BEFORE SAN DIEGO WAKES UP
The bakery at twilight...it's a time I love just before the sun rises, the streets are empty, the park next door is still, and inside the bakery, it’s just a couple of team members getting the day started.
Our bakers are the first to arrive, and actually not as early as you might think. We start later and bake throughout the day because we want you to experience our croissants and sourdough the way we love them most - hot from the oven.
One of the first things our baker does is peek into the proofers. There’s a lot riding on that peek...They’re looking at the croissants and asking: Are we where we thought we’d be? Does it need another 15 minutes? We have systems and checks upon checks to keep everything on track, but every once in a great while, something unexpected might happen, like a proofer door accidentally left open or some trays of croissants not proofing as they should.
So for all of our schedules and systems, there’s still a baker standing there in the quiet of the morning, looking at the dough and deciding what it needs.
From there, the pace picks up quickly. There are around 100 trays of viennoiserie to manage on a typical morning, plus our sourdough bake, and somehow we need to get a full first round of everything through the ovens before we open at 7.
This part is a little like air traffic control...
Every tray is labeled and scheduled. A minute-by-minute bake schedule tells the bakers what needs to go into which oven and when. Croissants are egg washed. Fresh blades go into the lames for scoring the sourdough. Oven doors open and close, timers go off, and slowly the racks begin filling with the things you’ll be eating a little while later.
Meanwhile, more lights are coming on around the bakery.
The front-of-house team starts arriving. Music goes on. Flowers come out. The espresso machine gets dialed in. Outside, we’re cleaning up the sidewalks and the park next door so everything is ready to welcome you.
And at some point, almost without noticing it, that peaceful little bakery from an hour or two earlier is buzzing with energy.
It smells like butter and coffee.
There are croissants and sourdough coming out of the ovens, pre-orders being packed, and our Front of House Lead is getting ready to unlock the front door.
Then it’s 7am.
And after all of that work to get ready for opening, we’re really just getting started. The ovens stay on. The trays keep coming. And we keep baking throughout the day.
So the next time you’re tearing into a hot croissant or picking up a loaf of sourdough, there was a whole little world humming along here before you arrived. That’s one of my favorite things about the way we do things here. Opening the doors isn’t the end of our bake day — it’s really just the beginning.
See you in the morning,
Jeffrey, Jenny & the IZOLA Team
OPEN EVERY DAY 7a–2p
In a rush? Just give us a call at 619-289-8358 when you arrive and we'll bring your order out to ya - we call it IZOLA Drive By.
ATTENTION NIGHT OWLS!
There’s something pretty special about working at the bakery after everyone else has gone home. It’s quiet, peaceful, and you have the space to settle in and focus on the work. It's Jenny and my most productive part of the day.
We’re looking for an Evening Dough Production Assistant who genuinely wants that kind of schedule.
You don’t need culinary school or professional baking experience —we’ll teach you the baking part. What we do need is someone with great common sense who can work independently, solve problems as they come up, and take real ownership of their work.
One important catch: training happens during the day. You’ll need significant daytime availability while you learn the role, and once you’re fully trained, you’ll transition to your evening schedule. So this is best for someone who wants nights long-term, but has the flexibility to train with us during the day first.
We care much more about where you want to go than where you’ve been. If you have a prior conviction, we encourage you to apply.
If a quiet bakery, a lot of independence, and learning the craft behind IZOLA’s croissants sounds like your kind of night, we’d love to meet you.
SATURDAY LIVE MUSIC
Every Saturday, we host live music at the bakeshop. Come on by to see how talented our local San Diego musicians are! Follow us on Instagram to see the lineup each week.
"I'M NOT A PASTRY GUY..."
That's how Taco started his visit to IZOLA.
If you don't know Taco, he's a San Diego native and food creator who recently set out to visit some of the city's most viral food spots, wait in the lines, eat the food, and decide for himself whether they actually deserve all the attention.
He'd never been to IZOLA. We didn't know he was coming. And, apparently, pastries aren't really his thing. So this was going to be interesting....
He actually came because his friend and fellow food creator, How Kev Eats, had been to IZOLA and told him there was something here he absolutely had to try.
