Why I’m Lurking in Walmart’s Bakery Section at 6:59 P.M.

We don’t want you to miss any bargains. We also donut want you to miss ‘em — and deal-hunting for baked goods at Walmart at the right time can be a cakewalk. (Sorry if these puns feel a little stale.)

Whether you’re planning to gorge on Freshness Guaranteed Bavarian Creme Filled Bismarck Doughnuts in the parking lot (no judgement) or freeze a 4" Mini Pecan Pie for a rainy day, you can find nearly half-off savings. Although bakeries are known for marking down their products at the end of the day, timing is everything.

That’s why I arrived at my local Walmart Supercenter in the Chicago suburbs at 6:45 p.m. Here’s how the cookies crumbled…

By 7 p.m., Walmart made finding fresh deals easy by putting out a rack with a sign that announced, “We Baked Too Much." (To paraphrase Ace of Bass, I saw the sign and it opened up my teeth.) The sugary surplus items included:

• Six glazed donuts for $3.01 (original price: $4.24)
• A bag of fresh rolls for $2.98 (original price: $3.97)
• Pink concha, a sweetbread from Mexico “with seashell-like crust," for $0.39 (original price: $.68)

A yellow pricetag instead of the regular white one lets you know it’s a deal worth salivating over:

The clearance rack also had Strawberry Cheese Bowtie Danishes, Caramel Apple Pie, and Cinnamon Brioche Sliced Bread from Walmart’s Marketside fresh foods brand. And yes, they were all still fresh — the “use by" date was the same day I was shopping, so nothing was expired.

While there were several great deals, I ultimately went with a box of French Crullers because they looked delicious and somewhat unique. They also had the most significant markdown at 40% off from $4.24 to $2.54.

I couldn’t wait until I got home, so I ate a cruller in my car. It was airy, sweet, and satisfying (never mind the “use by" date ending in five hours). I could see myself paying $5 for the treat in a coffee shop, but had just scored it for under $.50. Take that, Starbucks.

The Walmart bakery employee who’d kindly directed me to the clearance rack also explained that I could find day-old baked goods the next morning and later in afternoon, depending on what’s left over. So while night owls have first dibs on discounted pastries, you could still find some if — like the day’s first batch — you’re an early riser.