Bakery Items

[paperwatermelon]

What are your thoughts on the prices of bakery items? For what some bakeries offer, are they too low, just right, or too high? How come most bakeries do not list their prices for customers to see?

I sometimes feel when I patronize a bakery for the first time (either by impulse shopping, word of mouth or a write up) that they "get to charge, what they want."

It's almost as if they will charge one price to their regulars and another to the one-stop-shoppers? What are your thoughts on how much a muffin, cake, pastry item, specialty item, cookies should cost? Is it all about the location, quality, etc?

Comments?

[menton1]

It has been my experience that you get what you pay for at a bakery. Cheap is cheap. I am lucky enough to live near Balthazar Bakery, on Dean St in Englewood. They bake for the NY restaurant and lots of other wholesale distribution, but they have opened a retail shop next to the bakery a few years ago, and it is nirvana. Wonderful breads, rolls, and gorgeous french pastries. Try the walnut raisin bread, and if they have it, one of their fruit tartes. Just be ready to blow your diet!!

[zhelder]

What are your thoughts on the prices of bakery items? For what some bakeries offer, are they too low, just right, or too high? How come most bakeries do not list their prices for customers to see?

I sometimes feel when I patronize a bakery for the first time (either by impulse shopping, word of mouth or a write up) that they "get to charge, what they want."

It's almost as if they will charge one price to their regulars and another to the  one-stop-shoppers? What are your thoughts on how much a muffin, cake, pastry item, specialty item, cookies should cost? Is it all about the location, quality, etc?

Comments?

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I had a debate with some other members a while back about this. there are some truly marvelous high-end bakeries out there. There are also some very good cheap bakeries out there, although they are difficult to find. Personally, I feel most bakeries charge way too much for most items. Some may feel that you have to pay a lot to get quailty, but I respectfully disagree.

I don't know what part of NJ you're from, but here are some picks for some good quality, cheap bakeries in Northern NJ:

Belmont Bakery, North Haledon: Small bakery, fairly small selection. But their stuff is very good, they're very rarely real busy, the staff is nice, they've been there forever from what I understand, and they have the cheapest prices anywhere. Breads are about $1.50, many fruit cookies/pastries are about $1.00, cream pies are $5-$6, and fancier cakes are about $8. I bought a strawberry mousee cheesecake from them last week for $9.95 and that's the most I ever spent on a cake there. It was good too! Got a large boston creme cake from them for $6.25 last weekend. They're my favorite.

Gencarelli's, Bloomfield: Large bakery, large selection, great stuff. Noticeably more expensive than Belmont Bakery, but they have a much larger selection and prices on most items are still reasonable. Regular whipped cream cakes run about $10, fancier cakes go for about $15. Good selection of Italian pastries for around $2 each. Great foccacia breads too.

Calandra's, Fairfield, Newark: The Fairfield location is quite large and has a wide variety of stuff. (I'm not familiar with the Newark location.) Although not officially a "cheap" bakery by my standards, you can turn them into one occasionally. Sign up on their website and every 3 to 4 months they will send you coupons for 50% off your entire purchase. They also have one item every week that they sell for 50% off the retail price (usually featured on their website). Cakes, pastries, and breads are very good. I was never impressed with their cookie selection, but the rest of the stuff is good. Breads go for about $2 a loaf, most cakes are about $12 - $14 before discounts.

Shop-Rite, Ramsey: Even though this is a supermarket bakery, it's a damn good one. Wonderful chocolate chip cookies and other butter cookies, $5.99 a pound. Cakes sell for about $9-$12 each. Lots of pastries from $1 -$2 each. the bakeries in the Hillsdale and Fair Lawn Shop-Rites are also good, but Ramsey is definitely the best.

If you really want to indulge, you can go to Patisserie St. Michel in Teaneck. His pastries are the best around, period. However, he is very expensive. Pastries are about $4 each and cakes are $25-$30 a pop. They are truly incredible, and you should try them at least once in a while.

But for me, as delicious as Patisserie St. Michel's pastries are, they are not worth 4 times the price of a good cake from Belmont Bakery, except for once in a while, for special occasions. But Belmont is my #1 pick for a good quailty, cheap (or should I say inexpensive?) bakery.

