Rise sits on Pendleton Street in the Village of West Greenville, the arts district of studios, galleries, and small makers just west of downtown. It suits the block: a working artisan bakery turning out naturally leavened breads and European-style pastries, all made in-house.
The baking is what people come for. The country loaf and the sourdough get the slow, naturally leavened treatment, and the pastry case runs from morning buns and croissants to the kouign-amann, the caramelized butter cake from Brittany. Two things surface again and again in reviews: the cardamom buns, and the sourdough chocolate chip cookie, which takes on a faint tang from the sourdough that sets it apart from the usual version.
It is not all sweets. A short sandwich list is built on the house bread, from a French ham and butter baguette to a fig and brie to a grilled cheese on country loaf, and there is a full espresso menu with house-made syrups, including a lavender latte using lavender they grow themselves. The lineup shifts with the seasons, so the case looks a little different through the year.
The popular items sell out. People who have figured this out come early, since the kouign-amann and the sourdough cookies in particular tend to be gone well before closing.