Middleton’s Sweetest Sellers: Must-Try Desserts Locals Love
Middleton’s bakeries, diners and dessert shops are filled with handcrafted treats, from flaky pastries and rich pies to creamy gelato and ice cream. To find…
Middleton's bakeries, diners and dessert shops are filled with handcrafted treats, from flaky pastries and rich pies to creamy gelato and ice cream. To find the desserts customers love most, we asked stores to share their best-selling creations.
The Brioche Box
2303 Pinehurst Drive
The Brioche Box has quickly become a weekend treasure for pastry lovers, serving handcrafted brioche donuts made in small batches with thoughtfully sourced ingredients and house-made fillings. Open only on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (or sold out), these donuts go fast.
The stars of the menu are the Japanese milk cream and chocolate custard flavors. Other popular picks include the pandan salted mascarpone and salted caramel custard, while rotating weekly specials keep guests coming back for creative flavors like peaches and cream or ube custard. Follow The Brioche Box on Facebook or Instagram to see the latest weekend lineup before it's gone.
C’s Restaurant & Bakery
2550 Allen Boulevard
For more than 40 years, C's Restaurant & Bakery has been serving homemade baked goods alongside hearty comfort food, earning a loyal following since opening in 1985. The bakery case is filled with tempting treats, but one stands above the rest.
According to the staff, the pecan roll is the bakery's best seller. Loaded with a generous layer of pecans and sweet glaze, it's easy to see why it's a longtime customer favorite. While the pecan roll takes the top spot, the peanut butter cup dessert has also earned rave reviews and is another standout that's well worth saving room for.
Miggy's Bakes
6712 Frank Lloyd Wright Avenue
Owned by a Middleton local, Miggy's Bakes has earned a following for its handcrafted and beautiful desserts.
The bakery’s top seller is homemade chocolate sandwich cookies – much like a popular name-brand – featuring two rich chocolate cookies filled with vanilla buttercream frosting. Coming in a close second is the cookie dough cup, which starts with a chocolate chip, cookies-and-cream or sugar cookie base and is topped with edible cookie dough to create flavors like s'mores, sugar cookie, peanut butter, cookie butter, chocolate chip, Oreo, or (owner Shelby's favorite) Nutella.
Hubbard Avenue Diner
7445 Hubbard Avenue
A visit to Middleton isn't complete without stopping by Hubbard Avenue Diner's bakery case. While the oversized frosted sugar cookies fly off the shelves, it's the homemade pies that have made the diner famous.
The apple pie is the top seller, proving that a perfectly baked classic never goes out of style. Other customer favorites include the rich French silk pie, made with whipped butter and chocolate and covered with whipped cream and chocolate shavings, and the refreshing key lime pie, topped with whipped cream and sugared lime slices.
Villa Dolce
1828 Parmenter Street
Inspired by the modern Italian cafés that owners Faton and Jerry Lumani grew up with in Europe, Villa Dolce is a place to slow down and savor authentic desserts, handcrafted gelato and time spent with friends and family. Since opening, the restaurant has become a favorite for its Italian-inspired sweets made with quality ingredients.
While Villa Dolce offers 12 house-made gelato flavors, the chocolate gelato takes the lead as a guest favorite. For those who have a hard time choosing just one, don't stress! Featuring three scoops of any flavor with whipped cream, the gelato experience is the way to go for those who want to have it all.
Other standout desserts include the indulgent chocolate eruption, a tower of chocolate mousse layered with creamy white and dark chocolate cheesecake chunks; the pistachio cheesecake, made with pistachio cream cheese, white and dark chocolate ganache and a shredded kadaif pistachio base; and the decadent flourless chocolate torte, a dark chocolate flourless cake finished with a smooth ganache.
Clasen's European Bakery
7610 Donna Drive
Since opening in 1959, Clasen's European Bakery has been crafting scratch-made items. The bakery's talented pastry chefs create more than 70 varieties of treats, but one pastry has earned a reputation as the must-try favorite.
The morning bun is the bakery's top seller, combining the flaky layers of croissant dough with the warm flavors of cinnamon and sugar. Made fresh every morning, each bun starts with laminated dough baked over a layer of caramel and finished with a generous coating of sugar for a sweet, sticky and irresistible treat. Crisp layers, gooey center, buttery flavor, and the best way to start the morning during a stay in Middleton.
Lane's Bakery
2120 West Greenview Drive
At Lane's Bakery the Kringles are what keep many customers coming back. Available in a dozen flavors, these traditional pastries combine rich, sweet and slightly savory flavors with a signature filling.
The cherry cheese Kringle is the most purchased item, featuring a flavorful cherry filling paired with a thin layer of icing.
Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream
6709 Frank Lloyd Wright Avenue
Since 1962, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream has been crafting ice cream in Dane County with real cane sugar, Wisconsin milk and high-quality ingredients. Known for its rich flavors and award-winning recipes, the shop has become the stop for ice cream lovers.
The top-selling flavor changes depending on the day, but Zanzibar® Chocolate and This $&@! Just Got Serious® consistently rise to the top. The award-winning Zanzibar Chocolate® ice cream is made with three kinds of cocoa, creating a rich, fudge brownie flavor that earned first place in the dark chocolate category at the 2024 Dairy Expo.
This $&@! Just Got Serious® combines smooth salted caramel ice cream with rich sea salt fudge and salted cashews for a sweet and salty treat. Can't decide on just one? The ice cream flight lets guests sample several of Chocolate Shoppe's popular flavors in one visit.
