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6087 Broadway, Bronx, NY 10471
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Lloyd's is a walk-up counter on Broadway across from Van Cortlandt Park, and The Infatuation notes there is 'no seating or space to hang out here.' On an ordinary weekday the line is short and moves. The draw is destination shoppers, not neighbors: News12 the Bronx quoted customers who came from Staten Island and New Rochelle, and one regular there compared the holiday line to a nightclub queue, 'except you don't come home with a hangover you come home with a carrot cake.'
Nearly all of the crush is holiday-driven. NY1 reports that around Thanksgiving the shop bakes and sells over 1,500 cakes and that shoppers 'stand in line, sometimes for hours,' while PIX11 reported one customer waiting about an hour and a half with the line stretching more than a city block. Because the shop sells essentially one product from one secret recipe, there is no substitute and no way to speed the line up.
Regulars handle it by ordering ahead: whole cakes can be reserved for pickup on the shop's site, and The Infatuation notes larger quantities need roughly three days' notice. Walk-in cakes are first-come, first-served (News12), so during holiday weeks they can sell out. The Riverdale shop is closed Sundays and closed on Thanksgiving Day itself, which pushes the pre-holiday days even harder.
Patterns as reported by press and regulars — not measured by damnlines.
Reservations: Per Lloyd's Carrot Cake's official Riverdale page, whole cakes can be reserved ahead of time for pickup ("Reserve a Cake for Pickup at Our Riverdale Location"); the page does not clarify whether general walk-in purchases of individual items are also accepted.
On an ordinary weekday it is usually short. It is a walk-up counter with no seating (The Infatuation), so it moves quickly. During holiday runs it swells: PIX11 reports a customer waiting about an hour and a half with the line stretching more than a city block, and NY1 says holiday shoppers 'stand in line, sometimes for hours.'
It is the worst of the year. NY1 reports the shop bakes and sells over 1,500 cakes around Thanksgiving and customers stand in line for hours, and News12 the Bronx described 'a line spanning Broadway' in the days before the holiday. Note the Riverdale shop is closed on Thanksgiving Day itself (News12), so the crush lands on the days before.
You can reserve a whole cake for pickup through the shop's website, and The Infatuation notes larger quantities need about three days' notice. Walk-in cakes are first-come, first-served (News12), so ordering ahead is how regulars skip the holiday-week line.
A weekday outside the holiday season is the safest bet; The Infatuation describes it as a quick walk-up with no seating. Avoid the week of any major holiday, especially Thanksgiving. The Riverdale location is also closed Sundays and closed on Thanksgiving Day (venue site; News12).
It is at 6087 Broadway in the Bronx, across from Van Cortlandt Park. Per the shop's own site, hours are Monday-Friday 9am-7pm, Saturday 10am-6pm, and closed Sunday.
For whole cakes, yes - per the official Riverdale location page, customers are directed to "reserve a cake for pickup." The page does not specify a policy for other bakery items.
The official Riverdale page does not state whether walk-in purchases are accepted; it only describes reserving a cake ahead for pickup.
Sources: PIX11: Why thousands line up for Lloyd's Carrot Cake's signature product · NY1: Lloyd's Carrot Cake, a sweet Bronx success story · News12 The Bronx: Beloved Lloyd's Carrot Cake reopens ahead of Thanksgiving · The Infatuation: Lloyd's Carrot Cake Shop review · Lloyd's Carrot Cake official site (Riverdale location)