Was here today looking for a birthday cake. Got the banana cake with cream cheese frosting and some other things to go. Cake is really good. Cherry turnover is the best I've ever had. The girl working was very friendly. Sugar cookie is good for a hard type cookie. They tend to be softer when you make them at home for some reason. Long john with chocolate frosting is ok but I prefer cream to the frosting they put in the middle. I didn't like the jelly in the jelly bismark. 2016- I still stop in for the turnovers when I am in town. We also tried a bunch of the fall donuts recently and they were all good. read more

Great pastries, and nice enough people :) parking is a little difficult but quite worth it

As a family Christmas tradition we get kolaches from Potter's. I heard they were not making them anymore but stopped in to double check. The manager was so pleasant despite the busy time of day and called the baker to see about have some made. I ordered and paid then picked up later in the week. We were so happy to enjoy these treats and all the folks at Potter's were super nice! Thank you! read more

I was less than impressed with the customer service I received today. We're not all one-time tourist customers that you'll never see again, but rather repeat seasonal customers. I will choose a different bakery next time as I ended up doing today. read more

Authentic old school donuts and bars with fun loving passionate folks behind the counter.

We were looking forward to trying this bakery for my birthday cake. knowing we had to put the order in early, my husband put in a request the week before on their website. He didn't hear back after several days, so, just to be safe he ordered another cake through a local grocery store. the day before we were supposed to pick up the cake, he finally heard back and they confirmed his order. it was too late to cancel the other cake, so we just figured it would be a fun, Lots of Cakes birthday. we picked it up and it was beautiful. very nicely decorated and sophisticated as far as cakes go. we decided to eat the grocery store cake earlier in the day (it was pretty good, and they were very nice) so we could save Potters for the big after dinner celebration. unfortunately when we cut into it, it was the wrong flavor. we made the best of it and the cake was very good, but I'm just glad I was a 44 year old who didn't mind the screw up. if a child had his heart set on chocolate and cut into a surprise vanilla cake, there probably would have been tears. we will probably try Potters again, but we will be sure to double and triple check the details and NOT use the website, which seems to have been the root of several issues. read more

Just had a Boston Crème pie from Potters for my birthday. Amazing! Best I've ever had.

Very good, very friendly! Our daughter loves the sprinkle donut. They also have a yummy nut donut and cherry & apple fritter. We haven't tried any of the other goodies yet, but they are all beautiful. read more

For my sister's recent wedding we bought 100 cupcakes from Potter's. Because we wanted a fairly fancy rose atop each, they were on the expensive side (almost 3 bucks a piece). Unfortunately they were not decorated as artfully as the picture I sent them. Perhaps I expected too much--my impression on going there was that they are not as focused on the aesthetics as other cupcake shops I've been to. They didn't look *bad*, but they could have been better. As for the taste, well they were very good: moist and with a buttercream frosting that was delightful. One other issue--they had to put them in two boxes. The bigger box was great, because it had a hard bottom. The smaller was terrible as it was softer. As a result a few of my cupcakes got smooshed in transit. read more

Potter's is the best bakery Traverse City has to offer, and it being an old family tradition....the ONLY place to go for your bakery items. I grew up in TC and going to Potter's on the weekend was a big treat for us. We got to pick out any doughnut we wanted (which was big back then). They have everything you can imagine, and all are so moist, rich, and homemade. Nothing is ever outsourced here. With only 2 locations, you know they care about their product. On Sundays they have HALF OFF doughnuts!! You need to get there fairly early since a line begins even by 9am. It's worth the wait. Their cakes are also AMAZING!! They put a lot of time and effort into everything they make, so you know it will be worth the price. Sure it's a little more expensive than Meijer, or WalMart but you can TASTE how much they care! read more

I've been coming here for years now. All of the pastries are always fresh and they do an amazing job with cakes for birthdays, parties, etc. The cookies always have super cute designs for holidays and they have mugs, bread, and other things for you to buy with your pastries! Oh, and don't even get me started on the donuts. This place has the best in town. Always fresh and creative :) read more

I understand that Potters is a TC staple but if you weren't raised in Traverse City, you will likely find this bakery to be comparable to standard grocery store quality. read more

Always a go to in TC when we visit. Have the best donuts in the city! We always get the old fashioned anything with their cherry glaze or filling. read more

Potters had a great reputation in the past. Tried them three times but never tasted like quality. Shortening in their cookies and frosting.

