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Best Dinner Rolls We’ve Ever Tasted (Including Gluten Free and Crescent Rolls!)
The best dinner rolls are soft, squishy, substantial, warm, and hearty—and they’re available at a grocery store near you. How do we know? We’ve tasted 26 different store bought dinner rolls. So, yeah, you can trust us when we tell you which ones are worth buying.
How we evaluated the best dinner rolls:
Texture. There are two different types of dinner rolls: those that require baking and those that do not. Ready-to-bake dinner rolls should be warm and comforting yet crusty, yeasty, and dense. Meanwhile, no-bake rolls should be soft, squishy, sugary, and buttery.
Flavor. Store bought rolls should taste like good, fresh bread—yeasty and wheaty. And if they’re garlic or herb flavored, we wanted those flavors to taste fresh, not artificial.
Utility. While some rolls—like crescent rolls—have a specific time and place, the truly best dinner rolls are as good to eat on their own as they are when used to sop up leftover gravy on Thanksgiving.
Whether you’re looking for classic dinner rolls, the best dinner rolls for Thanksgiving specifically, the best gluten free dinner rolls, or even the best crescent rolls, we found ‘em.
Best Dinner Rolls, Ranked
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Best for a Big Dinner Party
Kirkland Artisan Rolls
If you have guests to impress, these massive, striking, ciabatta-esque dinner rolls from Costco look and taste like something on display at a fancy bakery. They have a thick, sturdy crust that’s cut neatly down the middle (perfect for sticking a slab of garlic herb butter) and robust, tangy, sourdough bread quality that elevates them above your standard pack of store bought dinner rolls. Now, that said, Kirkland bakery products typically rank higher for us, but I found these to be pretty tough at room temperature, so make sure to warm them up. And be warned they don’t stand the test of time. Ours went bad in under four days. My family has bought these in the past for holiday hosting, so I know they make some of the best dinner rolls for Thanksgiving and other big gatherings all the same. —Ariana Losch
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Sam’s Choice Sweet Hawaiian Rolls
Yes, there are other sweet rolls on this list. These are really sweet, though. One bite and you know you’re eating a sweet roll. But don’t worry—they’re not saccharine or dessert-y; they’re well balanced. Sam’s Choice Sweet Hawaiian Rolls are still a solid dinner choice. These would be so good with honey-baked ham. But once again, what wouldn’t these be good with? If you like the idea of some sweetness to counteract all the salty foods on your dinner plate, these are some of the best bread rolls to buy. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Gluten Free
Cappello’s Herbs and Hint of Garlic Dinner Rolls
If I didn’t tell you these garlicky rolls were gluten free, I don’t think you’d know. Like many of the best dinner rolls to buy, they come frozen. After a brief sojourn in the oven, they come out crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The subtle flavors of fresh garlic and herbs cover up any telltale gluten free flavor. We’ve praised Cappello’s for their gluten free frozen pizzas and gluten free pasta in the past, now we can add rolls to the long list of gluten free foods Cappello has mastered. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Pillsbury Rolls
Pillsbury Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls
I tried a bunch of refrigerated Pillsbury crescent rolls for our most recent dinner rolls taste test. And my conclusion is there’s no reason to buy full fat crescent rolls when this reduced fat version exists. (There’s also a way better brand of crescent rolls that you should be buying instead of Pillsbury, keep reading.) While the calorie count on these rolls isn’t that different from the regular ones (90 cals vs 110 cals), they do have nearly half the fat (2.5g vs 4.5g). They taste almost the same as the regular rolls—just a little bit lighter and airier. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
King’s Hawaiian Savory Butter Rolls
These King’s Hawaiian rolls are high in saturated fat (8% per tiny roll!), and have less sugar than your average King’s Hawaiian sweet roll. For those reasons, they’re the best dinner rolls to eat totally plain. The smooth, fluffy, squishy texture is only further enhanced by the fatty, buttery quality of these no-bake rolls. You can eat these at room temperature or heat them briefly in the oven or microwave. No matter how you eat or heat them, they are undeniably delicious, no condiments, meats, sides, or butter needed. If you like your rolls to be infused with butter when you buy them, these are the best dinner rolls to buy. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Nature’s Own Perfectly Crafted Brioche Butter Rolls
