This little diner is amazing! From the minute you walk in the door you are greeted like they have known you for years! Classic diner atmosphere, and the food!!! Home cooking at its finest! Everything was so good we went there two days in a row for breakfast! I wish I had taken pictures but the food was gone too fast to take pictures! We will Definitely eat there again next time we visit Elmira! read more

This place was not on my list of places to frequent, but they have new owners and ALL DAY BREAKFAST!!! And breakfast is my favorite thing!! They would get that last star if their menu had descriptions of the food!! I get the Mr. Big...what is that??? You'll have to ask because it's NOT ON THE MENU!! But I know: 2 eggs done however you like, bacon, sausage, ham?, and for a charge you can upgrade to corned beef hash, also comes with home fries and toast! Eggs cooked the way I asked, I also like my bacon crispy which they do perfectly upon request. Home fries are good. 2 other downfalls: they must butter the toast after it's cold or they use cold butter spread, cuz it's kinda congealed in there. I just scrape off the excess. And the coffee is a little weak!! Common problem if places trying to get by with as little as possible--good enough to call it coffee, but not good! As this place is a bakery...the coffee should be better!! There a whole menu of other stuff but I like their breakfast so much I haven't tried anything else!! read more

Light's Bake Shop - Breakfast!! X2, 1 scrambled egg Mr. Big and 1 fried egg Mr. Big - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

I would rate a 10 if I could. coconut raspberry cake. Excellent did not disappoint from the moist cake to the delicious frosting. It was amazing. It was well loved by everybody. Thank you The chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. Excellent did not disappoint. It was also amazing. Thank you for being the best. read more

Just want to give anyone who sees this Lights Bakery Review a heads up and not waste their time nor their $$$ at this place!! Met a few friends there this am for breakfast needless to say it was rather sad and pathetic!! I know all about this "inflation" epidemic were all dealing with but 1st was their Prices OMG this is Breakfast stuff I'm talking about Toast , eggs , hash browns , coffee ect. their menus looked as if a 6 th grader made them. Let's just say their "Fancy high end Breakfast prices damn sure didn't match the quality of the food!!! Prisoners breakfast is better I'm sure of it!! Looked almost as if all there "Breakfast" food is pre made and then microwaved ( cold at that) cause that's what all of ours was .. If that wasn't pathetic/sad enough my 2nd sip of burnt $3 small coffee had a 4" middle finger sized piece of plastic I almost choked on / swallowed , how nice.!! So with that I let the "dazed and confused waitress "Barbara" I heard someone call her know about it and the cold and essentially raw $5 handful if that of so called home fries being cold and basically raw know and guess what ... she could of cared less !! Are u kidding me ?? That place is definitely belly up. Take my word for it save the disappointment and go to the Diner Car on old Ithaca road where you'll get Fresh quality well made food and a reasonable $$$ especially with how well it's made/cooked!! Hell even Curlys is better then this premade, microwaved yet still cold food with burnt coffee with chunks of plastic wrapper breakfast place called LIGHTS BAKERY ‍ To the owner or new owner read more

To: the new owners: This establishment is a poor excuse for a restaurant. Service was EXTREMELY SLOW, waited close to 20 minutes to order, the food took another 20 minutes and when it did arrive, the food was cold and intolerable. I essentially left my incomplete breakfast. My French fries never arrived, and the waitress did not appear to care. She dropped the receipt and left the cash register. At this point, I placed the money on the counter and walked out. The price for a cheese omelet and coffee was $14.95. My recommendation is "Run for the Hills". MacDonald's or another restaurant is the best option for breakfast. The place is a pathetic mess and should be visited by the Health Department and shut down! read more

Friendly family bake/coffee shop. Been Elmira forever. My 1st visit was back in the middle 60's Parents took the family there for the cupcakes. They are just as good today as they were 60 years ago. read more

