Britain's best 20 bakeries nationwide: The most sublime croissants. The blood-orange doughnut you must try. The life-changing custard tart, macarons and bread. All is revealed by experts
The teatime treat was once a simple, unexotic one: a scone perhaps, or a slice of lemon drizzle, sourced from the single modest bakery on the high street. Then in the early noughties, the doughnut chains arrived like brash American trans-fat blowhards.
It got worse. The mid-2000s saw the Sex And The City-inspired cupcake craze and the appearance of speciality shops to sell them. So much so that when Instagram launched in 2010, these plump, Barbie-pink fever dreams became social-media superstars.
Now the rise of the ridiculously fancy baked good seems unstoppable, and with it the arrival of the ‘destination bakery’.
Take Copains, for example, a Parisian bakery with branches in London which sells pecan tarts for £12.90 each and caters to the kind of people who livestream their lunch. Or Lovingly Artisan in Cumbria, a cult bakery which specialises in heritage grains and traditional slow fermentation, and attracts sourdough pilgrims from all over the country.
Nowadays people queue outside these glamorous shrines to pimped-up patisserie just to take a photo to post online. In fact, on TikTok and Instagram, a whole corner of food culture, dubbed BakeryTok, is devoted to pastries, cookies and croissants. Or those ‘cool’ new croissant hybrids: the cruffin (muffin), croclair (eclair) and cronut (doughnut).
Copains is a Parisian bakery with branches in London that specialises in gluten-free pastries
Lovingly Artisan is known for their sourdough bread as well as their selection of pastries
The result is what food writers call bakery tourism. But which of the new ‘hero bakeries’ are really worth a visit? Not to mention the calories and cost.
Nick Harding lets out his waist band to investigate…
1. August Bakery, Clapham, south London
One of London's most popular spots is August Bakery, where offerings include the traditional Breton pastry kouign-amann
August Bakery was opened by husband-and-wife duo Harry Robins and Florrie Beard in 2024 and grew from a lockdown delivery service. Signature products include the sell-out miso sesame sourdough and the kouign-amann, a traditional Breton pastry made from fermented croissant dough and sugar.
2. Bakery at Hampton Manor, Solihull, West Midlands
Bakery at Hampton Manor is nestled in a walled garden and specialises in stoneground grains
Head baker Adam Cross orchestrates an ever-changing line-up of pastries and cakes which include soft cinnamon buns, caramelised bread-and-butter ‘pudding cubes’ and seasonal fruit-topped Danishes. The house sourdough bread is baked using meticulously sourced stoneground UK-grown grain, which gives a distinctive nutty flavour to the breads.
3. Bettys Tea Room, Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Found in the heart of Yorkshire, Bettys Tea Room has been running for more than 100 years
Bettys Tea Room proves that bakery tourism is not only about Instagrammable attention grabbers. The famous eatery and bakery was established in Harrogate in 1919 and now has branches across Yorkshire. Famed for fondant fancies, fruit cakes and ‘fat rascal‘ scones, it has an international reputation and draws coach parties eager to try its brand of nostalgic British baking delivered with theatrical flair.
4. Big Bear Bakery, Glasgow
Big Bear Bakery is a family-run bakery in Glasgow that is known for its fresh flavours
All products are made from scratch on the day at this Glasgow favourite, which has two locations in the city. Bestsellers include black sesame sourdough and classic pastries. Flavours are changed on a weekly basis to keep the menu fresh.
5. Bread & Banjo, Belfast
This Northern Irish bakery has become well-known for its traditional and artisan breads
Bread & Banjo has quietly built a cult reputation with its innovative cakes, breads and buns – this month we’re salivating over a blood orange and raspberry jam cruffin (January’s flavour was bergamot curd and toasted Italian meringue). From classic cinnamon buns to indulgent sourdough chocolate cake, it draws weekend crowds who know that arriving late often means missing out.
6. Chatsworth Bakehouse, Crystal Palace, south-east London
Chatsworth Bakehouse, found in south-east London, is known for its interesting sandwich options such as this vegan kimchi 'faceplant'
Bake-at-home project Chatsworth Bakehouse launched a Kickstarter in 2021 to raise money to move into high street premises and raised more than £12,000 in ten days. The savvy move paid off and the bakery regularly has queues snaking out of its doors. Known for huge, attention-grabbing sandwiches such as the vegan kimchi ‘faceplant’ and a regularly changing roster of savouries such as the jalapeño popper milk bun, it also bakes delicious sweet treats such as Guinness cake and blood-orange baked bombolini (that’s a traditional Italian doughnut, keep up!).
