Best of Local Bakeries

Dunwoody. Washburn. Crosby. Pillsbury. You know them as names that adorn our schools, street signs, counties, and creeks. But back in the day, these East Coasters and European immigrants paved the streets of Minneapolis with wheat and flour, creating an industry that literally put Minnesota on the map.

There was a time in America when buying flour meant asking your local grocer to scoop a bag from an unnamed bin. But that changed in the 1880s when William Dunwoody and John Crosby came home from the Millers’ International Exposition in Cincinnati with a gold medal for their advanced patent flour. They renamed it Gold Medal flour, and it boomed.

At that time, more than 70 percent of Minnesota’s farmable land (some 4.5 million acres) was planted in wheat. In 1880, the Washburn A-Mill was the largest mill in the world, an honor it kept only until 1881, when the Pillsbury A-Mill opened across the river. Powered by St. Anthony Falls, the Pillsbury A-Mill pumped out 17,500barrels of flour a day, and held its world title for 40 years. We were the breadbasket of the country.

By the time I was a school kid, the most I knew about our flour power was through my class tour of the Betty Crocker kitchens at General Mills. Oh, that light-blue Pennsylvania Dutch kitchen! We were still the breadbasket of the country, but now that bread came in boxed mixes, or in pre-formed frozen loaves. Post-WWII, our drive to automate and push boundaries had shifted from wheat as a commodity to wheat-based products for the busy household.

Our international reputation continues today, but there’s been a glaring hole in our gluten-packed narrative. Despite our milling roots, we do not have a robust baking history beyond our homes, our church basements, and our Blue Ribbon State Fair winners. We’ve been missing that artisanal baking culture that pushes itself toward perfection and innovation. There are no iconic bread festivals here, no prized strain of Minnesota sourdough.

But a new kind of wheat and grain culture is rising, one that respects the birthright of this city as well as pushing boundaries. Take Sunrise Flour Mill in North Branch, which has become the darling of bakers and chefs looking for organic and heritage wheat flours. The national demand for Sunrise flour is so great that it’s expanding this year. And then there’s Baker’s Field—the first new artisan mill in Minneapolis city limits in more than 40 years. Trailblazers like John Kraus, an international baking and pastry leader, chose Minnesota to launch his amazing boutique bakeries, Patisserie 46 and Rose Street Patisserie.

Today, Minnesota is home to nearly 20 percent of the country’s 6,000 retail bakeries. Happily, many of these outfits are embracing the current crop of visionary bakers and makers who understand that wheat and water built us and will continue to carry us forward.

COOKIES

Rustica

This beloved local chain packs its cookies with more flavor than would seem possible. The bittersweet chocolate cookie is like a brownie that shrunk in upon itself, losing some of its mass but doubling the flavor. And the ginger molasses cookie is like Bugs Bunny painted a hole on a plate, and then used a garden shovel to fill it with ginger. 3220 W. Lake St., Mpls., 612-822-1119; 8107 Eden Prairie Rd., Eden Prairie, 952-479-7631; Cookies & Creamery, Mall of America, 952-854-4373, rusticabakery.com

The Finnish Bistro

The home of light, buttery shortbread sandwich cookies with a sweet and fruity filling of raspberry jam inside. 2264 Como Ave., St. Paul, 651-645-9181, finnishbistro.com

Denny’s 5th Avenue Bakery

Try the rich, nutty almond-crescent cookies that Danish, Jewish, and German bakeries all claim for themselves. Call them mandelhoernchen or Danish almond cookies or something else altogether, but Denny’s makes the best. 7840 5th Ave. S., Bloomington, 952-881-4445, dennysbakery.com

Brake Bread

You’ll want the Sugar Lime cookie, which is like what happens when a key lime pie and a fresh lime daiquiri have a baby. 1174 W. 7th St., St. Paul, 651-300-9136, brakebread.com

Cossetta Pasticceria

Everyone raves about the cannoli here, but the pro move is to stock up on pignoli cookies, the Sicilian Christmas treat packed with pine nuts and almond. 211 W. 7th St., St. Paul, 651-222-3476, cosettas.com