Before Taco even got to the food, though, he got to meet Elon. Elon is one of those people who lives and breathes what we're trying to create here at IZOLA.
He was so inspired by his visits as a guest that he eventually became a team member - and now we now have the honor of having him at the front counter welcoming our guests in.
Building a team of people who care deeply about the food, our guests and one another has always been just as important to us as the food.
And then, of course, there was the food.
We'll leave most of that part for you to watch. But we'll give you one little preview. After his first bite of our Muffuletta Croissant, Taco had this to say:
"This got to be one of the best things I've ever put in my mouth."
Not bad for a guy who's "not a pastry guy."
What we loved about the whole video is that none of it was planned. Taco just showed up one day, stood in line, met our team, talked to the people around him, and experienced IZOLA the same way anyone else walking through our doors would.
And that's probably why it was so much fun for us to watch.
There's Taco discovering Elon. There's a little of the IZOLA origin story. There are some very enthusiastic reactions to croissants. And, eventually, Taco answers the question he came to IZOLA to answer in the first place:
Is IZOLA worth the hype?
We won't spoil his answer.
Thanks for coming by, Taco. We loved having you.
ORDER WHAT TACO ORDERED
Want to see what had a self-described "not a pastry guy" saying:
"I don't know how they do it this good... I'm impressed. I'm so impressed."
Here’s what Taco tried:
Muffuletta CroissantOur New Orleans-inspired savory croissant, loaded with mortadella, salami, capicola, provolone and our housemade olive spread.
Bibimbap CroissantOur Korean-inspired savory croissant with marinated bulgogi beef, gochujang and all the fixings.
Brown Butter Caramel KnotMade with whole Tahitian vanilla beans, finished with brown butter caramel. Want to conduct your own very scientific investigation?
Wild SourdoughOur naturally leavened sourdough, with a deeply caramelized crust and the wild, open crumb we work so hard for.
Now you can try Taco's lineup for yourself.
OPEN EVERY DAY 7a–2p
In a rush? Just give us a call at 619-289-8358 when you arrive and we'll bring your order out to ya - we call it IZOLA Drive By
NEVER MADE A CROISSANT?
You don’t need a culinary degree, or even professional baking experience, to join our croissant production team.
We currently have two positions open, and we’re much more interested in how you work than where you’ve worked before. We’ll teach you the baking part.
We also care a lot more about where you want to go than where you’ve been. If you have a prior conviction, we encourage you to apply.
What we’re looking for is someone who loves learning, enjoys systems and process, moves with urgency without cutting corners, and takes real pride in getting the details right.
We’ll be upfront: our kitchen isn’t the right fit for everyone. We hold ourselves to high standards, it will probably be the hardest job you've ever had. We’re constantly looking for ways to get better, and we’ll challenge you to grow. In return, you’ll learn a ton, be trusted with real responsibility, and have the opportunity to develop your craft alongside a team that cares deeply about what we make, our customers, and about one another.
If you’ve ever been curious about what it takes to make the croissants at IZOLA, this might be your chance to learn.
If that sounds like you, or someone you know, we’d love to hear from you.
SATURDAY LIVE MUSIC
Every Saturday, we host live music at the bakeshop. Come on by to see how talented our local San Diego musicians are! Follow us on Instagram to see the lineup each week.
ENDING SOON!
Mango season is coming to an end, and sadly that means we’re down to the final days of Mango Lao 芒果捞.
We’ll keep making it as long as we can get those silky, honey-sweet, beautifully fragrant Ataulfo mangoes, but we think we’re getting pretty close to the end.
Mango Lao was inspired by the cold, sweet mango desserts Jenny used to bring her grandmother from a Chinese tea shop, and this summer she brought her own version to IZOLA.
Each one starts with half of a fresh mango, then gets layered with sweetened condensed milk ice, mango pudding, our housemade mango ice cream made with mango purée, cream and condensed milk, and finally 100% mango purée.
The fun is getting your spoon all the way down in there and mixing everything together. Cold and creamy, icy and smooth, with juicy fresh mango running through the whole thing. It’s basically summer in a bowl.