As soon as I opened this bag of brioche butter rolls from Nature’s Own, I didn’t even bother with the toaster oven. I just tore right in. Without being warmed, these are still incredibly tender and soft—not a cloudlike softness, since the dough is dense and substantial, but a squishy, buttery softness that’s quite filling and flavorful. Each roll carries a subtle brioche sweetness to balance the tangy wheat, calling for a spread of honey butter like a siren song. I know we’re ranking the best store bought dinner rolls here, but these would make the perfect buns for fried chicken sliders, too. Just sayin’. —Ariana Losch
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Classic Dinner Rolls
Bridgford Parkerhouse Style Rolls
Like our #1 best dinner rolls, you do have to prep these dinner rolls by letting them rise at room temp for a few hours. But good things come to those who wait, because these are pretty heavenly. They strike a great balance between buttery, mildly sweet, decadent yeast rolls and the more classic fluffy dinner rolls, giving the best of both worlds. They’re incredibly soft on the inside, with a thin, delicate crust on the outside that’s oddly satisfying to bite into. If Parkerhouse rolls are nonnegotiable at your Thanksgivings, these are the Thanksgiving rolls for you. —Ariana Losch
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
King’s Hawaiian Original Sweet Rolls
King’s Hawaiian original sweet rolls are iconic. They’re just so damn sweet and soft but also wonderfully dense. The flavor is exceptional. A sweet roll is the perfect complement to all of the savory dishes we eat on Thanksgiving. What better way to balance out dark meat turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and stuffing? I personally don’t think that a Thanksgiving meal is complete without these store bought dinner rolls. That being said, these are the best soft dinner rolls to buy for literally any meal, any time of the year. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Crescent Rolls
Immaculate Organic Crescent Rolls
Immaculate makes better crescent rolls than Pillsbury. I tried them head to head and there was no question. These crescent rolls bake up rich and buttery and so flaky. And they have that bit of biscuity flavor that sets them apart from a regular bread roll. They taste like I remember Pillsbury crescent rolls tasting back in the day. If you want canned crescent roll dough, Immaculate is the way to go.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
Sister Schubert Yeast Rolls
Sister Schubert’s dinner rolls are a favorite for a lot of people—and because nobody’s perfect, it took us a while to try them. But let’s set the record straight: These yeast rolls are unlike any others, delivering true Southern comfort in a bag. These leave an impression. I can smell the malty, salty-sweet yeast just by picturing them fresh out of the oven. They have a richness that almost reminds me of cornbread. Personally, I’ve always been addicted to Sister Schubert rolls in a way that’s simply unhealthy. These are, hands down, the best frozen yeast rolls you can buy—and they even come ready-to-bake, no prep required. —Ariana Losch
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
La Brea Take & Bake French Dinner Rolls
These are restaurant-quality, chewy, savory, yeasty French rolls. I love their outer crust; the difference in textures is flat out wonderful. A crusty exterior encases a delightfully fluffy and warm center. You could melt a full tablespoon of butter on one of these and indulge in the decadent simplicity. La Brea Bakery’s Take & Bake French Dinner rolls are soft and squishy with a great crust—something that’s hard to come by at the grocery store. They’re savory, salty, and, most of all, comforting. These are, without a doubt, among the best dinner rolls at the grocery store. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
Rhodes Thaw, Rise & Bake Dinner Rolls
Do you have to let these rise for three to five hours before you cook them? Yes. Is it worth it? Yes! They are not the simplest or easiest dinner rolls to snack on in a pinch, but they are absolutely wonderful for a big dinner or holiday where you’ll be cooking with a few hours notice. Once they rise, they cook up quickly. They are so doughy on the inside and have an incredible crust on the outside. Buy these as soon as possible, because these are the best dinner rolls ever. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Other dinner rolls we tried:
Starter Bros. Garlic Rolls,, Alfaro’s, Rhodes, Walmart Potato, Member’s Mark Yeast Rolls, Nature’s Own Butter Brioche, Signature Select Artisan Style, Dots Assorted Dinner Rolls, Whole Foods Market Brioche Dinner Rolls, Artesano Bakery Rolls, Against the Grain Gourmet Original Rolls Cheese Baked Recipe (no longer available), Trader Joe’s Organic French Dinner Rolls (no longer available), Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls, Pillsbury Butterflake Crescent Rolls, Pillsbury Sweet Hawaiian Crescent Rolls
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