LDNGuide
The Best Bakeries In London
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
There’s a reason why your local high street has more Greggs’ than banks, and it has less to do with online banking than it does Britain’s love for pastries. Nothing quite beats the feeling of walking into a bakery. The air smells like the inside of a croissant and no one will judge you for staring into the display case of pretty pastries like a cat watching a goldfish bowl. Fortunately, London has plenty of bakeries to choose from, whether you’re looking for a cheesy Lebanese flatbread or a classic raspberry jam-filled doughnut. Here are our favourites.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Jake Missing
For: Rice pudding tart
Quince is all about the three B's: baking, Britishness, and brownness. UK produce is what gets this tiny Islington bakery going and, though you will still find freshly baked ‘bread sticks’ as well as cookies, sandwiches, and a totally irresistible umami-heavy brown butter bun, it’s the rice pudding tart that gets us going the most. Mixing childhood nostalgia, memories of Ambrosia, and serious baking finesse, a slice of this tart—all crumbly pastry and sweet and savoury set rice—is appropriate at any hour of the day.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Everything
We would happily select items from the counter of this Tulse Hill spot blindfolded, because there are no misses. From trays of cookies studded with pools of dark chocolate, to malty Guinness cake and carrot cake with not-too-sweet icing—we love it all. Our perfect order is a cinnamon bun—crunchy sugar on top, good spicing, a golden exterior, soft, spongy centre—and a Pump Street hot chocolate with a huge, blowtorched marshmallow. Both the bun and hot chocolate are some of our favourites in London.
photo credit: Wild Grains Bakery
For: Potato sourdough
The thing that’s most wild about this Walthamstow bakery is how often we visit. And it’s because of the potato sourdough. It’s got a firm crust—unlike our resolve around this loaf—and a soft inside that rivals anything Tempur are selling. We’re also big fans of the focaccia which comes with a range of toppings baked into the bread—the confit garlic with big sprigs of rosemary is our favourite. Just know that this bakery is essentially a hatch on an industrial estate, so you’ll be getting your baked goods to go.
For: Oat porridge loaf
At Eric’s, the early bird gets the cheese and kimchi scroll. From the moment the cupboard-sized, buttercup-yellow Dulwich bakery opens on Friday and Saturday mornings, there’s a perma-queue. Persist though—the bakery is takeaway-only so it moves fast. There’s a focus on UK-grown, organic wheats, and the buttery croissants and coffee custard-stuffed morning buns have a rich, nutty, and wholesome flavour. But even if you’re loading up on pastries, make sure to buy a porridge loaf for later. The crust on the malty bread is rolled in oats and smells heavenly when sliced.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Maritozzi
The breakfast spread at Forno ranges from a buttery, flaky cornetto (like a sweeter croissant) to a praline bun topped with a crisp chocolate disk and a sprinkle of sea salt. But it’s the maritozzi at this Italian bakery in Hackney that’s put it on the map. Shaped like a small, well-stuffed bolster cushion, it’s full of light, sweet cream sandwiched between pillowy, slightly sticky dough. If you’ve still got room, get a slice of broccoli and salami pizza and the tiramisu. It’s the same one they serve at sister restaurant, Ombra, and it’s one of London’s best.
For: Roman-style pizza slices
The downfall of many bakeries in London is the poky seating. But not at Toklas. This Aldwych bakery is spacious and calming, with a display of sweet and savoury pastries—pistachio cream laminated brioche, ham and cheese pain suisse, and classic pain au chocolat. But our favourite thing is the strecci. A Roman-style pizza slice topped with excellent combinations like leek and crème fraîche, or potato and olive tapenade. Take a seat in their cafe to eat it and stick around to get one of their hefty sourdough sandwiches for lunch.
photo credit: Fortitude Bakehouse
For: Morning pastries and carrot loaf
Walking through Russell Square without popping into this neighbourhood bakery for a flaky sausage roll is unforgivable in our books. A popular spot with locals—and anyone who’s fond of golden pastries and cinnamon buns the size of a mini basketball—it’s open from early morning until 3pm most days. Grab a latte, a spinach and feta-stuffed pastry that you can scoff on one of the benches out front, and a carrot cake loaf for your mid-afternoon snack (trust us, future you will appreciate it). Just know that if you arrive after 2pm they might be sold out.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Loaded naan
Ararat Bread is a teeny-tiny bakery on Ridley Road making brilliantly tasty and brilliantly inexpensive flatbreads. For a few quid you can have a naan topped with cheese and garlic, watch it bubble and sizzle under the rotating oven, before inevitably sticking it in your mouth far too quickly and injuring yourself in the best way possible. If you want meat, the keema costs a little more and the mince mixture is packed full of coriander seeds. Although it’s not essential, we tend to get an egg cracked on top as well. Whatever you choose, grab it, go, and then come back for more.
