was a customer in front of me being assisted by the employee who had been cleaning the outside windows. Another older woman came into the establishment after I did and stood behind me for a brief moment before going to the right side of the bakery to look at other baked goods.There was a young male employee working behind the counter who never acknowledged my existence and decided to wait on the customer behind me as if I had not been standing in line first. I informed the male employee that I was standing in line before the other woman who came into the bakery after I did. Not only was I not offered an apology by the male employee, but I was ignored, and he never bothered to make eye contact with me. The other employee apologized and offered to serve me, but I told her that I was not going to purchase anything after what I had experienced.I walked out, however, I went back in to ask for the name of the owner of Van 's Pastry Shoppe so that I could make a complaint against the young man who willfully chose to disregard me as a customer in favor of the older white woman who came into the bakery after I did. The woman behind the counter was very apologetic, but the apology should have come from the male employee who decided to ignore me as a customer. I informed both employees that this kind of behavior would not fly in this day and age.The customer that stood behind me apologized and stated that it was her fault. I stated to her that both parties, meaning her and the male employee, were both responsible as she was aware that I was in line before she was, and that he chose not to serve me. I placed 2 calls to this business on 5/13/2023, and both times my calls were not answered. This is unacceptable behavior.I filed a BBB complaint against this bakery and the owner 's response was rude and hostile. As stated above, the older woman came in AFTER I did, not before, and I stand by everything I have said.The owner has poor customer service skills, needs to learn how to accept constructive criticism, and how to speak to people. I have seen some of this person 's responses right here on Google and he is beyond rude. Just because this bakery has been open for decades, that does not mean that the owner has the right to be rude and aggressive with his responses.The owner condones racism and discrimination, otherwise, he would have apologized for the way I was treated in his establishment.I 'll take my business elsewhere.

Van’s felt like stepping back in time a bit, but in a good way. Service was quick and friendly, and there were a lot of tasty treats to choose from. I bought several items to go including an apple fritter, and old fashioned plain donut, an almond tart, and a date cookie. Everything was delicious and rich. I definitely highly recommend Van’s as a bakery for pastries and other sweets.

This was my first time ordering donuts from Van's...they're close to my workplace so that was very convenient. But service was great and the folks working at the counter were friendly. I just walked in and asked for 2 dozen assorted, and she put them together for me. Couldn't have been easier. And the donuts were delicious. Even checked with another coworker who said the same, so it was a hit. I'll be back next time I need donuts for work. Van's is truly a hidden gem. Highly recommended!

I ordered donuts from Chicago to deliver to my friend in Grand Rapids for her birthday and Vans really went all out and decorated the box and wrote a sweet note in there as well which I honestly wasn’t expecting. Thank you for going above and beyond, she loved it!!!

Flaky, delicious donut. I bought some muffins and turnovers as a gift and they turned out great! Really good pricing.