Mel The Bakery

New York City bakery fanatics collectively mourned when Mel closed up shop on the LES. Thankfully, people who brag about having sourdough starters older than most kindergarteners can flock to Mel’s location on Warren Street, where you can get flaky laminated pastries and boules to pair with the fancy butter you can find in nearby shoppy shops. You can’t really go wrong here, but we especially love the cinnamon roll, which has a thick pat of frosting in the center rather than a pervasive sticky glaze. On Fridays starting at 11am, they also do Italian heroes on a sesame-covered spelt baguette, so it’s worth coming into Hudson early to try the weighty sandwich.