BAO

Keefer Court Café

Discover airy buns the color of gold at sunset here. Bite into one and find the beefy yellow curry, comforting yet fiery. There’s a sweeter barbecue and sausage version for your sweeter moods! 326 Cedar Ave. S., Mpls., 612-340-0937, keefercourt.com

Quang Restaurant

The bao here are overstuffed with pork and egg. They’re the towering Dagwood sub of Vietnamese bao. 2719 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-870-4739, quang-restaurant.com

Trung Nam French Bakery

While chiefly known for making the world’s best light-as-air banh mi baguettes, Trung Nam’s bao are mild, kid-friendly comforts. 739 University Ave. W., St. Paul, 651-229-0887, trung-nam.squarespace.com

PRETZELS

Aki’s BreadHaus

Its chewy German pretzels are a knot of opposites: tender and chewy, salty and fresh, old and new, and absolutely perfect for eating in either a Bavarian castle or your rec room with the football game on. 2506 Central Ave. NE, Mpls., 612-578-7897, akisbreadhaus.com

Angel Food Bakery & Donut Bar

This place takes a pretzels-to-the-max approach, with flavors like jalapeño popper and cheddar bacon chive. 86 S. 9th St., Mpls., 612-238-1435, angelfoodmn.com

Surdyk’s

The housemade soft pretzels are terrific, and they get a little better paired with Surdyk’s best-in-town cheese selection. 303 Hennepin Ave. E., Mpls., 612-379-9757, surdyks.com

(MORE: A Love Letter to Local Donuts)

KOLACHE

Augustine’s Bar & Bakery

Augustine’s definitive Twin Cities cream cheese kolache is more “modern Texas” than “historical Czechoslovakia”—buoyant, tender, delicate, and magically blended with cream cheese and fresh ricotta for an extra fresh, rich, milky vavoom. 1668 Selby Ave., St. Paul, 651-447-3729, augustinesmn.com

Lau’s Czech Bakery

Hit the road for old-school, farm country–style kolache (get the poppy seed–filled kolache). 121 W. Main St., New Prague, 952-758-3220

Dorothy Ann Bakery & Cafe

The place to go if you’re seeking Polish paczki, not Czech kolache, a difference in slight variation only. The paczki are available every Friday, and the one stuffed with fresh strawberry is a dream. 710 Commerce Dr., Woodbury, 651-731-3323, dorothyannbakery.com

CROISSANTS

Bellecour

Gavin Kaysen leads a dream team at Wayzata’s Bellecour, the hottest new restaurant in the metro (which just so happens to have a killer bakery). Kaysen is a one-time winner of a French viennoiserie competition (viennoiserie being dough used to make croissants and other treats). But the star hitter to his star pitcher, so to speak, is pastry queen Diane Yang. Between the two of them, this whole baseball game of croissants is nothing but a dizzying display of no-hitters and home runs. 739 E. Lake St., Wayzata, 952-444-5200, bellecourrestaurant.com

Sun Street Breads

Solveig Tofte washes her salty, mineral-y, intensely buttery croissants with a pretzelfinish to make them extra-crisp. 4600 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-354-3414, sunstreetbreads.com

Salty Tart

The almond croissant here is decadent bliss—so fragrant, so crunchy, a kaleidoscope of different weights and densities of almond, twirled together. 920 E. Lake St., Mpls., 612-874-9206, saltytart.com

PASTIES AND HAND PIES

Potter’s Pasties & Pies

The leader in local pasties uses a traditional lard crust, and you need just one bite to understand why this approach has been the gold standard in the UK for centuries. You’ll love the shattering planks of micron-thin flakes on the outside and the fudgy riches of flaky dough inside. The fillings, meanwhile, are super-flavored—the sausage roll is pure hedonism, the beef and veg perfectly spicy and beefy. 1828 Como Ave. SE, Mpls., 612-819-3107, potterspasties.com

Savory Bake House

It wraps its plush brioche dough around fillings that change every day—ham and cheese being the classic—baked into a rich, tender, eggy glorification. 3008 36th Ave. S., Mpls., 612-729-1310, savorybakehouse.letseat.at