7. Farro Bakery, Bristol
Since opening in 2019, Farro Bakery has regularly been named as one of the top artisan bakeries in Britain
Farro Bakery has become one of Bristol’s most talked-about food destinations in a city full of them. Opened in 2019, it has been consistently named one of the best bakeries in the UK. Everything is baked in-house from scratch, with an ever-changing menu. Hero bakes include the canelés and the pastéis de nata. Its babka – a twisted chocolate and almond cake – also gets rave reviews.
8. Haxby Bakehouse and Delicatessen, York
Sourdough breads and slow fermented yeasted breads are the staples of Haxby Bakehouse
Haxby Bakehouse and Delicatessen has been supplying traditional artisan bread and pastries to customers since 2008. The emphasis is on quality and traditional artisan breadmaking, with self-taught baker Phil Clayton winning numerous awards. The venerated pain au levain is as good as anything you’d find in a Paris boulangerie.
9. Hell’s Bakery, Home Counties
By selling their goods at a once-a-month market, Hell's Bakery has built up a reputation for exciting and delicious baking
Hell’s Bakery proves that you don’t need bricks and mortar to build a following. The enterprise was started in 2019 by husband and wife Helen and Matt White, who baked attention-grabbing sweet pastries for a once-a-month market. They now trade at farmers’ markets and events across the South East and also offer seasonal mystery boxes of five items delivered to doors, which sell out within minutes of being announced on their social media feeds. Everything is baked by Helen and the menu changes on a weekly basis. Bestsellers include lemon meringue cheesecake, Mississippi mud brownie pie and old-school butterscotch tarts.
10. Jolene, north and east London
The stylish and influential bakery Jolene, which has branches across north and east London such as this one in Shoreditch, has made its impact with high quality patisserie
Jolene has quietly become one of the capital’s most influential baking operations. The counter might feature caramelised brioche, cinnamon buns, cream-filled selmas, fruit tarts and perfectly laminated croissants. It attracts a crowd that ranges from chefs to serious food lovers who appreciate the bakery’s combination of technical skill and ingredient quality. It even has branded merchandise, although it comes at a cost. While most foodies will fork out £4.20 for a cinnamon bun, some may find £32 for a bread bag – the cool new way to store your bread, often made of linen – harder to swallow.
11. Julien Plumart, Brighton
Julien Plumart opened his first site in Brighton back in 2008 to share his pastry creations
French pastry master and Great British Bake Off: The Professionals finalist Julien Plumart opened his first patisserie cafe in Brighton in 2008 and has been pushing pastry boundaries ever since. From intricate French patisserie and macarons to savouries and celebration cakes, everything is made by hand from scratch daily, using the best ingredients available and following classic, tried-and-tested recipes.
12. Lannan Bakery, Edinburgh
Lannan Bakery, found in Scotland's capital, has attracted long lines of customers outside waiting to try the food
Self-taught founder Darcie Maher is an Edinburgh food hero. She had 25,000 followers on social media before she’d even opened her bakery in 2023 and, from the first day, customers queued outside. Today, some people genuinely wait for hours. Recommendations include pain suisse, bouchons – small intensely chocolatey cakes, crafted with buckwheat – clementine jaffa cake and cardamom buns.
13. Long Boi’s Bakehouse, Manchester
Pastry fans have made Long Boi's Bakehouse an essential spot to visit for its creative creations
Long Boi’s Bakehouse in Levenshulme has quietly become something of a pilgrimage destination for pastry enthusiasts. The small team of all-female bakers turns out a creative selection of sweet and savoury bakes which constantly evolves. Highlights include pandan lamingtons and ‘everything bagel’ croissants filled with dill, spring onion and cream cheese. Classic cakes and pastries are presented with equal doses of flavour and flourish.
