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Carrefour is, without question, the best supermarket in Kenya. The selection is top-tier, the layout is modern. It’s the one supermarket where you can walk in for milk and walk out with a trolley full of things you didn’t know you needed—

But we need to talk about the bakery section.

The Bakery Has Everything—Except Moisture

On sight, Carrefour’s bakery section looks like a dream. Freshly baked bread, pastries, muffins, baguettes, and even fancy pastries I never heard of before, and some that I cannot pronounce.

The selection is impressive, the presentation is neat, and the pricing is affordable to the average Kenyan. So where does it go wrong?

It’s impressive, really. Carrefour has somehow perfected the art of removing all moisture from baked goods. And I’m not talking about one bakery item.

I have tried over 10 different items over the years, and each of them several times, and all were dry, not the normal dry, but the dry that has always bothered me.

Curious about what I’ve tried? Well, first up was the baguette. It was so dry that for a moment, I genuinely questioned whether all baguettes were supposed to be like that. I shrugged it off—until I started noticing a pattern.

The real revelation came when I tried their milk bread. Rich, flavorful… but only in the middle. The outer edges? Dry enough to double as coasters.

Then came the garlic bread. And let me tell you, that was the single driest thing I have ever had in my entire life. Wanna know how dry? Imagine a chunk of charcoal.

If you rubbed two pieces of that garlic bread together, I’m pretty sure you could start a fire. And the confusing part? I checked the packaging date, and it was made the same day I bought it. So at that point, I was just confused.

I still have PTSD from those garlic breads. Since then, I’ve tried a little bit of everything, but nothing has topped those garlic breads. I guess that’s what happens when you toast something that was already dry.

And the final straw for me with Carrefour’s bakery? Their French pavé bread. I bought it on an impulse—because why not? I’d never had one before, and I love trying new things. The dusting of extra wheat flour looked fancy, and for a moment, I thought, Okay, this could be interesting.

And to be fair, the bread itself? Pretty good. But the crust? Classic Carrefour-dry and tough that chewing through it felt like biting on a leather belt.

And this is after making avocado toast with it, still with the avocado creaminess, I could feel the dry and the chew.

And the thing is… the flavors are good. If you can push through the dryness. If they matched the taste, Carrefour’s bakery could dominate the supermarket baked goods scene.

Why Is This Happening?

Alright, let’s talk. We all know store-baked goods tend to be drier than what you’d get from a proper standalone bakery. That’s just how the universe works.

So, trust me, I’m not out here expecting Carrefour to sell us Paris-level pastries. I’m simply comparing them to their supermarket mates—Naivas and Quickmart.

Both have their own issues, but nothing as chronic as Carrefour’s desert-situation. Between the two, Naivas edges out with marginally better moisture levels in their pastries. Marginally.

1. Maybe It’s Just Sitting on the Shelves Too Long?

This would be a logical explanation—pastries left out too long naturally dry out.

Happens everywhere, not just at Carrefour. Except… Carrefour sells out most of its baked goods before the day even ends.

I know this because I mostly shop at 9:30 p.m. right before closing, and the shelves are basically wiped clean. So if whatever I’m buying is still dry at that point, it’s not because it’s from a yesterday’s bake. Nope, that ain’t it.

2. Maybe It’s the Packaging?

At first, I almost bought into this argument. Khaki paper bags do suck out more moisture compared to nylon packaging.

But then I remembered that Carrefour also packs some pastries in plastic containers, which should help retain moisture. Should.

And yet, whether it’s in a plastic box or a paper bag, the end result is always the same—dry. Meanwhile, other supermarkets use the same packaging methods, but their baked goods don’t turn out this dry. So yeah, packaging isn’t the probable issue either.

3. The Real Issue…

After ruling out the shelves and the packaging, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out where the problem lies. That’s right—it’s coming from inside the bakery. Back there in the mixers and ovens.

One thing I’ll give Carrefour credit for is that they seem to make everything from scratch. So I can’t accuse them of using frozen, pre-made pastry. But that just means the dryness issue comes down to their ingredients, recipes, and baking practices.

For instance, I’m not a professional homebaker, but I do know that using shortening instead of butter can result in drier pastries.

And let’s be real—most supermarkets aren’t using fancy, premium ingredients. The goal is mass appeal- affordable products, not artisan-level perfection.

So, are they skimping on ingredients? Overmixing? Overbaking? Guess we will never know

Final Thoughts

Look, I’ll give credit where it’s due—Carrefour’s baked goods taste decent. (Except the macaroons) : Mostly, the flavors are there, and the texture is mostly acceptable. But the dryness? That’s where everything falls apart.

It doesn’t take a genius to bite an exotic pastry you never had before and think, Hmm… this isn’t supposed to be this dry. And that’s the frustrating part.

I love Carrefour. I crowned it as the best supermarket in Kenya, but I struggle to recommend their bakery section to anyone. Normally, if someone asks, I just point them elsewhere because I know how the story ends—one bite, and suddenly the roof of your mouth is lightly bruised, and I’m not even trying to be dramatic…this happened to me.

It pains me to say this because I want Carrefour’s bakery to be great. It already has everything else going for it. They have the best variety of any supermarket bakery, and there is always something new and exotic to try.