Mango Lao is available for walk-ins only and only while mango season lasts. So come get one while these beautiful mangoes are still around.
And while we’ve got ya, here’s a little IZOLA pro tip...IZOLA Weekdays.
Weekends are a blast, and we love the energy of a full bakeshop, but Monday through Friday is a whole different IZOLA. Most days there’s little to no line, you get to take your pick of where to sit, and there’s a little more time to settle in and hang out.
It’s been hot out there, so grab a table inside and enjoy the air conditioning, or find a spot on the patio if San Diego is behaving itself.
And the best part? The ovens don’t know it’s Tuesday.
Everything is still coming out hot from the oven, all....day....long....
Come linger with us.
OPEN EVERY DAY 7a–2p
In a rush? Just give us a call at 619-289-8358 when you arrive and we'll bring your order out to ya - we call it IZOLA Drive By.
Mango Lao is walk-in only, but preorders are still a pro move: reserve your croissants now, then order up Mango Lao at the pickup counter when you arrive. (note: 5-10min prep time)
OPEN EVERY DAY 7a–2p
In a rush? Just give us a call at 619-289-8358 when you arrive and we'll bring your order out to ya - we call it IZOLA Drive By.
THANK YOU, SAN DIEGO
We asked (and asked again ), you voted, and we're incredibly grateful.
IZOLA was named Best Bakery in the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Best of San Diego and Best Bread in San Diego Magazine’s 2026 Readers’ Picks.
That second one feels especially fun to share alongside this loaf. Our Lao Gan Ma Gruyère Sourdough exemplifies what we love about bread around here: long fermentation, a wild and open crumb, and then a whole lot of flavor packed inside. Spicy, crispy Lao Gan Ma chili crisp and melty Gruyère, swirled all the way through.
What makes both of these recognitions especially meaningful is that they came from you.
Thank you for voting, for telling your friends about us, for bringing your families through our doors, and for continuing to give us the opportunity to bake for you.
JOIN OUR TEAM
We're currently looking for someone to join our Production Team. The role begins with prep and production support, with opportunities to cross-train into croissant production over time.
This isn't the right fit for everyone. We hustle and hold ourselves to high standards. You'll be challenged, pushed to grow, trusted to work independently, and learn to receive a lot of feedback without taking it personally. We're looking for someone who enjoys systems and process, works efficiently without cutting corners, and takes pride in doing all the details well....which add up to great guest experiences.
Most importantly, we're looking for someone who enjoys being part of a team that cares deeply about the work and about one another.
If that sounds like you — or someone you know — we'd love to hear from you.
VIEW OPEN POSITIONS
SATURDAY LIVE MUSIC
Every Saturday, we host live music at the bakeshop. Come on by to see how talented our local San Diego musicians are! Follow us on Instagram to see the lineup each week.
KISUI
10-11a
KISUI is a singer-songwriter whose music feels like a conversation under the stars — intimate, reflective, and deeply human. With a soft acoustic sound and high, sweet vocals that lingers long after the last note, KISUI crafts music that traces the delicate lines of love, life, and the quiet in-betweens.
Her name is inspired by kintsugi — the art of repairing broken pottery with gold — a philosophy that echoes throughout her music. Like cracks filled with liquid gold, her songs find beauty in vulnerability, transforming pain and personal experience into something whole and luminous.
Her lyrics feel like pages torn from a diary — raw, poetic, and honest. Whether it’s a gentle heartbreak or a fleeting moment of joy, KISUI captures it with subtlety and grace, inviting listeners into her world one tender melody at a time.
Perfect for slow mornings, late-night thoughts, or anything in between, KISUI’s music is a sanctuary for those who feel deeply and love quietly.
PACIFIC OCEAN RUNNING CLUB
11a-12p
Pacific Ocean Running Club is a San Diego-based indie/folk solo artist and musician, known for heartfelt songwriting and a blend of indie-folk.
LYRICAL LEIA
12-1p
Just a Galactic Princess & her guitar San Diego based Singer/Songwriter Playing indie acoustic pop & rock covers & originals