8 Must-Buy Bakery Items At Wegmans

Wegmans is one of the longest-standing grocery chains in the nation, and it’s stuck around due to its reputation. The chain is renowned for not only carrying basic groceries and pantry staples, but also offering a huge selection of prepared foods, to the point that you may feel more like you’re at a buffet than a grocery store. While there are a plethora of finger foods and entrées available, if you ask a customer their favorite section, they are more than likely going to point you toward the bakery.

Filled with fresh breads, decadent cakes, flaky pastries, and classic desserts, the bakery department has become one of Wegmans’ biggest attractions. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the number of options, fear not. Grocery shoppers are often the most ruthless critics, and they’re going to be honest about what you should buy and what you should leave behind. Below are some of the most highly-recommended bakery items you can buy at your local Wegmans; if you’re far from a store, some treats come so highly-reviewed that you might just have to make the trip.

Wegmans has really upped its croissant game. While the store has always sold classics like the plain and chocolate croissant in its bakery section, it now carries a variety of flavors such as Glazed, Almond, and Raspberry, topped with powdered sugar or finished with a chocolate drizzle. Savory options are available as well including Everything and Multi-Grain Wheat. The store has even been rolling out croissant bars in select locations, where customers can pick up any of these flavors as well as croissant sandwiches, offered in varieties like Kobe Beef and Green Goddess.

Customers praise Wegmans croissants for being light and flaky with a buttery flavor. The glazed version receive especially high praise, featuring the same qualities as the typical French pastry while coated in a sweet, sugary icing. You can purchase these croissants in regular or mini sizes and use them for everything from a breakfast treat to using them like bread for your favorite sandwich.

Chocolate chip cookies are a classic, but oftentimes grocery store versions lack that special homemade quality. This is not the case, it seems, for Wegmans Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies. These soft-baked cookies have customers in a chokehold, with people admitting to eating a whole box in one sitting. They are consistently recommended to folks who are trying out the Wegmans bakery section for the first time and need advice on what to grab.

These cookies are so popular that home bakers have developed copycat recipes so people can make them at home and consume even larger batches. Wegmans also sells miniature versions of their Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies, but these are not quite as popular. Shoppers encourage newbies to go straight for the full-size version, as the minis are pre-baked and shipped, whereas the full-size versions are baked in-store, resulting in a fresher, home-baked taste. These cookies are known to sell out, but Wegmans offers a rain-check policy, so you can come back and buy them at sale price if you’re greeted with an empty shelf. 

A favorite summery dessert, Wegmans Lemon Bars have a foundation of a sweet, crispy cookie crust topped with lemon cream and a dusting of powdered sugar. In chocolate- and vanilla-dominated bakery cases, some customers are looking for something bright and tangy instead. This timeless treat has become a favorite of Wegmans shoppers, inducing comments on their perfect balance between sweet and tart.

These bars also rely on real lemon for flavoring instead of artificial alternatives. That authentic taste makes it feel almost — almost — as if you’re purchasing from a small patisserie instead of a large grocery chain. Lemon bars are a dessert that home bakers have been known to tackle, but those with a Wegmans nearby might not want to bother taking the time. The grocery chain likely didn’t anticipate turning its customers into sweets snobs, but when you consistently turn out high-quality products, people notice.

Strawberry shortcake is one of those desserts that makes us feel nostalgic for summers off as kids, but who says it can’t be enjoyed all year round? Wegmans’ version is similar to the original: moist sponge cake is topped with whipped cream and fresh strawberries. Nothing is overcomplicated — just a few ingredients married together to make the classic warm-weather treat.

Wegmans shoppers are a huge fan of the Strawberry Shortcake, with some saying it’s now part of their weekly buy, and with others begging Wegmans to never discontinue it. While not the cheapest bakery item, customers are happy with the price for an cake that tastes so premium. It will satisfy your sweet tooth without being too sugary, and is still light enough to be enjoyed without a sugar coma afterward. It can be difficult to achieve a fresh taste in a pre-packaged dessert, but that’s one of the things this shortcake is praised for most.

A list of bakery must-buys simply wouldn’t be complete without a good chocolate cake. The Wegmans Ultimate Chocolate Cake is rich and moist, topped with a thick layer of premium chocolate icing. At $6 a slice for most Wegmans cakes, it’s a bit pricier than some of the other options, but the flavor and richness keep people coming back for another slice. The cake is much denser and has a fuller flavor than what you can achieve with a boxed cake mix, making it feel like a true bakery item.

This cake has come out on top when reviewed against other large chain chocolate cakes, so this just may be the best grocery chocolate cake on the market. Aside from tasting amazing, buyers commend Wegmans on the ideal cake-to-frosting ratio. There are many ways to doctor up a chocolate cake recipe like adding coffee, applesauce, or even grenadine, but you’ll find nothing but pure chocolate here. A perfect dessert for a celebration or just a rough day, the Ultimate Chocolate Cake consistently delivers maximum chocolate flavor.

Wegmans carries an impressive assortment of brioche bread products, including classic sliced brioche loaves, chocolate chip brioche, cinnamon brioche, and soft brioche hamburger and hot dog buns. These products are highly reviewed due to their buttery flavor and light, airy texture. Brioche is known for being more decadent than standard sandwich bread thanks to its higher butter and egg content, and Wegmans’ brioche feels bakery-quality while remaining accessible and versatile enough for everyday use.

Using brioche results in French toast that rivals your favorite brunch spot, and many satisfied Wegmans brioche buyers use it for just that. The slight sweetness is great for breakfast foods, and the thick slices mean they’ll absorb even more of that cinnamon-infused batter without falling apart. Consider using the brioche buns for sandwiches or burgers to upgrade your lunch to something that feels straight out of a French café.

If you’re looking for a simple breakfast to stock up and grab on your way out the door, Wegmans muffins are going to be your best bet. Wegmans sells traditional muffin flavors like blueberry, double chocolate chip, and corn, as well as more adventurous options such as French toast and peach. Pick up either the regular-sized muffins or the mini versions; both are highly regarded by regular Wegmans shoppers. Eat them as is or toast them with a bit of butter to make your treat even better.

The gluten-free muffin options also score major points with shoppers. They come in flavors like blueberry and French toast, and while gluten-free goods can often dry out due to extended baking time, customers say they’re moist inside with a crunch on top, just like a traditional muffin. You simply can’t look at a Wegmans review board without seeing people gush about the muffin selection, and once you try them you’ll see why.

While the frills and bright colors of Wegmans confections are appealing, you also need some simple, reliable purchases in your cart to last you the week. Wegmans Organic Miche Sourdough stands out to shoppers who love artisan-style bread. This rustic loaf is made with traditional sourdough techniques, perfected after an in-house Wegmans artisan baker found the ideal grain seeds for the bread. The loaf has a deep-brown crust and is packed with the subtle, tangy flavor of a homemade sourdough.

Wegmans also sells a rosemary variety of its sourdough, which can be ideal for bruschetta or either sweet or savory toast. Customers love the Miche Sourdough for grilled cheese as well, elevated by the more complex flavor that develops during the fermentation process. Sourdough has slightly more protein than regular bread, and is more gut-healthy, giving you even more reasons to love the loaf.

For this piece, I sifted through the most highly reviewed items in the bakery section of the Wegmans website to find what had been consistently reviewed well by customers. I also looked at different review sites and forums to see what baked goods people were buying most often, as well as what they were recommending to new Wegmans shoppers. I cross-referenced positive reviews across multiple sites to see which products had the strongest endorsements.