Carlos Bakery Cake Boss

[mom42860]

Hi Everyone,
My daughter has been asking to visit Carlos Bakery in NJ, we live near Boston. She has done some "Googling" but suddenly it hit me- "Ask on the Dis". The info. I receive here is phenomenal. So if you have any advice or suggestions, my DD would be appreciative. Maybe we will travel down there during April vacation...Thanks!

 

[kacaju]

I live in NJ. I have never been there but have heard there is about a 3 hour wait to get in there.

 

[Disneyx6]

Here is the best advice I can give you that was given to me. Order online and you can skip the line and walk right in!!! That's right, go to the www.carlosbakery.com and place your order and then when you get to Hoboken you will be able to enter the store and pick up your order with no wait! Be prepared for some yelling from the crowd!! Simply tell them that you ordered online and go inside. There are restrictions....you have to pay in full on the website at the time of order and the sale is Final!! You are also only allowed 2 people in the store to pick up the order. If you are a larger group simply break up the order into 2 so that 4 people can enter There is also a limited selection on the website, but if you are simply looking to get into the store(w/o waiting hours on line!) and sample some of their delicious goodies and maybe even see Buddy or his family then pre-ordering is the way to go! Good luck and have a great time!!

 

[quentina]

I live in NJ. I have never been there but have heard there is about a 3 hour wait to get in there.

We just went a few months ago on a Saturday AM. No wait. There were 4 people in the place. Let me review how to post photo's and I will get them up here.

 

[melanie18]

We went last August and while the line was really long (the next block over), it moved pretty fast. Inside the store it was ridiculous. There was really no system once you're in the store. It was shoulder to shoulder. If they haven't already, they have to organize it more once you get inside. What we bought was pretty good, but frankly we have a lot of good bakeries in NJ so I don't know that I'd make another trip there.

 

[TheSchragFamily]

We tried to get into the D.C. Cupcakes bakery last year and it was MOBBED. "Only" a 45-minute wait! We took some pictures from the outside and skipped it, although it looked DELICIOUS inside! Hopefully people here will have some advice on the best days/times to go so you don't run into the same thing we did.

 

[mytripsandraces]

I never stop at Carlo's Bake Shop, but I walk past it (and the blocks-long line) on my way to Zafra. It's an amazing restaurant that serves an assortment of South American dishes. It's right next to Ultramarinos (same owner) which has delicious breads, sandwiches, pastries, cookies, chocolate, etc. If you need a place to eat before or after the Italian bakery, I highly recommend Zafra! The Peruvian corn drink (purple) is delicious, as is the hibiscus drink (though they don't always have it).

By the way, just up the coast in Weehawken, you can see the spot where the Hamilton/Burr duel took place, plus some amazing views of Manhattan.

 

[sandramaac]

From an Italian and baker here--OVERRATED---stuff is just ok. It may have been better years ago, but I don't think now there is as much the artisinal quality that the old immigrant bakers brought with them at Carlos. It too much production kind a pastries. The true Italian bakery goods there--just ok, have had so much better from Isgro's Bakery in Philadelphia. Even Ferrara's Bakery in Little Italy in New York is just ok. They became too commercial. If you want to go for a cannoli and a t-shirt, then go ahead, but there are far better bakeries in the NY area than this one!!!

 

[mytripsandraces]

From an Italian and baker here--OVERRATED---stuff is just ok. It may have been better years ago, but I don't think now there is as much the artisinal quality that the old immigrant bakers brought with them at Carlos. It too much production kind a pastries. The true Italian bakery goods there--just ok, have had so much better from Isgro's Bakery in Philadelphia. Even Ferrara's Bakery in Little Italy in New York is just ok. They became too commercial. If you want to go for a cannoli and a t-shirt, then go ahead, but there are far better bakeries in the NY area than this one!!!

That's what I've heard about it, too, which I why I keep walking past. Ultramarinos is a great bakery and there's a little cupcake shop a couple of blocks away, but I dan't remember the name.

 

[jel0511]

I used to live in Hoboken BEFORE Cake Boss took off and at that time, NEVER understood what was so AWESOME about Carlo's. We've been a couple of times, my DS is a BIG fan of the show. Once the line was almost nothing, the other time we waited over an hour just to get in. Our dentist is in Jersey City, so we always go back to Hoboken after to grab lunch and see our old apartment building. Anyway, the line is usually up to 3 hours long, so we drive by and go to Crumbs. I believe that's the cupcake place mentioned above. It's at 4th and Washington. The kids like that place! Unless you're REALLY BIG fan of the show, I wouldn't waste your time. The bakery is so crowded that you most likely won't see any of the members of the family while there. Especially if you go on a weekend, now during the week, the lines are equally as long. DH once waited over 2 hours (on a Wednesday in the RAIN) to pick up DS's birthday cake, didn't pre-order as he wanted a fondant cake and they don't do pre-orders on the small ones from the case as seen above.

 

[mytripsandraces]

we drive by and go to Crumbs. I believe that's the cupcake place mentioned above. It's at 4th and Washington.

