The UpNorthNews Holiday Food Guide

Struggling to put together a spread for your holiday gatherings? We’ve got you covered.

Wisconsin is a state of grand fortune, with scores of local farms and farmers markets from which to source all of our necessary produce. We also have ample bake shops for pies and cookies, and, for those who aren’t up for hosting, plenty of great restaurants open on Christmas day!

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Wisconsin

While it is convenient to buy from Costco or Whole Foods, ordering pies and pastries from one of these Wisconsin businesses means supporting your local economy while ensuring higher-quality food.

READ MORE: 14 local bakeries to get a good holiday pie in Wisconsin

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Milwaukee

Honeypie Cafe

2569 South Kinnickinnic Ave., Milwaukee

Since its opening in Milwaukee’s Bay View neighborhood in 2009, Honeypie Cafe has been one of the city’s most popular breakfast, dinner, and brunch destinations. While it has a full menu, Honeypie Cafe might be best known for its pie. The restaurant and bakery even offers pie making classes, teaching attendees how to replicate some of Honeypie’s most-loved desserts in their own homes.

Peter Sciortino Bakery

1101 E Brady St., Milwaukee

This bakery is included on Wisconsin’s Holiday Cookie Trail. Need we say more?

READ MORE: The 13 best bakeries in Wisconsin

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Waukesha

All In Favor, Say Pie

502 Mandan Drive, Waukesha

As its name suggests, All In Favor, Say Pie, specializes in whipping up all sorts of pies, including a Dutch apple pie and apple cranberry pie. Unfortunately, the deadline for Thanksgiving orders passed on Nov. 16, but the Waukesha bakery sells custom-baked pies throughout the year, with in-season ingredients, and a crust that owner Jenny Danks takes immense pride in. Each of the bakery’s pies can also be made gluten-free.

Mama Ducky’s Desserts

290 West Main St., Waukesha

Mama Ducky’s Desserts in Waukesha isn’t named for duck-themed desserts or any savory pastries made with duck. Instead, it’s named for the rubber ducks that are the favorite toy of owner Melissa’s Lugo. The name reminds Lugo that she’s working to provide for her family. She is also working to accomplish her own dreams, as one of the baker’s earliest memories is wanting to bake lemon bars featured in a children’s cookbook. Mama Ducky’s Desserts serves up far more than just lemon bars, though, including a wide array of cream and fruit pies.

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Madison

Batch Bakehouse

1402 Williamson St., Madison

Every day, the staff at Batch Bakehouse makes all of the bakery’s breads, croissants, pastries, and pies from scratch. It’s a lot of work for the woman-owned business, but it pays off because occasionally the bakery will end up completely sold out of all of the products that were made that day. Instead of taking your chances on what’s available that day, the bakery allows customers to pre-order items, including its 3-inch mini pies that come in four flavors, or its seven different 9-inch pies.

Stella’s Bakery

2908 Syene Road, Madison

Stella’s Bakery in Madison might be best known for its hot and spicy cheese bread, but the team there makes a pretty good pie, too. The bakery has one brick-and-mortar location in the state’s capital, but their products are also available all over the city, including at the Dane County Farmers Market, the Monona Farmers Market, and in several grocery stores and restaurants.

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Middleton

Clasen’s European Bakery

7610 Donna Dr., Middleton

Photo by Mary Bergin

Gingerbread is a holiday staple, and nobody does it better than Clasen’s, where it’s shaped into stars, hearts, moons, and more, then drenched in chocolate. German immigrants established this family business in 1959.

Miggy’s Bakes

6712 Frank Lloyd Wright Ave., Middleton

Shelby Olstad founded Miggy’s Bakes, named after her dog, during the second semester of her senior year at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For two years, she baked thousands of cookies and cakes after school, and later, after her full-time job, running on little sleep and big dreams. Now, Miggy’s is a popular brick-and-mortar bake shop! UpNorthNews profiled Shelby last year, and we’re thrilled to see her business grow.

The Best Holiday Bakeries in Spooner

Alicia’s Baked Goods

2431 Greenfield Road, Spooner

At most bakeries that sell pie you can find the classics, like apple and pumpkin, but at Alicia’s Baked Goods in Spooner, you can order something a bit more unique: a bumbleberry pie. A bumbleberry isn’t a real berry—the pie, which originated in Canada, is made with a combination of blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and to differentiate it from a mixed berry pie, either apple or rhubarb.

Laura’s Bake Shop and Cafe

237 Walnut St., Spooner

This bakery sells a large amount of baked goods, including whole fruit pies that come in a multitude of flavors from apple to mixed berry to pumpkin. The restaurant’s pie offerings don’t end with its traditional pies—Laura’s Bake Shop and Cafe also sells cheesecakes in several flavors, including traditional strawberry and lemon, as well as pineapple and blueberry.

READ MORE: Here are 12 Wisconsin-based holiday treats ‘yule’ love

Restaurants Open on Christmas in Wisconsin

Not everyone is putting together an elaborate spread for Christmas. Some folks just want to go out for a quick bite. That’s why we found of a couple well-reviewed restaurants you can visit on Christmas Day.

Maharaja Restaurant

1550 N Farwell Ave, Milwaukee

Voted “Best of Milwaukee” for 19 years in a row, the Maharaja is an Indian restaurant with an assortment of meat and vegetarian dishes and appetizers, including traditional curries and naan. Reservations for Christmas can be made in advance by clicking here. 

Mitchell’s Fish Market

275 N Moorland Rd, Brookfield

Mitchell’s is open on Christmas Day from 12 to 8 p.m., and reservations can be made directly on their website. Popular menu items include oysters, calamari, filet mignon, salmon, scallops, and more. The restaurant is open on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day as well.