Best cherry apple fritters and donuts around! Customer service is excellent! Wonderful employees at a busy place! Definitely a must-see for donut lovers! read more

Delicious! What an amazing variety of baked goods! Really unique muffins and on point bagels! We've from West Virginia and so glad we chose this bakery to stop at! read more

Don't get me wrong, Potters has a wonderful donut. However, $20 for a dozen?...........yeah. We are locals and actually asked a couple years ago "why have the price of your good gone up so much?" The response....."the cost of eggs and milk". Well, the cost of eggs and milk today has gone down by at least 30-40%. Have their prices? No. As a local, it stinks to not be able to afford donuts at a shop you grew up going to. Blue Herons donuts are really just as good and they have more of a "local" set price as opposed to a "tourist" price. Again, good product but terribly price at what you're actually getting. Bummer read more

Such a cute place! Yummy sandwich. The people arw really nice and everything looked soo yummy! Cominf back for sure!! Here is the club sandwich. get a donut read more

Without question, the best cherry fritters ever. It's worth the 13 mile round trip at 6:00 AM!

Love their donut holes and other cake donuts. I go here about once a week. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a morning snack and coffee. read more

I haven't actually been on-site but a client where I work has dropped their coffee cake and pastries several times to our CPA office and and they are a godsend! read more

The best in traverse city. Bear claws & the variety of fritters is so tempting, can't buy just one!

I LOVE Potter's! I will always have a soft spot for Potter's in my heart--I have grown up getting a donut or cookie there as a treat, and still love to stop in once in a while when I can these days. To me, Potter's is my "hometown bakery". That particular warm sweet smell when you walk in the door is just so comforting. The women who bake & work there are really friendly and you can tell they bake with love for the community they serve. Recently I have wondered something--because Potter's has unveiled a new food menu with many food choices including sandwiches, soups, salads, and quiche. I am an avid GT Pie Co. fan as well, and I wonder if the new food menu Potter's is offering is in order to compete more with GT Pie Co. because these food choices are very on par with GT Pie. I hope this doesn't mean that Potter's feels it has been losing too much business to GT Pie. That would make me sad. Like I said, I am an AVID fan of GT Pie (best pie in the world) AND Potter's--I want them to both prosper and serve TC treats in harmony!! I hope that both continue to do well, because both have a special meaning & place in the hearts of Traverse City residents!! To me, GT. Pie is where I go for delicious pie, (and their lunch food that I've tried is great as well), and Potter's is my classic where I will always still go for a delicious doughnut. I will have to try out Potters' new food menu before I move next month. If it's anything like their desserts, I'm sure it will be great :) Craving a doughnut or cookie? Stop into Potters for a smile and a sweet treat :) read more

A few months ago, I placed an order for 5 dozen custom cupcakes to be delivered to a local event. As I am located in California, this entire discussion and order was done by e-mail and phone. Everyone I spoke to at the bakery was very kind but did not seem accustomed to many of these types of orders (which necessitated a few more clarifications than one might expect). I do appreciate that in the end the order turned out beautifully and was delivered on time. I would recommend them. read more

The best donuts! I've had donuts from other places in other states and none are as good as Potters. Love the glazed fried cinnamon, sour cream, fritters, chocolate donuts and many of the cookies. I always go here for my donuts. The little sugar cookies are addicting and can't stop eating them. read more

