The 17 Best Bakeries & Sweet Treats In Ontario That Food Network Judges Absolutely Adore
For your bucket list! 🤤🥐
Person eating something in Toronto. Right: A blueberry lavender lemonade danish at Hadrien Verrier Patisserie in Toronto.
Some Food Network Canada judges on the show Wall of Chefs have said their piece on the restaurants they thought were some of the best in Ontario.
Now after the network has introduced its newest spin-off show which will hit screens on March 28, Wall of Bakers, Narcity got to hear from some talented chefs on where their go-to spots are for some sugary treats and mouth-watering eats.
Many of the judges for the new show hail from Ontario, and they dished to Narcity which bakeries were some of the best to visit in the province.
From European-inspired puff pastries to buns and loaves infused with Southeast Asian influences, here are 17 bakeries that these judges recommend you have got to try if you're in the mood for some sweet and savoury goodies.
Golden Hearth
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Croissants and sourdough bread
Address: 343 King St. E., Kitchener, ON
Why You Need To Go: Award-winning pastry chef Lenore Johnson of LenJo Bakes in Kitchener shared that her favourite thing to eat at the Golden Heart is “anything laminated, but mostly a pain au chocolat or fruit danish.”
“If I know I'm making grilled cheese for dinner or sandwiches for a day out, then I also stop in to get a pain au levain [...] Golden Hearth doesn't cut corners and that's what I appreciate about them!" she said.
Robinson Bread
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Bread and pastries
Address: 6 Brock Ave., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: Chef Stephanie Duong, behind Roselle Desserts, named this bakery, which is known for its handmade pastries and bread at the west end of Toronto, as one of her go-tos.
"All of Patti Robinson's products are baked fresh and onsite in her thoughtfully-designed kitchen. The cinnamon spelt swirl is my go-to. The use of spelt gives it a nuttier and fuller taste. I appreciate that I can get a crafted coffee in her shared space with Sam James Coffee," she said.
Fellow Wall of Bakers judges Joanne Yolles and Guy Rawlings also said that Robinson Bread was their favourite bakery.
"The dense whole grain rye is my favourite bread they make, but the flaky layers in their danish are pretty serious," Rawlings said.
Yolles shared that "EVERYTHING" Robinson makes is delicious.
"The croissant, seasonal Danish and spelt cinnamon rolls are all amazing. I could go on and on..."
Barbershop Patisserie
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: European
Address: 859 College St., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: This bakery will satisfy your savoury and sweet cravings with their European-inspired puff pastries that include buttery treats and housemade sausage rolls.
Amy Rosen, behind Rosen's Cinnamon Buns in Toronto, told Narcity that Barbershop Patisserie is a definite favourite.
"I am obsessed with the lemon bichon from Barbershop Patisserie (I've had to limit myself to one a week)!" Rosen said.
Bakerbots Baking
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Pastries, cookies, ice cream
Address: 205 Delaware Ave., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: Offering an array of pies, tarts, cakes, cookies and ice cream, this bakery near Ossington Station in Toronto is just what you need for some quick treats with a side of sweet ice cream to cool off from a hot summers day.
"Our son will usually get a cinnamon bun the size of his head. But the rest of us choose the type of cookie we want and which ice cream to fill it with, then we sit on the curb and let the ice cream melt away the heat," Guy Rawlings, the veteran chef behind Montgomery's, said.
Duo Pâtisserie
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: French
Address: 230 Commerce Valley Dr. E., Thornhill, ON
Why You Need To Go: Duo Pâtisserie serves classic French desserts with a Japanese flair, specializing in creating variations of chocolates, cakes and viennoiseries.
Stephanie Duong said this bakery makes "some of the best viennoiseries" and "petit gâteaux in the GTA since they opened eight years ago."
"The viennoiseries are just how I love them: freshly-baked, flakey, buttery, and perfectly balanced. The chef/owner Eric is so ambitious and hard-working and is always adding new products to his menu while continuing to offer his signatures. I love his savoury croissants in particular, his Mont Blanc tart and his Pecan Breton cookies," said Duong.
Roselle
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: French
Address: 362 King St. E., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: When he's in the city and in need of some sweets, pastry chef at Restaurant Pearl Morissette, Domenic Giammarella, said he instantly goes to Roselle.
"Anything you buy from their shop is guaranteed to be everything you were expecting and more. Simply put, they are always beautiful, elegantly-done pastries. Banana eclairs and madeleines that will actually make you weak in the knees. If you know, you know. If you don't, well it's about time you do!" said Giammarella.
Situated in Toronto's Corktown, Roselle bakery specializes in French desserts like mousse cake, eclairs, madeleines, and millefeuille that are sure to bring some sweet deliciousness to your taste buds.
Q's Cakes
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Various baked goods
Address: 7 Peppler St., Waterloo, ON
Why You Need To Go: Lenore Johnson told Narcity that Q's Cake's is the spot when she needs a little sugary pick-me-up. You can get everything at this small bakeshop in Waterloo from cupcakes, cookies, tarts, as well as a variety of customer and wedding cakes.
"My favourite thing to grab would be a cupcake! They always have delightful flavours, but I always hearken to childhood nostalgia and get either marble, cookies + cream or chocolate peanut butter (because we're peanut-free at LenJo but I love me some PB!)," said Johnson.
"I know I can always count on whatever I'm getting to be an absolutely delicious, made-from-scratch treat."