[Double 0]

I a gree with Nenton, you get what you pay for. I always ask prices before buying. That being said, here's three more bakeries with a good bang for the buck.

Village Baker, Clifton. this newish bakery has two items woth going out of your way for, ruggelusch and donuts. The ruggelusch is $8.00/ lb and blows away the best. The Polish donuts (.75) are stuffed with a tart raspberry preserve and come powdered sugar and cin. sugar. The pastries and tart are top notch also. no real cakes as such.

Allwood Bakery, Clifton. An old style bakery with fabuluois onion rolls, Miami and flat, great cookies @ $10/ lb, pastries and danish @ .75/ ea. The cakes pies and donuts also get two thumbs up.

Rockland Bakery, Rockland, NY. Its not in NJ, but its right on the border. This wholesale bakery also has a huge retail business. You go right into the production floor to pick your own breads, rolls,and bagels. Everything is right out of the ovens. The rye, egg rolls, challah, onion board, and kaiser rolls are top notch and very cheap. The rest of the bread products are good, but not great. The sweet baked goods are also top grade and very inexpensive. On the weekends the place is mobbed.

[hitmanoo]

Calandra's, Fairfield, Newark: The Fairfield location is quite large and has a wide variety of stuff. (I'm not familiar with the Newark location.) Although not officially a "cheap" bakery by my standards, you can turn them into one occasionally. Sign up on their website and every 3 to 4 months they will send you coupons for 50% off your entire purchase.  They also have one item every week that they sell for 50% off the retail price (usually featured on their website). Cakes, pastries, and breads are very good. I was never impressed with their cookie selection, but the rest of the stuff is good. Breads go for about $2 a loaf, most cakes are about $12 - $14 before discounts.

I find Calandra's to be excellent for bread, but just about average on the rest of their baked goods. I find this to be true for both the Fairfield and Newark locations, though the Newark location is average to above average for their baked goods making them a little bit better than the Fairfield location.

[paperwatermelon]

Wow! I am certainly going to make a few pit stops in the near fututure. Thanks to everyone who has posted their comments and contact information for the bakeries.

As I stated in my earlier post, many of the establishments that I have patronized in the past don't have a posted price list for the customer to review before placing an order at the counter. I just wonder why that is? How come most other food-related establishments have a menu posted with prices? Does this have anything to do with "keeping an old tradition alive?" Why should some bakeries who don't list their prices be held to a different standard than others that do?

I can certainly understand that some bakeries don't bake every item on a daily basis or sometimes quickly run out of a specialty item and that most of the time, you get what you pay for (as far as quality is concerned), but those are both topics for another day.

At the time I was posting, I was seeking your own personal experiences about the bakery industry, but now that you have began also creating a running list of places I should try, it looks like I will need to spend some extra time at the gym.

Keep em' coming - they look great!

Thanks again.

[Kim WB]

When you say the Shop Rite cake is a good cake, do you mean its a good cake, or is it a good cheap cake? Like, " For a $6 cake, it's great!"OR "This cake is great, I cannot believe it is only $6!" big difference, to me.

[menton1]

IMHO these supermarket cakes are neither good nor good value. Of course, if you like your cakes highly oversweetened and underflavored, you may enjoy these cakes. But if you want a good product that's what a pastry is meant to be, you need to dig deeper into your wallet.

[hitmanoo]

IMHO these supermarket cakes are neither good nor good value. Of course, if you like your cakes highly oversweetened and underflavored, you may enjoy these cakes.  But if you want a good product that's what a pastry is meant to be, you need to dig deeper into your wallet.

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That's a pretty broad and general statement to make, considering that there are many supermarkets that do their own baking on premesis. I find that many of the baked goods vary in quality from store to store.

[menton1]

many supermarkets that do their own baking on premesis.

Well, Blimpie and Subway bake their own bread on premises, and it tastes like a limp dishrag...

[tommy]

many supermarkets that do their own baking on premesis.