Ordered a pizza. Gave me something that was old an warmed up. They weren't even smart enough to warm it all the way. At least get the cheese melted. Cookies stale. I guess this is the trademark of the new owner, sell anything no matter how old it is. The time has come to stop going there. read more

The service was excellent. But, as a long time area resident, the omelet was smaller and had less filling but was good. They no longer carry my fav bread for toast which is salt rising. The prices are higher yet portions a bit smaller. I miss what it used to be. Plus, no cream horns in the bakery. They've had those for decades. read more

Prices are outrageous here and the one in Horseheads. For that reason I'm out. The food isn't good enough for the money. $6 for an eclair. NOPE! read more

I don't know about the restaurant portion. I only visited the bakery and it seems like I wasted my money. I've never had a half moon cookie whose base tasted like molasses! then there was something called a wine cookie, which tasted like a spice cookie with raisins in it. yuk. Cupcake was dense & mix-like. Bread is grocery store level quality. read more

Disappointing. slow service and boring menu. Left without being served after a wait of 45 minutes. Waitress basically said they got surprisingly busy and didn't seem to care. On the bright side, I discovered a new place for breakfast that is welcoming, efficient has excellent prices, a great menu, and tasty food which will now be my go-to breakfast place. read more

Horrible service ... and out of a party of three all food was gross. Miss the old ownership and won't be going back. Truly disappointe.

So disappointing! I ordered a western omelet with wheat toast. They put raw veggies inside the cooked eggs, no cheese, and gave me pumpernickel toast. It took 1/2 hour for the food to come, after we waited a good 10 minutes to order. My friends ordered the steak and eggs with hash browns. Their breakfasts were also wrong. over-easy eggs instead of scrambled, hash-browns were frozen inside and steak was dry, probably leftover from the day before. We had to ask for coffee ... in a diner! The server didn't know who ordered what and didn't know the one special they were offering. I'm told they are under new ownership which makes sense. I've never had a poor experience before today. Only 1/2-3/4 of the restaurant was full so it wasn't too busy. I think they need more people and a better grill cook. It will be awhile before I return, if ever. read more

Best potato salad in 100 miles and the original "half moon" cookie. Friendly Staff offering great service.

New owner, new-NOT-better paradigm. Service is VERY slow. We've been going 4-5 times EVERY WEEK for over 3 years. We started going because service was good. Food came out quickly. Staff and owner were friendly. New owner has never made any effort to introduce himself. Occasionally uses his phone on speaker so we all get to listen. Service is now very slow. After going several times after ownership change, we are no longer eating there. read more

Was in town for a few days and went to Light's at 2:50 on a Sunday. "We're out of bread and close in ten minutes," the waitress informed us. We tried again a few days later, got there at 2:35. "Our grill is off, there's no hot food and we lock the doors at three." Not waiting for a third strike. Don't think I'll ever go back. read more

Food was OK but basic diner quality. Had the special build a burger finding that the tomato was previously frozen no mayo on the lettuce and tomato. Bakery items were sparse. Found a discounted bread loaf which was overcooked and probably should've been donated to the food pantry instead of being sold for a lower price. Quality should be everything but needs to be improved. I had hopes when I heard that Taninos bought it but I wasn't satisfied with the luncheon quality. To improve the service they should change the chip copy menu to one with pictures and more enticing selections. They should also have more bakery items and they should have a bakery cart to bring to the table for Diner selections. Payment was a problem because they added a charge if a credit card with used instead of absorbing the cost. read more

This place has always had delicious breakfasts, but don't stop in without taking some cookies home! They make great gifts, too. The former owner has lovely food paintings on the walls, for sale. Say hi to Jody at the register- she'll make sure you feel right at home. read more

Great staff, yummy breakfast and delicious baked goods! Coffee was okay. Not many places left in Elmira to sit down and get breakfast so it's great to have this option. My mom got the cinnamon bread special which was amazing. Definitely want that next time! read more

Light's Bake Shop - Mr. Big - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

