In the business since 1994, Edelweiss Bakery and Sandwich Shop, now located at 325 Lower Main Street Johnson, has been providing quality sandwiches and French pastries out of its European styled bakery. After visiting the bakery for a sandwich and pastry it is clear to me that 20 years of operation have been more than enough time for the bakers at Edelweiss to perfect their menu and baking execution.

Looking over the sandwich menu I quickly choose the Veggie Melt sandwich priced reasonably at $8.25 and my friend, choose the BLT for $7.95.

While waiting the short time it took for my sandwich to be made, I picked out two pastries, a raspberry cheese pastry, and a chocolate topped cream puff that was roughly the size of a baseball.

My sandwich came out hot with swiss and cheddar seeping over the sides of the perfectly cooked Fougasse French roll. The tomato, red onion, and cucumbers inside were piled on thick and steamed to a veggie tenderness that was topped with fresh green leaf lettuce and Edelweiss’s own honey mustard mayo to seal the delicious deal.

Biting into the sandwich I could feel the crunch of the roll, the crunch of the lettuce, and finally the creamy rich goodness that was the combination of the cheese, veggies, and honey mustard mayo. The sandwich alone was enough to fill me up for a full lunch, yet it was atop a bed of homemade potato chips and included a ginger bread cookie, still soft in the middle and firm on the sides, to end the meal and leave me full, leaning back in my chair.

Liam’s BLT smelled amazing when it came out and he confirmed my initial thoughts on his meal when he explained to me that his BLT on rye was very filling. He was very pleased, especially with the crispness of the bacon and freshness of the vegetables on his sandwich. He was also happy that his meal was accompanied by a soft chocolate chip brownie instead of a ginger cookie.

Roughly a half an hour after my meal, I returned to the pastries I had purchased earlier. First to go was the raspberry cheese pastry. The pastry, which was light, fluffy, and topped with a granulated sugar. Inside, the homemade raspberry filling meshed with the sweet and smooth cheese so perfectly I could have devoured three or four easily in a matter of minutes. It was the epitome of classic grandma cooking, if you happened to have a culinary master for a grandmother.

The cream puff looked almost too attractively constructed to bite into at first but I quickly got over my crush and bit into the puff. It was exactly what I expected, cream and puff.

One of the first differences I noticed between Edelweiss and other local bakeries was that they were determined to cater to our K-9 friends. Since 2012 the owners of Edelweiss have taken their shop in a new direction. Discontinuing their café area, Edelweiss started a new branch of its store directed to the market of homemade dog biscuits. While this may seem a strange endeavor for a European style bakery, the owners of the bakery are dog lovers themselves and wanted to provide natural and organic treats for dogs all over the area. Using studies of wolf diets as a bare boned starting point to create their home made treats, House Wolf K-9 Dog Biscuits emerged.

Dogs, which are welcomed into the shop, can find many variations on the House Wolf K-9 biscuits as well as many other natural pet food and animal products including PetNaturals, Kong Dog Food, and Lupine Collars and Leads. House Wolf K-9 Dog Biscuits also supports and donates to many animal rescue and adoption funds.

It seems to me that Edelweiss Bakery is an ideal choice for any canine or human looking for an easy and delicious homemade meal in Johnson.