Well, Blimpie and Subway bake their own bread on premises, and it tastes like a limp dishrag...

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i do believe that they simply finish the bread on premises.

not knowing much at all about pastries, i can't imagine that any supermarket is going to come anywhere near balthazar or the michael fellow. however, i can see how there are probably plenty of somewhat reasonable options at some supermarkets if that's your bag.

in fact, i picked up a ciabatta from Stop and Shop the other day, and it was quite decent enough for a Sunday sandwich when no bakeries were open for bread. it was part of the best tuna sandwich. ever.

Edited May 10, 2006 by tommy (log)

[hitmanoo]

many supermarkets that do their own baking on premesis.

Well, Blimpie and Subway bake their own bread on premises, and it tastes like a limp dishrag...

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i do believe that they simply finish the bread on premises.

not knowing much at all about pastries, i can't imagine that any supermarket is going to come anywhere near balthazar or the michael fellow. however, i can see how there are probably plenty of somewhat reasonable options at some supermarkets if that's your bag.

in fact, i picked up a ciabatta from Stop and Shop the other day, and it was quite decent enough for a Sunday sandwich when no bakeries were open for bread. it was part of the best tuna sandwich. ever.

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I'd like to think that high end bakeries can do better than supermarkets, but sometimes you can get a good enough baked good to fit your needs at a reasonable price. Not every baked good has to be "best ever."

As for Subway and Blimpie, let's just leave that mass produced/frozen product out of this discussion and treat egullet with a little respect!

[menton1]

Absolutely, I have also gotten decent bread at supermarkets; a particularly good new york rye once. But, responding to the subject of cakes at supermarkets, those have always proved inferior to me. Sickeningly sweet. Textures off. Frankly, in a pinch, I'd rather do an Entenmanns. But the bread usually ain't bad.

Edited May 10, 2006 by menton1 (log)

[hitmanoo]

Absolutely, I have also gotten decent bread at supermarkets; a particularly good new york rye once.  But, responding to the subject of cakes at supermarkets, those have always proved inferior to me.  Sickenly sweet.  Textures off.  Frankly, in a pinch, I'd rather do an Entenmanns.  But the bread usually ain't bad.

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Entenmanns isn't ths supermarket. They have their own case at the end of the isle!

[Kim WB]

Supermarkets: In NJ, we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans...but any other grocery store isn't going to deliver in quality ingredients..even Whole Food s will have fresh fruits, but inferior marscapone, butter cream etc.

I guess I was being challenging...for the record, anyone who thinks ShopRite has high quality goods, I cannot agree. . Anyone who thinks Shoprite had good quality cheap baked goods, I'll give you that. Any kid event, I like to order a big in your face pack a punch full sheetcake with a photo image, fits the bill.

Referenced above are also exceptionally good mid level bakeries...above shop rite, not Balthazar. In central NJ, Italian People's bakery fulfills that genre.

[dbrociner]

Supermarkets: In NJ, we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans...

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Kim, the Wegman's in Bridgewater stopped carrying Pierre Hermes sometime last year. I went in looking for chocolates to give as Christmas gifts and was told they no longer carried the line. I know you shop at the Manalapan store, are you sure they still carry his products?

Edited May 10, 2006 by dbrociner (log)

[menton1]

we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans

Pierre Hermé is chocolate, no pastry or cake...

[SusanGiff]

I just wanted to add one to the list: Chatham Bakery and Bread Shop, right across from the middle school on Main Street in Chatham. I'd say it was in the mid- to high-end range. Everything I tried, from a bear claw to a slice of carrot cake to a dark chocolate pasty, was really top-notch--fresh, quality ingredients, not too sweet (bakery goods that taste primarily of sugar are a pet peeve of mine). I'd never heard of it and just happened to be there because my daughter was at an all-day event at the school. So with time to kill, I had an opportunity to check out many offerings. A really nice surprise!

Susan

[rozrapp]

Supermarkets: In NJ, we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans...

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Kim, the Wegman's in Bridgewater stopped carrying Pierre Hermes sometime last year. I went in looking for chocolates to give as Christmas gifts and was told they no longer carried the line. I know you shop at the Manalapan store, are you sure they still carry his products?

