William Greenberg Desserts — Restaurant in New York

In late September 2022, I placed an order by phone for 48 cupcakes, for my kindergartener's birthday party. I specifically confirmed (i) that I would pick up the order at the UWS location and (ii) that we would receive a mix of cupcake and icing flavors.

Before setting out for the UWS store on the designated pickup date, I called the main line several times to confirm the time and location of pickup. However, no one answered the phone. Ultimately, given that the bakery was scheduled to close at 4 pm, I decided to just head over. I arrived (with my toddler in a stroller) only to be told dismissively that my cupcakes must be at the other location, that there is no communication between the sites, and that they had no better way of reaching the UES location than calling the same number on the general website that I had been calling without success.

I then had to scramble to drop my toddler off at home and take a cab to the UES location to arrive before it closed. The staff there were kinder than at the UWS location, and they informed me apologetically that despite my order being for a mix of flavors, I was getting 100% chocolate cupcakes, almost all of them with chocolate icing. I asked them to confirm that they were packing up 48 cupcakes for me to bring home. They said yes, and they also threw in a few leftovers from the store's cupcake offerings that day, since they were about to close and felt bad about the mixups.

Since it was raining and I live on the UWS, I took my order home via cab. When I unpacked it, I realized that, notwithstanding what the UES staff had told me, only 30 cupcakes had been provided in fulfillment of my order. Thankfully, with the (largely uniced/undecorated) leftovers they had given me, we had just enough for the kids and parents at party.

The entire experience was infuriating. Given the number of cupcakes their staff actually provided me with, I overpaid by $54 for the order itself, plus I had to spend $50 in cab fares to and from their UES location (and, of course, I could have used my time that afternoon in a more productive manner if only I hadn't had to chase after cupcakes on a deadline).

(As a secondary complaint, the cupcakes were dry and bland.)

This was my first time ordering from William Greenberg, and needless to say, it fell far short of my expectations. As a coda, I emailed them after the party to relay my experience and seek a partial refund, and they never bothered to respond. It was only at that point that I decided to share my experience publicly.

tl;dr - DO...

Very Sad Decline I have been shopping at William Greenberg since I was a kid on 68th and Madison Ave in the 1960’s. They were the “”class” bakery on the UES, known for their classic, buttery asked goods. A Greenberg brownie or apple pie was a real treat.. They cost a king’s ransom, but a King couldn’t get a better pie or cake. So, when my wife suggested that we should buy our pies this year instead of baking our own, and she would be going right by Greenberg’s on the way home, I leapt at the chance to save the work. Rolling out a crust is my least favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal preparation.

After our usual massive feast, everything from scratch, including my own turkey stock, made from an extra whole free range bird, the moment before the tryptophan coma for the sugar rush came, and we dug into the apple and the pumpkin pies. Oh my Lord. These were as bad as it gets. The crusts tasted of old Crisco, the apples were far undercooked and beyond tart - the texture was awful, the chunks of green fruit in a gelatinous paste. A $4 frozen pie from WalMart would have been far better. Hell, a McDonalds apple pie is better than that mess. We had already served everyone, but the plates were quickly removed - no same person would waste the calories on that.

The pumpkin pie was just as bad if not worse. The crust was bizarre - I couldn’t even tell if it was supposed to be pastry or Grrahm cracker - t was mealy and tasted of old lard. The filling was glop, the pumpkin undercooked and separated from the rest of the ingredients as if they had never been properly mixed or cooked. We cut only one piece to test after the apple pie disaster.

I dont know what to say. My wife will take the pies back. If I hadn’t poached a dozen pears in port and spiced cider, to serve with some fresh ginger snap on Friday, we would have had no desert.

I don’t know if this was a result of Greenberg purposefully using some awful 1950s recipe, or just quality control issues. What I do know is there were two horrifically expensive pies I wouldn’t serve to a kindergarten class or to prisoners at River’s Island.

I loved Greenberg.. Stick to the brownies or black and white cookies, I guess. I won’t be...

Desserts are good, especially B&W and chocolate chip cookies. However, their customer service is the pits. Unfriendly--in fact, the most unfriendly and unpleasant bakery I've ever visited in NYC. Hadn't been there in a while and wanted to get some of my faves. I called ahead to ask if I could bring my dog inside with me just to make a quick purchase (when it was off-peak hours). Orwashers, Levain, and Lady M. all permit dogs inside. I called ahead to Greenberg's bc I wasn't sure of their policy and wanted to be courteous. At first they said no. Then the person said something about ordering ahead for pickup. Then she ended saying it would be fine to come in with my dog to buy a few items. So I walked over there and was promptly and curtly told that I couldn't come in with my dog. Someone pointed to the counter and said I could order there. Then another REALLY rude woman said I had to put my dog outside. I told them I had called ahead and was told it would be okay. The really rude woman walked me toward the door. I said, "Forget about. I'm not tying up my dog outside for this." I stepped out and a few seconds later the really rude woman said I could come in. No way. Done. Went to Levain and got something even better to satisfy...