We Tried to Order Light at Les Amis. Absolutely Failed. Zero Regrets.

There are restaurants you visit regularly, and then there are places that stick to you even when you don’t go for months. Les Amis Bizcochería falls into the second category for us — a dependable brunch spot that somehow became the unofficial meeting point without anyone ever formally announcing it. When December finally handed us one shared free morning, the plan came together quickly.

Les Amis isn’t located on a busy commercial strip or inside a glossy retail space. It sits inside a two-story brick residential house on a quiet Chapinero street. If you weren’t deliberately looking for the place, you’d probably walk past it thinking it was just another family home. The handwritten window illustrations and the little buzz of people coming in and out are the only clues that something is happening inside.

This review follows that return — a holiday brunch for three friends who hadn’t properly caught up in too long, and who needed a place that felt easy, warm, and good without forcing anything. Les Amis delivered exactly that.

Les Amis in December: Seasonal Without Pretending, Cozy Without Gimmicks

Walking into Les Amis in December feels like stepping into a place that genuinely enjoys the season, not a business hunting for Instagram photos. The visuals match the holiday PDFs they released for the month — hand-drawn details, gingerbread figures, slow-crafted illustrations, and a menu that leans into citrus, spices, berries, and traditional Christmas flavors in a way that feels deliberate rather than loud .

Gift boxes of alfajores sit near the counter. Slices of Noel Cake are displayed next to jars of orange zest. The place smells like an intersection of brioche, butter, and something warm you can’t quite name — probably the Torta Navidad cooling in the back. It’s a sensory reset from the chaos outside.

Even though we hadn’t visited in months, the space didn’t feel foreign. The wooden shelves, the counter layout, the slow hum of the upstairs seating — all familiar enough to feel grounding, different enough to remind us that time had passed.

Three Friends, One Morning, No Agenda

Before heading upstairs, we passed the back garden — one of Les Amis’ most charming features. White wrought-iron tables, gravel floor, big umbrellas with fringe, and strings of warm bulbs hanging between the plants. It feels like someone’s backyard in the best possible way; a tiny pocket of calm that doesn’t belong in the middle of the city but somehow works perfectly here. The upstairs seating area ended up being the ideal location for a reunion. It’s bright, quiet enough for real conversation, but not so silent that you feel like you’re disturbing the room every time you laugh. December sun does the rest of the work.

We sat down and agreed — jokingly but also not jokingly — that we were ordering without “being responsible.” Brunch in December isn’t the time to limit yourself. Les Amis’ menu confirms it: everything is built to be shared.

Our approach:

1. Start with the classics. 
2. Move into the holiday specials. 
3. End with whatever still feels tempting. 
4. No guilt. 

Brunch Essentials: Why Les Amis Still Holds Its Reputation

The first round landed quickly, and it was exactly the reminder we needed about why Les Amis has remained a brunch staple.

Tostada Eli

Brioche with mascarpone and rhubarb confiture — a dish that looks modest but carries a quiet balance that many brunch places never get right. The mascarpone is soft and clean, the rhubarb adds enough acidity to keep the sweetness under control, and the brioche is fluffy in a way that proves they understand slow dough.

French Toast

Their French toast is one of those dishes that doesn’t need reinvention because the foundation is strong. Two slices of house brioche, lightly crisped, topped with bananas, berries, and honey. Our friend who “doesn’t love sweet brunch” still took repeated bites, which is usually a sign that a dish is doing something right.

Carrot Pancakes

These feel almost too wholesome for December, but in a refreshing way. Made with almond flour and orange zest, topped with soft cheese and a seed crumble. They carry warmth without heaviness and pair surprisingly well with coffee.

Nothing in this section screams for attention — and that’s the point. These dishes rely on technique and good ingredients rather than trends or theatrics.

Holiday Specials: The Main Reason to Visit in December

Les Amis treats December as a creative season, not an obligation. The bakery’s philosophy — small-batch daily production, no waste, quality first — shows up clearly in this portion of the menu. The holiday items were easily the highlight of our table.

