13 of the best bakeries in Auckland
Here’s where to go to get your weekend pastry fix.
Bread. It’s humble and simple, but also elegant and complex. Good bread isn’t something you can take for granted.
Neither are decadent cinnamon swirls with caramelised sugar at their moist centres and buttery croissants that dissolve with each bite. I love the craft that goes into baking, the fragrances that emanate from baking ovens, and the warm sight of racks of baked goods.
What makes a great bakery?
I want a good loaf of sourdough, some aesthetically pleasing interiors, and some kind of mission statement about quality goods. Throw in some nice croissants and I’m sold.
We’re lucky to have many such bakeries in Auckland. Here are my top picks for the best bakeries in Auckland.
1. Daily Bread
Image courtesy of Daily Bread
Daily Bread started off with one storefront in Point Chevalier, and now has locations in Ponsonby, Britomart, Britomart, Federal Street, and Newmarket.
Their takeover of Auckland’s bakery scene is down to producing high quality bakery products with the best possible ingredients and techniques.
Their sourdough loaves and croissants set the bar, with incredible texture and flavour.
Their spelt loaf is unbelievably good, crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. The kind of bread you can eat almost by itself, just dipped into olive oil.
They also innovate frequently, bringing in new baked goods — like a mushroom and brie galette, filled with mushroom, brie, courgette, potato and miso, the perfect winter pastry — to keep their offerings interesting.
I’ve been a daily bread fan since they only had the Point Chevalier store, so I have watched their expansion with joy — I know good bread when I rip into it. They really are one of the best bakeries in Auckland and I’m glad they’re bringing their amazing loaves to more suburbs of the city.
2. Fort Greene, Karangahape Road
From the coffee station, to the warm wooden floors and furniture, rustic bench seats, and open kitchen, Forte Greene on Karangahape Road is one of Auckland’s most chic and welcoming bakeries.
Walking into Fort Greene is like walking into a hug. It’s warm and cosy, and smells delicious 100% of the time. This Karangahape Road bakery also happens to be gorgeous, but it has a lovely down-to-earth vibe that means it fits right in on this colourful road.
Not just one of Auckland’s best bakeries, but possibly some of Auckland’s best croissants. The almond croissants at Forte Greene are worth making a Sunday morning trek for, and the loaves of bread are delightful too.
Time your visit for when the croissants are fresh out of the oven and you’ll get to experience next level buttery flakiness. For a heartier breakfast, the coffee and eggs are top-notch as well.
3. Florets, Grey Lynn
Florets in Grey Lynn is a sourdough bakery with a focus on nutrient-dense loaves. The lengthy sourdough fermentation process is Florets’s hearty bread.
Organic whole grain grown in Canterbury is stone ground into flour in small batches for their bread, and a long fermentation unlocks the nutrients in these grains.
This process also makes the bread easier to digest, and the loaves last longer.
Bread at the heart of this bakery and what makes Florets stand out. Through the window of Florets, you’ll see loaves of seeded rye, whole wheat, and overnight oats sourdough arranged in neat rows.
Florets also has a tasty menu though, ranging from sandwiches with gourmet fillings like spiced cauliflower with walnut and date salsa, to toasties with mozzarella, pear, mustard, and pickle. Served on whole-wheat sourdough.
4. Mor Bakery, Remuera
One of Auckland’s newest bakeries, Mor Bakery in Remuera opened in July 2023 after building a following from online orders.
Their bricks and mortar cafe has proven to be as much of a hit as their online shop, with lines snaking around the block most mornings.
The hype is justified — their almond croissants are generously sized and stuffed with filling (you’ll feel the weight as soon as you have one in your hands), the mixed berry rosettes are both crispy and soft, and even the simple croissants will transport you to France.
Rumour has it they add custard to their croissants, which is what makes them so delicious.
Get there early if you want to have your pick of the pastries, and take them up nearby Mount Hobson to enjoy the baked goodies with a view.
5. Maison des Lys, Grey Lynn
Maison des Lys is a plant based patisserie in Grey Lynn, serving up baked goods like croissants and danishes. It’s not only one of the best vegan bakeries in Auckland, but one of the best bakeries full stop.
You won’t even notice the difference between traditional pain au chocolat and the vegan ones at Maison des Lys.
Baker Drissilla David is originally from Paris, but moved to New Zealand in 2015. When she couldn’t find any good vegan patisserie in Auckland, she taught herself how to bake some.