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I shop at the Manalapan store regularly. Whether or not the pastries on display there are Pierre Herme, they sure look gorgeous. However, I've never bought any, so I have no idea how good they taste. As for the chocolate question, I remember posting about his once before on another thread. Several months ago, I spoke with the department manager and asked if they were still carrying the Herme chocolates. She said that they were, but they were now selling them only at holiday times. They would not be on display but could be ordered.

[Kim WB]

I shop at the Princeton store. They have the chocolates, although I can't 100% be sure if its at Holidays ...they are there now, maybe for Mother's day?

the individual desserts at Wegman's have the Perre hermes logo all over them, specifically the chocolate discs they use as a frequent decoration..I just assumed the pastries were made under his specs, but I could be wrong. Also, I know I have purcahsed pastries and gotten a sticker w/ his logo on it on the box...but again, it might just be packaging.

[ashfood]

IMHO these supermarket cakes are neither good nor good value. Of course, if you like your cakes highly oversweetened and underflavored, you may enjoy these cakes.  But if you want a good product that's what a pastry is meant to be, you need to dig deeper into your wallet.

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That's a pretty broad and general statement to make, considering that there are many supermarkets that do their own baking on premesis. I find that many of the baked goods vary in quality from store to store.

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What supermarket bakes on premise in New Jersey?- maybe they bake from a Gold Medal Mix-but it's still a mix! Modern Baking magazine publishes a yearly list of supermarkets bake from scratch, mix or have them sent in frozen. There ain't too many-if any-on THAT list that are baking the real deal! They just can't afford to do it.

[jsfein]

Supermarkets: In NJ, we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans...

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Kim, the Wegman's in Bridgewater stopped carrying Pierre Hermes sometime last year. I went in looking for chocolates to give as Christmas gifts and was told they no longer carried the line. I know you shop at the Manalapan store, are you sure they still carry his products?

←

I shop at the Manalapan store regularly. Whether or not the pastries on display there are Pierre Herme, they sure look gorgeous. However, I've never bought any, so I have no idea how good they taste. As for the chocolate question, I remember posting about his once before on another thread. Several months ago, I spoke with the department manager and asked if they were still carrying the Herme chocolates. She said that they were, but they were now selling them only at holiday times. They would not be on display but could be ordered.

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Although the Manalapan store carried Pierre Hermes chocolates in the past, they did not stock them this past Valentine's Day. I know because I was looking.

[Kim WB]

I am going to make a special effort to make sure I am not misidentifying these chocolates. I could have sworn I just saw them, but I a doubting myself after these posts. Will report ASAP.

[paperwatermelon]

Rockland Bakery, Rockland, NY. Its not in NJ, but its right on the border. This wholesale bakery also has a huge retail business. You go right into the production floor to pick your own breads, rolls,and bagels. Everything is right out of the ovens. The rye, egg rolls, challah, onion board, and kaiser rolls are top notch and very cheap. The rest of the bread products are good, but not great. The sweet baked goods are also top grade and very inexpensive. On the weekends the place is mobbed.

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Well, I did find myself near the Rockland Bakery in West Nyack, NY the other day and I need to thank you for the great recommendation. It is truly an experience if you have never been there before. I especially enjoy being able to go into the back (where you see them do the actual baking) and pick out your own breads literally right out of the oven. They were so hot and fresh, we couldn't even touch them at first. I was so overwhelmed I don't think I saw the entire operation (something about there being another section in the back, I think I missed?) I wasn't going directly home so I only purchased items that would travel well. The egg rolls, challah, onion rolls were excellent. The bagels were alright, and the French Nut Cake was out of this world! Anything else that I should definitely purchase next time. I feel that I might be there sooner than I think. Thanks again for the recommendation(s) and please keep em' coming to add to the list!

[Randi]

we have Pierre Hermes at Wegmans

Pierre Hermé is chocolate, no pastry or cake...

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If you google Pierre Hermé pastry you'll see that Pierre Hermé is a master pastry chef. And you'll see many references to his pastries and desserts.