San Nei Croissant

Many people think San Nei is one of those internet-famous shops boosted by Xiaohongshu bloggers. In fact, this shop opened during the pandemic at the end of 2021, and by mid-2022, relying solely on local customers, it had already become a very popular croissant shop and café.

San Nei Croissant is one of the most successfully operated shops in Dali. It requires no publicity or promotion at all. As a Dali community shop, it holds a unique position. So, while introducing it, I should mention that sometimes there are quite a lot of people and you may need to queue.

They make great croissants, and their coffee is quite serious too. Their next-door sister shop, San Nei Ice Cream Shop, is also very popular. Another notable feature is that from the very beginning, they were already busy with mostly local customers. Gradually, many tourists came to check in, and it became so lively that long queues formed. Some people (like me) stopped going as often, but there are still many local customers. Zhamao would definitely want to go again, because every time we went before, we could enjoy a small cup of "doggie cream" prepared by the shop.

As far as I know from limited information, the San Nei couple were originally mid-level managers at Starbucks (and later Seesaw Coffee). After changing their lifestyle and moving to Dali, they started a new life. Opening a shop here is very different from managing at a big company: you don't have as many resources, and of course, you don't need special marketing. San Nei began researching croissant making and baking techniques; after all, the cost and instability of hiring staff wouldn't suit their new life.

At first, in early 2021, San Nei set up a studio at Harvest Coffee's Dali University branch, supplying the coffee shop while also providing croissants to the resident community. For example, Honghong was a loyal customer who gave feedback.

After getting past the technique-mastering stage, they officially opened their own shop using their experience. Leveraging their management strengths, they built a very good young team and gradually grew. It is probably the combination of baking skills, understanding customer needs, and management experience that led to their current success.

In the early days, I visited often and knew most of the San Nei team members, such as Bairu, Chenting, Xiaowu, etc. In March 2022, we even went hiking together and had a snowball fight. They are really great young people. They must have learned a lot working at San Nei, getting trained under high efficiency and intensity. Several of them later started their own small baking studios or little shops, which is fantastic. When an organization has turnover, and people who leave can go on to do their own things, that should be a point of pride. Being able to cultivate talent capable of working independently is quite valuable.

Starting from when Left Bank Highland was remote with almost no commercial activity, San Nei Croissant alone drove the area to become the most prosperous commercial zone now. It's something of a community legend. Probably it's both the trend of the times and personal capability.

A few years ago, when San Nei Croissant had just opened its standalone shop on Left Bank, I happened to write about it in a daily journal. Reading it now, it's quite interesting.

December 4, 2021

Excerpt from: A Morning

"At a little past nine in the morning, I ordered an Americano at San Nei Croissant, 15 yuan. The sun was bright and warm. In Dali's winter, there isn't much rain; most of the time it's sunny. When it rains in the foothills, it snows in the mountains. This shop had only been open for a few days, near the southern end of Cangshan Avenue, just above the Guanyintang Village where I live, close to the foot of Cangshan Mountain. People generally didn't come to this area before, because it was a new residential zone with no decent shops.

This shop had built up a reputation over the past year, so as soon as it moved here, it became bustling. And there's a wide open space in front to set up tables and chairs, no need to dodge city inspectors. Previously, sitting in front of Pushi was comfortable, but later the city inspectors banned setting up outside.

I also got a croissant side product, probably made from the leftover trimmings of croissant ingredients, 5 yuan. This is quite a distinctive product idea, cheap and tasty, but for some people, paired with coffee, it might be enough. Although it's just a small thing, it shows the owner's thoughtfulness and values.

The newly opened San Nei Croissant shop, with its open baking workspace, clean modern front counter, professional ordering mini-program, and abundant staff, is a shop that would be professional even in a city. This is also a change in Dali over the years: opening a shop increasingly requires professionalism, modern management, and considerate service. Although this place once valued idleness and freedom, in essence, people still like attentive and meticulous service and clean restrooms. Unstable business hours and overly distinctive attitudes are often just a low-quality aspiration to individuality. In contrast, consistent and reliable service is universally accepted and easily embraced. It's foreseeable that for some time, this shop will be widely popular."

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On April 6, 2021, Honghong received croissant messages in the group chat:

At that time, the studio and products at Harvest Coffee:

Around early December 2024, the new shop opened, recorded by Zhaohui from Vanilla Sweetheart Bakery:

According to friend-circle records, in September 2022, a traveling customer named "Dingqiu" already considered it an internet-famous shop:

In March 2022, we also went hiking and had a snowball fight. After time and memories, it feels even more beautiful.

Photos