14. Lovingly Artisan, Kendal, Cumbria
Industry insiders have said that Lovingly Artisan is one of the best craft bakeries in the country
Kendal’s Lovingly Artisan’s buttery croissants, almond croissants, cinnamon twists, pains au raisin and pains au chocolat have fuelled many a Lake District hike. Multi award-winning, it is often cited by industry insiders as one of Britain’s best craft bakeries. It is committed to slow fermentation and quality ingredients and has its own flour mill with a fully traceable grain chain. Rye berry sourdough, ginger and barley biscuits, and chocolate-orange pain suisse are all highly recommended.
15. Native Grain, Truro, Cornwall
Locals in Cornwall have enjoyed the creative bakes from Native Grain since November 2023
Native Grain opened in Truro in November 2023 offering chain-starved locals creative bakes, typified by the made-for-sharing Monkey Bread, baked from croissant offcuts and coated in a sugary crust. It is all underpinned by solid, beautifully perfect foundation products such as classic plain croissants and house sourdough made with UK stoneground flour from local producer Cornish Golden Grains.
16. Northern Rye, Newcastle upon Tyne
Small batch micro-bakery Northern Rye has impressed customers with both its sweet and savoury offerings
Northern Rye has developed a formidable reputation for impeccably laminated, shatteringly crisp pastries. Savoury treats include sandwiches such as roasted aubergine with chimichurri, and ham and pease-pudding rolls made from bread baked on the premises. The sweet counter includes goodies such as strawberry and elderflower cruffins and chunky peanut butter and jam cookies.
17. Pipit, Bradford-on-Avon
Pipit has been serving customers in Wiltshire handcrafted sourdoughs since 2024 (pictured: 'Team Pipit' celebrate six months since their opening)
Husband-and-wife team Fred Mackenzie and Clare Mansfield opened Pipit in 2024 as a neighbourhood bakery in the historic centre of Bradford-on-Avon. Specialising in handcrafted sourdoughs and viennoiserie, they use traditional baking techniques and sustainable ingredients such as organic stoneground flour, cultured butter and organic Jersey milk. Seasonal and UK-sourced, the espresso bun – pillowy, brioche-based and topped with sticky, caffeine-laced icing – is their signature product.
18. Rough Handmade, Liverpool
This boutique bakery at the Royal Albert Dock is a Liverpool favourite, following a practice of handmade baking so products are not uniform
Rough Handmade gets a lot of love from Scouse bread and pastry fans, having been a firm local favourite on Penny Lane for many years before moving to a bigger building in the redeveloped Albert Dock. The minimalist interior allows the products to take centre stage. Everything is handmade and there’s no fuss or frilly frosting. The baking speaks for itself and is all about consistency, freshness and excellence. Everything you eat or take away is made on the day and anything left goes to a local homeless shelter.
19. Siop Shop, Manchester
Located in Manchester's Northern Quarter, Siop Shop is popular for its doughnut range
Siop Shop has built a reputation for playful baking and has elevated its signature doughnuts to an art form with experimental shapes and flavours. They are made fresh every day and range from classic raspberry to lemon meringue, tiramisu and crème brûlée. Its seasonal specials and limited editions have achieved cult status. Shapes include brains, chicken drumsticks, tennis balls, aubergines and bananas. The USP is indulgent and joyful.
20. The Sourdough School, Northamptonshire
The Sourdough School teaches students the art of healthy bread making under the leadership of Dr Vanessa Kimbell
This bread mecca is not a standard bakery but instead runs classes for those who are serious about healthy bread-making. Under the tutelage of global bread expert Dr Vanessa Kimbell, Sourdough School alumni include Michelin-star restaurateurs and the personal chefs of the rich and famous. Online you can buy Dr Kimbell’s Proven Bread which is delivered as a 12-week programme and described as the ‘healthiest bread you will ever eat’. Each loaf contains more than 30 diverse plant-based ingredients such as regeneratively grown grains, legumes, seeds and botanicals. The flour is hand-blended, stone-milled and never synthetically fortified. Every slice contains 6g of fibre, high polyphenols and a spectrum of micronutrients. You will probably never taste bread like it.
21. The Tiny Bakery, Leicester
The Tiny Bakery offers up handmade pastries, sourdough, coffee and cold drinks for guests
Tiny? Maybe. But the all-women team at this destination bakery punch well above their weight with a menu of avant-garde flavours and expertly crafted cakes. Specials are rotated monthly and include indulgent delights such as strawberry shortbread croissants filled with mascarpone cream and strawberry gel and homemade shortbread. The white chocolate and pistachio cruffins are works of art.