Bread and butter pudding made from croissants, ham and cheese brioche, and decadent chocolatines — every decadent pastry worth eating has been given a plant-based makeover at Maison des Lys.
6. Tart, Grey Lynn
Tart is Auckland’s OG vegan bakery — I’ve been buying vegan pies from Tart since 2016. A flatmate at the time thought she had bought a regular mince and cheese pie and was so disgusted to find out it was vegan she handed it over to me to finish.
Her loss, Tart’s gain because I became a bit of a fanatic and have spent possibly hundreds of hungover dollars on Tart pies in the years since. I have loyally stuck with them even as the prices have crept up because they’re still worth it.
I also like the vegan sausage roll, and the vegan pizza slices are good. The slices are nice, not the best you’ll ever have, but solid vegan options.
Since 2016, vegan pies have become a lot more common — to the point you can get them from petrol stations — and Tart has had to innovate a bit.
I still rate their original pie flavours the best though (you can give the mac and cheese one a miss). Mince and cheese, beef bourguignon, and vegan butter chicken are my favourites.
7. Atelier Shu, Parnell
Atelier Shu is a patisserie boutique in Parnell, serving mini gateau cakes and handcrafted pastries that are as pretty to look at as they are good to eat.
The minimalist interior has a gentle and welcoming vibe, with soft edges and a neutral colour palette. The long and narrow space, with the gorgeous patisserie on display behind glass, ends up feeling like a soothing gallery instead of a bakery.
All the better to appreciate the artistry of the baked goods here.
Try the cloud, a Japanese style roll cake, or the creative black sesame Basque cheesecake.
8. Little & Friday
Little & Friday’s baked goods are pure decadence.
I am obsessed with their savoury brioches, which are gigantic, flaky with butter, with crumbly feta falling out of the insides.
They also do a stellar range of cakes, which aren’t cheap but pretty much count as a full meal. The banana caramel one has fruit in it, which is healthy, right?
And of course, their jam doughnuts are a classic, giant balls of sugar-dusted dough, cream, and delight.
Little & Friday have cafe spaces in Ponsonby and Newmarket.
9. La Voie Francaise, Dominion Road
La Voie Francaise in Mount Roskill is run by Japanese baker Tetsuya Namekawa, who honed his impressive skills in both Japan and Paris before making his way to New Zealand.
You can’t get much closer to French pastries than at this bakery, where you can pick up flaky, buttery croissants, macarons made with seasonal fruit and flavours, and of course, baguettes.
They also have excellent canelé, which is one of my favourite bakery goods to get when I’m in France.
10. Diehl’s Bakery, Glenfield
Diehl’s Bakery on the North Shore operates with a simple philosophy; that bread should not be complicated
Some flour, sourdough, water, salt and a bit of fresh yeast. With these ingredients, and the right methods and length of time for fermentation, you can make exceptional bread.
Which is exactly what Diehl’s Bakery does.
This unassuming and small bakery makes traditional German pretzels, loaves of artisanal bread, and delicious sweet treats like hazelnut danish pastries.
It’s worth visiting this industrial area just to get some of Auckland’s best bread — I’ve heard that Germans will come from all over the city for this bakery.
11. Amano, CBD
Amano is possibly the most upscale bakery in Auckland. It’s a great destination if you want to savour some of Amano’s deliciousness without sitting down in their restaurant for lunch.
Loaves of sourdough and ciabatta are stacked aesthetically behind cabinets of pastries, cakes, and sandwiches.
My favourite thing to pick here is pizza by the slice, which are always topped with fresh, seasonal ingredients on fermented dough.
12. Scratch Bakers, CBD
Scratch is very much set up to cater to the corporate set in Auckland’s CBD, but it’s a great bakery nonetheless.
This bakery is called Scratch for obvious reasons - everything is made from scratch, in the kitchen on the premises.
Scratch does an epic vegetarian pie, but you have to get in before the lunch rush if you want to nab one.
I’m not completely crazy about most of their baked goods, but the coffee is good and they have sparkling water which is always a huge positive for me. It’s great for work coffee dates or out of office meetings as well.
13. Olaf's Mount Eden
Olaf is a German baker with a delightful bakery in Mount Eden. Artisanal bread and pastries line the shelves of Olaf’s, with a decadent menu to go along with the bakery goods.
Try the sourdough bagels or truffled mushrooms for a delicious brunch option.
Thanks for reading this far! I hope you enjoy exploring all of the pastries and sourdough Auckland has to offer.
Before you go, you might want to check these posts out as well:
