Cardamom bun forever. Good croissants too

#1 in my heart and soul. Best croissant of all time, including the ones I've had in Paris. Amazing breads (rugbrod is my fave), cookies, sunflower brownie, and really just the queen of all pastries. People love the 2x baked chocolate/tahini and pistachio almond croissants here, and they are good but very heavy (same with savory seasonal danish). The plain croissant is my life blood.

The milk bread. Is. Unreal. Tbh I can't buy it anymore because I eat the whole loaf in two days by myself. The texture and flavor is unparalleled. Nuts and seeds rye loaf is also amazing, prob my favorite dense, seedy rugbrod-esque bread (yes better than Mel - but also I'm not schlepping to Carroll Gardens on a weekly basis, so I just dream about it). Hot tip is that you can buy their milk bread and sourdough at Dimes Market if you don't live in Brooklyn

The people who work here are comically unpleasant every time, but the banana cake is the stuff of my dreams. Chocolate cake and carrot cake are also good, but you need the banana.

When I lived in Sydney, there was a Bourke Street Bakery downstairs from my office and I would go there all the time to get their sausage rolls. Those are still great, but recently I've gotten really into their turmeric black pepper sourdough + the ham and cheese baguette sandwich. The croissants here are solid - wouldn't go out of my way for one, but they do the trick in a pinch and probably best I've had in the area (I like them 'bien cuit' but these are a little too well done IMO). Also like the cookies, especially their fancy Anzac biscuit.

Classic for a reason. Rugelach, babka, chocolate chip cookies (these are the thinner, crispy, size-of-your-head variety), sourdough, and baguette are all very good

A kolache is my favorite when I want something comforting but small (it's basically a soft, pillowy bread roll with some type of filling). One of them is the perfect size to feel like a treat, but not inhibit you from working out in an hour. Best savory is the sausage, egg, and jalapeno, I like the poppyseed for the sweet. Sleeper hit is the orange roll, although be warned that that baby is massive and will put you to sleep.

The cutest, tiniest little gem of a Japanese bakery in the lobby of a rundown office building in Dumbo. The cookies, pastries, and cakes are delicate, elegant perfection - their cafe has truly insane hours if you don't live/work in the area (10AM - 2PM Tues-Fri) but it's worth it to make a special trip. Everything here is so special. My office used to be a couple blocks away and I would come here probably 4x a week. I MISS IT

Can be hit or miss, but I will always love their sticky date muffin

Cute neighborhood-y place with really good cake and cupcakes. They have lots of flavors here and my favorite are the strawberry and the ube. Be warned that the slices are MASSIVE and three-layers. They have other stuff like cookies, brownies, etc. here which tbh you can skip

Would I ever wait in line to get in here? No. Was everything that I tried the one time there was no line exquisite? Yes. (Kouign amann + an eclair, FYI.) Would I like someone to bring me a cronut so I can finally try one without any effort on my part? Also yes.

Sorry to be basic, but the macarons here are my favorite. The real MVP are the chocolate hazelnut sable biscuits though

Ex-pats from Paris really seem to love this place, I've had the plain croissant and it was great but not quite as good as Mel (the one here is slightly sweeter and felt heavier/more buttery). Want to come back to try the choc croissant, pain aux raisin, and my actual favorite niche French pastry, the chausson aux pommes (apple turnover). Also people are very hyped about the baguettes here

For a while, Leo and Dame did a bagel pop up every Sunday during the pandemic and I ate one religiously. The sourdough everything bagels here are next level. They used to sell their sourdough breads and bagels every day at a bakery next to the pizza restaurant (they would also have bombolone occasionally, which were v good), which they sadly don't appear to be doing right now, but I hold out hope.

Had to acknowledge one of the OGs: the cookies are good but just too massive/dense for me most of the time. Also, I like my chocolate chip cookies on the crisper side. BUT I do love sticking one of these in the freezer - seems to mitigate some of the richness, and you get more of a cookie dough vibe when cold. Sleeper hit is the oatmeal raisin, IYKYK

Looove the rugelach, and the savory burekas are also really good and unique. They also have a lighter cinnamon roll that I enjoy here ("lighter" being a relative term and mostly meaning on the smaller side/unfrosted)

I feel like Partybus doesn't get the shine it deserves because of its proximity to Mel (to be clear - if Mel is open, I will definitely be there instead), but I've liked the random assortment of things that I've had here: scallion bun, olive loaf, baguette, chocolate croissant. I've heard good things about their fruit and nut baguette too.

Best Italian butter cookies that I've had (better than Veniero's by a long shot IMO)

They brought shortbread cookies from this Japanese-French bakery to my company holiday party in 2019, and honestly I still think about them

Old school classic

Get the breakfast empanada with egg, cheese, and plantain!!!! I like their guava and cheese pastry too, but the plantain breakfast empanada is the best

I wrote a comically long Yelp review ranking all their cookies at one point, but the short version is that they are all good. Cocoa Au Lait and Buttermilk Rancher are my fave. Their cake slices are amazing, get the pistachio strawberry one if they have it

Get the brown butter rice crispy treat or the buckwheat banana bread

Yes, everyone here is annoying and the service is...inconsistent...but the baked goods here are really good (and many vegan/GF). I love the pumpkin or banana bread, and the peanut butter cookie is amazing

The pastry case rotates, but get the passionfruit donut and the green chile apple pastelito if they have it. Also, if I lived in Brooklyn, i would regularly trek out here to get the breakfast burrito every weekend. Believe the hype, it's worth it

Another place with weirdly limited hours, and one of the ones on this list I haven't been to. Had to include because everyone mentions as one of their baguette/croissant faves

Have not been yet, but I used to always frequent this location of Dough and have heard only good things

Full disclosure, they are currently closed in this location, but this was the best cinnamon roll I've ever had. I am praying that they reopen.