photo credit: The Dusty Knuckle
For: A morning bun and a sandwich
Unsliced rather than sliced bread is the greatest thing ever, as evidenced by the potato sourdough, springy oily focaccia, and everything else coming out of The Dusty Knuckle. This social enterprise bakery in Dalston is a great place for a pastry (the morning bun) first thing, sandwich (any) at lunchtime, or sourdough pizza on the weekends. Things change daily, but pay attention to the doorstop focaccia sandwiches. They’re some of the best in London.
photo credit: Arôme Bakery
For: All the pastries
The people behind Malaysian restaurant Rasa Sayang teamed up with a French patissier to create this bakery in Covent Garden’s St Martin’s Courtyard. The spread of pastries on their counter is a “just give me one of everything please” situation. They’ve got pistachio chocolate escargots, pineapple and mango danish pastries that look like a work of art, and a sweet honey butter toast that has the perfect fluff-to-crunch ratio. Warburtons could never. Everything here is pretty great, but that honey butter toast is a definite must.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: The best mana’eesh in London
If you’ve ever had mana’eesh, you’ll understand how important it is that this Lebanese spot serves them until 10pm. And they’re not any old flatbreads, they’re the best in London. Plus, you won’t be judged for rocking up at this Acton spot at 4pm in need of some doughy, meaty goodness. You can head here at 1pm on a Sunday for a platter of freshly baked minced meat and cheese, or spinach and cheese flatbreads, and it’ll be just as good as when you come at 7pm on a Wednesday. What we’re trying to say is, whatever time of day it is, get the mana’eesh.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Savoury pastries
As you approach Toad Bakery’s small shop front, catch a whiff of freshly baked bread and see the glistening pastries, a Pavlovian response will kick in. Your stomach will rumble, eyes widen, and you’ll start mentally calculating just how many carbs you can eat in one sitting. It straddles Peckham and Camberwell, with a few colourful stools out front and a street-facing counter in the doorway, heaving with gooey, vegan cookies, buttery croissants, and cardamom-heavy cinnamon buns. Leave room for slow-braised goat bear claw pastries and hefty sandwiches to take to nearby Lucas Gardens.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: A glossy meat pie
Everyone deserves to have a bakery as good as Uncle John’s on their road. Technically, this Ghanaian bakery in South Tottenham is on everybody’s road, thanks to the internet and its nationwide delivery. Aside from the majestic sweet bread and addictive servings of chin chin, the glossy meat pie is our favourite thing here. Our preferred method of eating them is by steadily picking off the glistening baked crust, then nibbling our way through the herby mince and carrot centre while lying horizontally. If you too wish to take part in some of London’s tastiest self-care, know it’s strictly a takeaway affair.
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
For: A bacon and maple croissant
Pophams is either an Islington coffee spot that bakes in house, or an Islington bakery that also serves coffee. Whichever way you want to put it, the coffee is excellent and the baked stuff even better. It’s on a quiet corner off the Essex Road and has a tidy little terrace out front, so it’s a great place to head if you’re trying to impress someone with your good taste and decent knowledge of London’s backstreets.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Dessert buns on-the-go
The mammoth focaccia slice from this bakery off Portobello Road is so good that we sprint to the nearest bench to bite off huge hunks. But what Buns From Home specialises in is croissant buns—double-baked, layered croissant dough with a range of different flavours like cinnamon or cardamom. They also do savoury ones topped with avocado or pulled chicken and dessert buns, filled with things like custard cream, tiramisu, and cheesecake. Focus your efforts on the dessert buns, trust us.
photo credit: Panadera
For: The beef sando
There’s always room for an exciting sandwich. Put it on a plate and there may be pause. Put it between two slices and it’s down the pie hole immediately. This occurred to us at Panadera—an impeccable Filipino bakery in Kentish Town from the Mamasons and Donia people—while eyeing up the corned beef sando on the menu. It’s soft and crunchy thanks to the deep-fried corned beef patty, and has lovely little chunks of potato flecked throughout. Sweetness from the pandesal—a Filipino milk bread—combined with a tart sauce, a wipe of mayo, and a bit of lettuce for moral support.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: Raspberry doughnuts
A lockdown creation—hence the name—this bakery was started by two hospitality professionals providing supplies to their local community and NHS workers. It turned into a small bakery, then a pop-up cafe, and now they’ve even opened a second Barnes location, and a third in Clapham. The original Wandsworth spot serves some of the best raspberry doughnuts you can get in London, as well as a whole load of baked goods. From potato sourdough and doughnuts, to sausage rolls and delicious pies filled with steak and ale, or mac and cheese, you can get it all here.
photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch
For: A sausage roll and chocolate babka
When your commitment to great bread means you’re willing to spend between 15 and 30 minutes queueing in the rain, then Sourdough Sophia is for you. While their baguettes and loaves are reason enough to make this Crouch End spot a destination bakery, don’t miss their specials like a pretzel croissant triangle sandwich, a Ferrero Rocher-inspired cruffin, or a 10/10 sausage roll. If you want to skip the queue, all of the baked goods are available for click and collect.