Menu
Doo Doo's Bakery
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Tarts
Address: 187 County Rd. 28, Bailieboro, ON
Why You Need To Go: If you are an avid lover of all things buttery, Doo Doo's Bakery is home to some award-winning tarts that mix together a heavenly combination of creamy filling and flakey crusts.
They've got a variety of tarts with flavours like cheesecake or chocolate peanut butter for those with a sweet tooth. But if you're looking for something savoury, their mincemeat tart is where it's at.
High-profile chef Lynn Crawford, who's starred in a variety of Food Network Canada's shows like Iron Chef, and Chopped Canada, said that ever since she's stopped by to grab some of these famous butter tarts a year or so ago, she hasn't been able to drive by the place without popping by for some goodies.
"There are so many different flavours of this iconic Canadian treat... and they are all awesome!!" Crawford said.
Hard Winter Bakery
Cuisine: Pastry and bread
Address: 133 Hunter St. E., Peterborough, ON
Why You Need To Go: If you want to munch something on-the-go, they've got a mean selection of breakfast scones and cookies made from local and house-made ingredients, as well as various types of sourdough to pair with jams and spreads.
Crawford mentioned, "everything that they bake is DELICIOUS!!" From bread, bagels, cookies, granola, and brownies, she described them as 'all fantastic.'"
Menu
Forno Cultura
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Italian
Address: Various locations
Why You Need To Go: Chef Joanne Yolles, the head pastry chef at Pangaea, expressed that their sandwiches were among her favourite things to get there. She says are made with delicious bread and filling.
“There’s a huge selection of sweet treats… cookies, biscotti, tarts, cakes, etc., so it’s always hard to decide what to try. I love the way everything is displayed. Like Robinson Bread, the baking is authentic, using the best ingredients,” Yolles added.
Hadrien Verrier Pâtisserie
Price: 💸 - 💸💸
Cuisine: French
Address: 116 Geary Ave., Toronto, ON (no pick-up available)
Why You Need To Go: The pastry chef for Richmond Station, Farzam Fallah, told Narcity that he loves Hadrien Verrier Pâtisserie.
The bakery's owner was even born and raised in the suburbs of Paris, France, and serves croissants and pastries inspired by French cuisine.
"It is French, it is classic and it is done to perfection. Full-flavoured and impeccably-textured pastries. I love their Almond Croissant and if you are lucky, you might find their Raspberry Almond Croissant, which is to die for," Fallah said.
Menu
Death in Venice Gelato
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Gelato
Address: 1418 Dundas St. W., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: This Toronto gelato spot is a place where Fallah said he goes if he's in the mood for something cold.
"They have funky flavours that never disappoint. Kaya Ogruce treats gelato the same way you approach a cocktail recipe, finding and balancing ingredients to create something new and delicious," he said.
LÀ LÁ Bakeshop
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: Various
Why You Need To Go: If you're in the mood for some Vietnamese-inspired loaves and buns, or just want to pick up a cake infused with popular Southeast Asian flavours, then this bakery got you covered.
"They play with a lot of the ingredients that I fell in love with while working in Hong Kong. Do not miss out on the Salted Egg Yolk Roll Cake and definitely get the Coconut Sticky Rice mini cake as a snack for later," expressed Fallah.
Con Gusto
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Italian
Address: 87 Hannover Dr., Unit 1, St. Catharines, ON
Why You Need To Go: Tara O'Brady, author of the best-selling cookbook Seven Spoons, said there's no order of hers at Con Gusto that doesn't include Giovanni's ham and cheese croissants and his "flakies."
"The former is the ideal; salty, diaphanous slices of ham, cheese melted into a lacy skirt, wrapped up in delineated layer upon layer of croissant dough. Savoury baking is sometimes overlooked for the ta-dah of its sweeter counterparts, but this croissant deserves all the attention," O'Brady said.
"The flakie, a fresher take on the nostalgic classic, is a sandwich of their housemade puff pastry, with pastry cream, whipping cream, or both, providing a bed of seasonal offerings like blueberries, raspberries, lemon curd, or dulce de leche. It's like the best version of childhood."
RPM Bakehouse
Price: 💸 - 💸💸💸
Cuisine: Bakery, cafe
Address: 3839 Main St., Jordan, ON
Why You Need To Go: O'Brady told Narcity that the baguette at the RPM Bakehouse was also a favourite of hers.
"[It's] resolutely chestnut, with a refined, pointed tip I'll fight over. It is a rustic, heartier imagining of the classic, and that is part of its allure. There is nothing like it anywhere else. The pastry on their sausage roll is sublime—buttery, shattering, exactly as it should be," she said.
Banh Mi Nguyen Huong Food Co
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Address: 322 Spadina Ave., Toronto, ON
Why You Need To Go: This spot right in the heart of Chinatown serves up tasty Vietnamese eats for even better prices.
“I went with my parents and grandparents to Ngyuen Huong once a week as a child for banh mi and sweet treats, and I love that the store has not changed much over the years,” Christinn Hua, behind Millie Desserts, told Narcity.
“One of my favourites as a child was the mung bean and pandan layered ‘cake.’ It has a texture similar to mochi and is more jelly-like than cake, and the aroma of coconut is accented by the earthiness of mung bean and pandan.”
Brick Street Bakery
Price: 💸- 💸💸
Cuisine: American
Address: Various
Why You Need To Go: Chef Hua remarked that her favourite menu item from Brick Street Bakery is their sausage roll, which she said is perfectly spiced and has a great sausage-to-pastry ratio.
“I can’t help but go into Brick Street Bakery when I walk past — the aroma just calls to me!” said Hua.
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