Riverside Bake Shop — Restaurant in McHenry

I used to love going here for the vanilla long johns as a kid. Idk what has changed but they arent the same. Maybe it's how they are packaging them. The owners and employees dont seem happy. Maybe they dont wnjoy what they do, so they arent putting care into it anymore. They used to have a ton of frosting on them. Now there is literally none. The second to last time I went they put them in a bag and all the fosting ran off of them. Thats what I assume happened. I didnt check to see if all the frosting was in the bottom of the bag, i just threw them away. Now just yesterday went went again. The cookies were hard, maybe thats how they are supposed to be? Im not a fan, they just seem stale. Also the vanilla long johns were in a box this time but each was wrapped all the way around with one of those papers they use to remove them from the case. Well the frosting dried to the paper, and when removing the paper it removed all the fosting. When i tried to scrape the frosting off the paper, to return to my doughnut, the paper just ripped, so i then tried to melt it into the microwave the fosting back onto the doughnut, but the fosting wont re-melt. This is the second visit where I've had to throw all the products I purchased in the trash. I definitely will not be retuening. I highly recommend going to meijer instead, that's where I will be shopping. Meijers products are just as good, if not better, and they package with care. So you dont have fosting-less doughnuts and...

Old style bakery with wonderful food. You can order ahead to be sure they have what you want. Busy place on some mornings but plenty of helpful staff, you never wait long in their small front counter area. Cash or check only. Some of our fans, drizzled large donut holes, the assorted Christmas cookie tins and of course around Easter the many different types of Paczkis (pronounced "Punch-key" if you're not from around here.) Much better and fresher than supermarket ones. Again, call for the types and date they start making these and place an order (like many smaller places, don't expect an Amazon-like website). They sell out, dont just walk in on Eastercand expect to pick some up. You will pay for qualityn but it is so worth it. Be careful parking in the quaint streetside parking on riverside, back out slowly. It's kind of tight in this old town. If you ever drive by very early in the morning and see no cars on the street and the rest of the town is dark with sidewalks rolled up, but the lights on inside and a fresh bread aroma wafting from inside, that's your sign that the bakers are hard at work making lots of goodies for you at this family-owned place, just have they have for many years. Every town has those special stores, this is one...

One Star – Unacceptable Behavior from Staff

I’ve been coming to this bakery regularly for the last 15 years, and until today, every single visit has been a positive experience. However, what I witnessed today was absolutely unacceptable.

While the bakery was packed with customers, a very elderly man—someone I’ve never seen before—was loudly yelling at a young female employee in the back of the kitchen. I don’t know the full context, but what matters is this: no customer should ever hear that kind of berating, especially not in a public setting. His tone was harsh, demeaning, and completely out of line.

The young girl, who looked like she was probably a teenager and clearly new to the job, turned red with embarrassment. Despite that, she composed herself, came out front, smiled, helped customers, and made change like a true professional. Hats off to her. If I had been in her shoes, I might have walked out on the spot—and I believe customers would have applauded her for doing so.

That older gentleman should not be managing or interacting with employees if that’s how he chooses to speak to them. No employee deserves to be humiliated like that, especially in front of customers.

If I could give less than one...