We came here twice on our trip. We got a little sampler of several different donuts and the buttercream single. We weren't overly jazzed with the donuts (maybe we got there too late?) but the butter cream single!?!....I could eat 4 of those! They were so good the hubby said that was what he wanted as his birthday cake. We got 4 of them and I decorated them with his age in sprinkles. They describe them on the menu as: "Butter Cream Single A slice of Chocolate cake topped with swirls of Butter Cream and dipped in Fudge Chocolate Icing. (enough for 2)" Enough for 2 oompa loompas but trust me, you wouldn't want to share!! read more

Jaime and Josie are the best front of store people. Extremely helpful and friendly. The food here is always top notch. They serve local chips and local soda, supporting fellow local businesses. Way to go! read more

I only tried pastries, but they were great. The apple bar with cream cheese icing is about as good as it gets. The pumpkin one was good too. Doughnut holes were good-the chocolate ones by far my favorite. am getting a dozen to take home at the end of my stay. Cannoli was my only disappointment-i'm a ricotta filling fan which they did not offer. Worth a stop and returning visits too. read more

If you like to eat delicious baked goods,then this is the place to go to if you are in or near Traverse City,Michigan. WHY can't I find a bakery like this in St.Clair Shores,Michigan? read more

I have eaten about 180-200 of their cheese danishes over the last twenty years, they are tasty!

While vacationing for a week in Traverse City we were planning on celebrating my sister's birthday and the house we had rented didn't really have the equipment for me to make the homemade birthday cake I was planning. We called up Potter's the morning of her birthday and asked if we could get a cake for that afternoon. They were extremely helpful and kind with our last minute request. We picked up the cake by 1:00 that afternoon and the whole gang enjoyed it. The marble cake was moist and the buttercream was nice and smooth. They were also very friendly in person when we went to pick up the cake and I was tempted by the smell of all the other fresh baked goods that was drifting out the front door! If I am ever in the area again with a need for a cake I would go back without thinking twice. read more

Best little bakery - the donuts are just right and the pretzel bread is delicious too!

I paid for cupcakes for my wife's birthday. Was going to pick them up but spoke to someone names Jaime and he said he would deliver them when they close and would call me. I said great. Guess what!!! My wife's birthday and no cupcakes. This is the day of so I will keep you posted if they ever call! Ridiculously stressful. Obviously unreliable. Ok so we left a message on Facebook and they are trying to get it to us. And they did. They still only get 3 stars because we had to be this creative to get a hold of them. read more

This review is based on a cake. I ordered a cherry cake with airbrushed decorations for my wedding reception. it was absolutely fabulous. So delicious and the butter creme frosting was out of this world. I highly recommend it. It was pricey but worth every penny. If you want the best, order from Potter's! read more

had a craving for some doughnuts and without my favorite krispy kreme in the vicinity we went for these. near the end of the day, they had limited quantities, but still had variety. some very solid quality doughnuts they had. got a dozen of all different kinds and it was ~$20. came back to our place and i sampled many of them and washed it down with a nice cold beer. i had to pee, but it seems as though they don't have a public restroom. read more

We stopped by there for a quick breakfast. I had the apple pastry thing topped with burnt cinnamon sugar, and a dirt donut. I was very hungry, so I had 2 items, but couldn't finish them, and my husband had to finish the rest of my donut. The pastries are huge, and it's most of it around $2, it was pretty good deal. Would like to go back to try other pastries/donuts. read more

I got my wedding cake from Potter's and they did an excellent job. I really have no complaints. I took in several photos that I got off the internet and they were very up front about which cakes they could copy and which ones would cost extra for them to do. When we explained that the cake really wasn't something we wanted to break the bank on they were very understanding and there was no pressure to "upgrade" and they even worked with us to cut our costs. When we dropped off the cake topper we wanted them to use they called the next day to let us know that it wouldn't work with the size cake we had ordered (the top tier would be too small) and asked us if it was okay if they made the top tier bigger. They also let me pick out a flavor that they typically only use for birthday cakes, and made one of the tiers using that flavor. All the guests raved about the cake at the reception. For their quality and price, the prices are hard to beat. read more