Rapoula Navideña

If there’s one seasonal item that deserves a permanent spot, it’s this. A flourless chocolate cake topped with mascarpone and fresh berries. The texture hits a rare midpoint: deep flavor without heaviness. You can taste the cocoa, the eggs, the restraint. The berries add brightness and work against the richness of the mascarpone. It’s a confident dessert, the kind that doesn’t need modifiers.

Noel Cake

This is one of the stars of their December gift catalog:

• orange loaf
  
• pistachio frangipane
  
• orange blossom glacé
  
• pistachios on top for texture
  

The result is fragrant, moist, and festive without leaning on sugar as a crutch. You can see why it’s packaged in holiday boxes — it’s the kind of cake that travels well, holds flavor, and tastes both homemade and professional .

Christmas Empanadas

Two options:

• Salteña — beef, olives, egg, raisins, potato
  
• Spinach, pecorino & cranberries
  

They’re small, seasonal, and clearly baked same-day. Powdered sugar on top for a holiday nod. These weren’t the stars of the table, but they add a savory break between bites of cake and pancakes. Good to share.

Coffee, Mimosas, and the Pace of a Slow December Morning

Coffee at Les Amis isn’t meant to be experimental; it’s meant to pair with pastry. We ordered:

• a cappuccino with appropriately velvety foam
  
• café con leche
  
• and a Golden Latte (turmeric, ginger, clove, almond milk, honey) — their most “comfort-in-a-cup” option
  

Everything arrived warm, steady, and consistent.

Then came the holiday drink: Mimosa Les Amis, a cava-based mix with blackberry and raspberry. It’s fresher and less sweet than many Bogotá brunch mimosas, which made it easy to sip alongside pastries.

Somewhere during this drink portion, our conversation shifted from catch-up bullet points to actual decompressing — the kind of openness that only happens when no one is checking the time. Les Amis makes that easier. The staff doesn’t hover, the noise level stays manageable, and the upstairs space naturally slows you down.

Dessert Round Two: Because December Has Its Own Logic

When in doubt, say yes to more dessert.

Torta Navidad

This is the heaviest item in the lineup, but intentionally so.
Ingredients:

• Honey, spices, figs, apricots, walnuts, almond marzipan, cointreau.

It smells like mulled spices but tastes surprisingly controlled. The sweetness stays muted thanks to the dried fruit and nuts. You only need a few bites, but you’ll keep digging anyway.

Holiday Alfajores

Different coatings, different textures, all based on dulce de leche. These feel like a smart takeaway item — the kind you give as a small gift or keep for a late-night snack. They fit nicely with the rest of the seasonal collection.

Service and Space: Quietly Strong, Never Performative

Service at Les Amis is one of the bakery’s quiet advantages. Not overly chatty, not distant — simply attentive. Our orders arrived steadily without feeling rushed. Coffee refills were smooth. No one pressured us about the table even though December is undeniably their busiest month.

The brand’s attitude toward feedback, visible in their responses to Google reviews, carries through in person. They are open to critique, ask questions instead of getting defensive, and care about consistency — which is rare in a bakery this popular.

Final Take: A Brunch That Filled More Than the Table

By the time we left, carrying a box of alfajores and the remaining slice of Noel Cake, we realized that this brunch did exactly what we hoped — it reset us a little. Not in a dramatic, movie-ending way, just in the quiet way that good food and unhurried time tend to do.

Les Amis didn’t need to reinvent itself to impress us again. It just had to keep doing what it does well:

• quality baking
  
• thoughtful seasonal items
  
• honest coffee
  
• calm service
  
• and a space that lets friendships breathe a bit
  

For a December brunch with friends — especially after months of rushing through life — it was exactly right.

We won’t wait that long to return again.
And next time, we’re ordering the Rapoula first.