Waretown Bakery — Restaurant in Ocean Township

These weren't the greatest donuts or coffee I've ever had, but what really tipped the scales for me was the price and most importantly customer service. I wandered in here on the 4th of July probably around 7am-ish after misreading Google Maps and taking an ill-advised walk from our Airbnb down a solid chunk of Route 9. (There was a pedestrian path on the other side of the road that looked very peaceful in comparison and I just didn't feel like crossing the highway to get on it - 100% on me). As soon as I saw the crowded parking lot, I knew this was probably the only mom and pop game in town - there's a Dunkin nearby at least - and that this was a locals place through and through.

The interior is small, and it felt probably even smaller because it was packed with locals, all of whom were super nice to me. The door was held for me both going in and out, and milk was offered/handed to me for my coffee by a fellow customer. Any mild issues I had in moving around the room were negated by the hospitality. The back wall of the room and side counters are dominated by pastries, and there's a coffee station to the left of the entrance that's similar to what you'd find at a gas station convenience store - low maintenance for sure but gets the job done.

The display of donuts behind the register caught my eye before anything else, so I opted for two of those - chocolate frosted and strawberry frosted. There were a few edgier flavors including a 4th of July themed blue one but I don't typically mess around with the classics. They were pretty tasty - decent size for sure, maybe a little cakier than I typically prefer, but the dough was on the airy side and I liked that they didn't skimp on the frosting.

I grabbed an additional coffee for one of my top-tier chums (two of whom came to rescue me from a return walk down Route 9), and the total - two coffees and two donuts - came to a little over $5. We were all delightfully flabbergasted. That typically gets you maybe a caffeinated beverage closer to the city.

Worth a stop for sure if you're in the area. In the low-key land of strip malls between Seaside and AC, I'd much rather go to a little standalone shop like this, as...

It was the Christmas season post super-storm Sandy... The storm had wreaked havoc throughout Ocean County and the rest of NJ. Many parts of Lacey Township's Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating station were still being powered by generators. The cold was absolutely brutal that winter. The security officers protecting the facility often had to wear coats inside and outside of buildings. Add to that, the mandatory overtime was relentless. All of these elements combined to bring morale, among my work family, down to historic lows. One morning, I believe it was a day or two before Christmas, I decided to stop by Waretown Bakery to pick up something to cheer up the crew. Looking in the glass case, everything looked wonderful, but my eyes landed on Glazed Croissants. These croissants looked incredible! I asked to purchase enough to feed our small army, and hurried off to work with my piles of neat white boxes. Everyone was amazed by these Glazed Croissants and as word spread, it quickly became a tradition throughout the department! Yesterday, 12/20/24 , I decided to share the magic croissants with my new work family, which consists of teachers, administration and staff who care for special needs children. As predicted, the magic croissants put smiles on everyone's faces! Thank you Waretown Bakery, I hope you enjoyed the story as much as I have enjoyed sharing your croissants! I highly recommend Waretown Bakery for all kinds of delicious baked goods, but if you need a bit of magic to generate some smiles, ask for the...

This is in response to Ryan Dunleavy’s review . I work at the Waretown Bakery . Yes you are correct , the donuts are not out at the 6 am opening time . The bakery is owned by the baker , the baker is the only one who does the cooking ( it’s a one man show ). The baker comes in at 3am and leaves anywhere from around 6/7 at night . He bakes all the bakery items fresh daily , and he leaves the donuts for the final item he makes , he feels that the donuts can get stale quicker being that they are out in the air and not in a closed case. That is the reason he cooks the donuts closer to our opening time of 6am. The donuts are usually all complete and out by 7am. He wants the bakery open at 6am for anyone going into work early , so they can still get a Danish , coffee, buttered roll or any other item we have available at that time. Ryan , with all that being said , we do not want any customer to be unhappy , and we try our best to please everyone . If it works for you , you could let us know the day before what you would like , or even call us as early as 5am ( that’s what time we come in ) we will do our very best to get what you would like ready for you so you can come in and be on your way as quickly as possible. Ryan please feel free to call me at the Bakery , my name is Elizabeth , and I will do my best to accommodate you . Ryan I hope to hear...