It's not Crumbs. I think it's an independent baker. It's a block past 3rd (going away from the shore) and turning left from whatever street Carlo's is on. Sorry about the lack of clarity, but I take the PATH train from Manhattan and walk over and have no idea what the names of the streets are. I think it's on a corner of . . . never mind. I just mapped it from Zafra. I still don't know the name, but it's at 4th and Garden. Okay - I just googled it (cupcake hoboken 4th and garden) and it's called Sweet. The cupcakes are adorable and delicious. http://www.sweethoboken.com/

 

[mom42860]

Thank you, I loved the photos. It doesn't sound promising to take a trip down but happy to hear more.

 

[mytripsandraces]

Thank you, I loved the photos. It doesn't sound promising to take a trip down but happy to hear more.

Well, at least you've got other places you can go before or after the Bake Shop. There's a Rita's Water Ice on the same side of the street (Washington, I think), too.

 

[rwdavis2]

My cousin and his wife live in the area. She's a party planner and also bakes cakes. From and others I've never heard anything good about the actual cakes. She says they make them weeks in advance, store them in a fridge uncovered, and pull them as needed. The moisten them up by dumping syrup into them. I can't imagine it's worth a trip from Boston to get baked goods.

 

[puffkin]

I went on a NYC cupcake bus tour back in September and Carlos's was our first stop. We got there about 9am on a Sunday morning and it took about 1 hour to get our stuff. They only let so many people in the shop at a time, which is TINY. You cannot see anything in the cases once you are inside. I thought the items I got were good, but was disappointed with the experience.

We also stopped at Crumbs, Sprinkles, Magnolias and one other place in Manhattan. I really liked everything from Crumbs and Sprinkles was pretty cool. We are going into Manhattan on Wednesday for a show and I plan to pick up some cupcakes at Crumbs for my bday on Friday

I don't think the trip from Boston to Hoboken is really worth it just for Carlos's. If you can combine it with other stuff in the area it may be a fun little diversion for a big fan of the show.

 

[LukenDC]

We tried to get into the D.C. Cupcakes bakery last year and it was MOBBED. "Only" a 45-minute wait! We took some pictures from the outside and skipped it, although it looked DELICIOUS inside! Hopefully people here will have some advice on the best days/times to go so you don't run into the same thing we did.

DC Cupcakes permits online ordering. Place your order online, tell the cupcake bouncer that you are there to pick up an online order, and you're in!

 

[st4rrab0vemybed]

I never stop at Carlo's Bake Shop, but I walk past it (and the blocks-long line) on my way to Zafra. It's an amazing restaurant that serves an assortment of South American dishes.

Love that place, esp. sitting outside on a nice day.

I used to live in Hoboken BEFORE Cake Boss took off and at that time, NEVER understood what was so AWESOME about Carlo's. We've been a couple of times, my DS is a BIG fan of the show. Once the line was almost nothing, the other time we waited over an hour just to get in. Our dentist is in Jersey City, so we always go back to Hoboken after to grab lunch and see our old apartment building. Anyway, the line is usually up to 3 hours long, so we drive by and go to Crumbs. I believe that's the cupcake place mentioned above. It's at 4th and Washington. The kids like that place! Unless you're REALLY BIG fan of the show, I wouldn't waste your time. The bakery is so crowded that you most likely won't see any of the members of the family while there. Especially if you go on a weekend, now during the week, the lines are equally as long. DH once waited over 2 hours (on a Wednesday in the RAIN) to pick up DS's birthday cake, didn't pre-order as he wanted a fondant cake and they don't do pre-orders on the small ones from the case as seen above.

Agreed. I've tried various treats from Carlo's and I wasn't that impressed, except when it comes to their pignoli cookies; they are fantastic! The lines are extreemly long on the weekends and could last hours from what I've heard. The few times I have been were on Friday nights after work, and there was either a small wait or no wait at all.

I honestly enjoy going to Crumb's more. Also, a little further up on Washington is a German Bakery, and the treats are very tasty.

 

[rszdtrvl]

DC Cupcakes permits online ordering. Place your order online, tell the cupcake bouncer that you are there to pick up an online order, and you're in!

Good to know. The group I am going with has considered trying to go here. I will be sure to let the leader know about the online ordering.

 

[mytripsandraces]

The chef who owns Zafra and Ultramarinos was nominated for a James Beard award for her other Hoboken restaurant (dinner only) Cucharamama.

 

[CookieGVB]

I actually was pretty happy with the pastries we bought at Carlo's. We had the lobster tails (my favorite), cannolis (really good) and crumb cake (ok). We went the day after Valentine's Day around 11 in the morning. There were only 2 other people there. 10-15 minutes later, and it was mobbed. They had cameras running back and forth, we saw Mauro walking around towards the back; Grace came up front for a minute or two. No Buddy - but it was right after his new baby was born. Surprisingly, no signs up "It's a Boy" or "Congrats" or anything. We found out the next day.