I went there because I was craving an apple pie. When I saw the apple pie I asked the girl if the apples were real but she lied to me. I bought the pie for $13.50, which is very expensive compared to other places. I came home I had a piece of the pie and it was the worst apple pie I've ever had. I had to throw away the rest. It was very mushy and there were very little apples inside. Taste was horrible. Mostly just sweet gross sauce. I'll never buy from them again. If you are looking for really good apple pie try Sam's Club. It's huge and it's only nine dollars. read more

Light's Bake Shop - a pie with a slice taken out of it - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

The food was good. Terrible, terrible service. Seems like there is no management. Waitresses talked with each other and kept their backs to their customers. First, we did not get our soup that we ordered. We had to remind our waitress when our dinner was delivered to bring the soup. Our food was delivered without dipping sauce; however our waitress never checked back. We could not get the waitresses attention, so our guests ate without the sauce. (We could have gone up to the counter, but did not). After eating, we had to get our servers attention to order coffee/dessert. She apologized. Finally never asked if we wanted more coffee or how our meal was. Did not seem to care. Very disappointing. Will not stop here again. read more

Food and service at Light's Bake shop are the best! If I lived here I'd go here everyday. Bake everything on premises. Staff are so friendly you feel like you're in your own home. Luv this place! read more

It took forever to get a cup of coffee. When we did the mugs were so full the wait staff spilled coffee on the table setting them down. There was hardly any room to add cream. It took a half hour to be served food. They were busy, but not packed that it should have taken so long. I ordered the special - steak and eggs with hash browns and toast. I ordered my eggs scrambled and they came out with over easy. They took the order back and clearly scrapped out the over easy and just added a scoop of scrambled eggs. We were not offered condiments and had to ask for ketchup and jam. The steak was over cooked and was tough, like shoe leather. There was no flavor to the steak. The hash browns were not freshly made. They were something you could get frozen and only tasted like starch. The plates were too small for the food and the toast was piled on top of the hash browns and eggs. The toast was cold and the butter unmelted. We had to get the attention of another wait staff to ask for more coffee. The bill was $16.95 and I along with the other people I was with hardly ate anything it was so bad. Definitely not returning. read more

Light's bake shop has been around for years. I remember buying half moon cookies in my teens. I have to say that over the years this establishment has gone down on the quality of the food... it is hit or miss. No consistency due to poor management. there are four waitresses who have hung in there and make you feel welcome. the rest of the staff are not qualified and turnover is constant. Light's bakery is like the hubbub in downtown Elmira and needs a major overhaul. It is salvageable under new management. Save this restaurant and bless the four waitresses for there integrity. A change IS NEEDED. read more

Light's Bake Shop - a man wearing a hat - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

Clean, classic, well priced, super bright Diner. A true Gem of a fine. Reminiscent of those fabulous diners with a bakery attached that you find on the Jersey Shore. Prices are wonderfully modest Services quick. read more

See all

This is just a cheap diner with food that doesnt even meet traditional diner standards. Go somewhere else for REAL diner food. Eggs over easy have to be the easiest item to make, but they cant even get that right. I offered to go to the kitchen and show them how to do them right! read more

Light's Bakery is a combination bake shop and diner. A lot of locals come here for breakfast and lunch. The service is terrific and the people who work here really try to make conversation with their customers. The food and pastries are very inexpensive but extremely good. The decor is what you would expect in an inexpensive diner and it is very clean. There is a wide selection of baked items and they even offer custom special occasion cakes. I would highly recommend this place! read more

Nice breakfast find at very good prices. Our waitress was friendly. If you're new to the Bake Shop, you need to know that you should just sit at any empty table; don't count on anyone's greeting or saying hello to you. (One potentially awkward situation: an older gentleman came over to us, smiled and said hello; I thought he was welcoming us. Turns out he was a regular diner just heading back to his seat at the counter.) read more

Very nice and clean place the staff was great !! The food was nothing special nothing that makes me want to come back I ordered a chicken sandwich when it arrived the taste was there read more

Look.... if you want good food at a reasonable price, Lights is the place. The food is fresh, hot and has great flavor. The bakery..... well all I can say is half-moon cookies. Should I say more? read more

Light's Bake Shop - Yummy..... the Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

See all

Stopped by and got some deserts. They make beautiful cupcakes! Would be nice if they have a box for cupcakes to-go instead of paper bag, you know why... read more

Light's Bake Shop - Cup cake - Bakeries Near Me - Elmira, New York

Disappointing. Been visiting for years, but my breakfast was pretty sad; tasteless omelette, boring home fries and the 'rye' toast was completely flavorless. read more

I think diners are a rare thing in Elmira. This is a great diner in the heart of Elmira! Service is VERY fast even on a Sunday afternoon during the peak of the church crowd coming in. Awesome diner food with a big selection of breakfast, lunch and dinner specials served all day. I agree that the best thing in the diner is their deserts. I had a lemon cake that was to die for! Mr. P had a lemon meringue pie that was also wonderful. Check out the unique paintings along the wall of strawberries, veggies and baked goods. Cheap diner food...but good diner food at that! read more

The bakery is mediocre at best and if I could leave zero stars for the cafe, I would. The mashed potatoes tasted and smelled like urine. Their tuna appeared to be not refrigerated and smelled of rotten fish. The bathroom looks like it's main purpose is for drug use. Avoid this restaurant at all costs! read more

Vey bad service . We went to eat breakfast . We got a table wait for at least 10 minutes until We got the menu . 5 minutes later I told the waitress that we know what we want to order. Incredible she told me that she was to busy to take my order.. read more

This review is for the Half Moon cookies first and foremost. My grandmother has sworn by these cookies for decades. I would always talk her into going to a closer bakery when I'd visit (mostly because I really wanted a cupcake from there) and she indulged me even though she always preferred Light's. But when I wasn't around and after the local bakery closed, there has been no place else but Light's for our Half Moon cookie needs even though it's a fifteen minute drive. You can call ahead if you need a large order of them and they'll be happy to get them ready for you. The fact is, I've been eating their cookies since I was a kid, but I had never eaten in the diner before this week, but it was lunchtime when we arrived to pick up our cookies and so we tried it. It was good! Now, if you're a nit-picky city slicker, then you might knock off a star because it's very basic diner food cooked by everyday average people in a real small town, but then you'd be a jerk. The toast is homemade in the bakery! Give that star back. Now. Places like this need to survive in the digital review age. Help them out. Two full cases of pies. Two more full cases of cookies and other sweet treats and a rack of homemade bread. Give McDonalds 1 star. This place deserves 5. read more

Decent food however I went in tonight to get cupcakes knowing they don't close for an hour and a half and they refused to sell them claiming "the bakery was closed" when that was not online and all they had to do was ya as it out of the case and into a box. Bad customer service do not recommend it here. read more

The cake is the best thing Lights has to offer. Their frosting is legendary. You have to try one of their cakes, if only to taste one of their frosting roses. Mmmm!!! The half moons are NOT traditional black and white cookies. They are unique to Lights, and sinfully delicious. Also try their breakfast. Nothing fancy. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, that kind of thing, but a good bang for barely any bucks. read more

The service was terrible , waited 15 minutes to even be acknowledged by our server. Was given coffee with no spoon to stir my cream after the server was made aware she must have just forgotten, no big deal. Tried to order a tossed salad for breakfast due to special diet i am on, was told i couldnt order lettuce until after 11 o clock. Every kitchen in the world could have thrown some lettuce on a plate, called it a day and made me extremly happy. The server did not come back to refill coffee or check if our food was cooked well. read more

Have been coming here for years and am never disappointed. The staff is great and the food is always delicious. The bakery is great as well!