Mon Petit Chéri

Mon Petit doesn’t feel the need to follow any rigid rules concerning brioche, which is what makes its tart and spice–kicked mango chili lime as delightful as the croque-monsieur. 2401 Franklin Ave. E., Mpls., 612-236-4831, mpcbakery.com

CAKE

Salty Tart

Salty Tart is famous for being the outlet of Minnesota’s James Beard Award–nominated pastry star, Michelle Gayer. To taste why her work makes pastry professionals backflip, try her absolute plainest cake: a golden vanilla bean filled with pastry cream and frosted in vanilla buttercream. Every bite of the buttery cake reveals nutty, caramel-y, flowery depths, and if you think that’s deep, wait till you try the Surly cake with chocolate ganache. 920 E. Lake St., Mpls., 612-874-9206, saltytart.com

Cafe Latté

Its iconic turtle cake is a towering living legend that emits a gooey caramel glow only true stars possess. 850 Grand Ave., St. Paul, 651-224-5687, cafelatte.com

Patisserie 46

The tiny cakes here are tiny miracles, each built of half a dozen complicated French elements, like pecan nougatine, sable Breton, mousse, and crème anglaise. They’re pretty, too, like tiny sculptures built from jewels. 4552 Grand Ave. S., Mpls., 612-354-3257, patisserie46.com

Buttercream

Maker of elite wedding cakes wrought with delicious buttercream icing. 18172 Minnetonka Blvd., Deephaven, 952-249-0390; 682 Transfer Rd., St. Paul, 651-642-9400; 223 E. Chestnut St., Stillwater, 651-430-9654, buttercream.info

Yum! Kitchen and Bakery

Yum’s rich, deeply chocolaty PattiCake with pure white frosting is available by the slice or the whole cake. 4000 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, 952-922-4000; 6001 Shady Oak Rd., Minnetonka, 952-933-6001, yumkitchen.com

The Copper Hen Cakery & Kitchen

Its specialty? Pretty, pretty cakes that make the Instagram girls go batty and grab hands and dance. Try the fresh carrot cake and you’ll want to join hands with them. 2515 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-872-2221, copperhenkitchen.com

MACARONS

Patisserie 46

Made by John Kraus, one of America’s greatest pastry chefs, the macarons at Patisserie 46 are technically perfect, light as vapor seized in a flash, crisp as a note at dawn. But because Kraus is an artist, they come in flavors that are a step beyond technical perfection, and dance into poetry—try the Coconut Exotic. 4552 Grand Ave. S., Mpls., 612-354-3257, patisserie46.com

Cocoa & Fig

Home to the macarons preferred by beautiful brides for picture-perfect weddings. But you don’t have to get married to create your own tower stacked with subtle pistachio and rosy raspberry. 6807 York Ave. S., Edina, 952-926-2764; Gaviidae Common, Mpls., 612-333-1485, cocoaandfig.com

Nikkolette’s Macarons

If you want Nikkolette Krumheuer’s famous macarons, you’ll have to order them online (she doesn’t have a retail space). Inside tip: She’ll also come to your house and teach you how to make them with your friends. 651-334-8821, nikkolettesmacarons.com

PIZZA CRUST

Pizzeria Lola

The crust that launched an empire is hard to describe because it’s so minimalist, pure, and delicate but also gargantuan-tasting. It’s the flour and fire we think, but one taste and you never forget the bready, smoky earth-caught balloon of the thing. Order the simplest marinara, with little more than tomato and oil, and try to put the beauty into words. 5557 Xerxes Ave. S., Mpls., 612-424-8338, pizzerialola.com

Sun Street Breads

Every Thursday, crust lovers line up for Sun Street’s special pizza night, featuring big, doughy, crusty, puffy discs of glory, gilded with farmers’ market–driven veggies and spicy surprises. 4600 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-354-3414, sunstreetbreads.com

Broder’s Cucina Italiana

Broder’s makes classical and impeccable New York–style pies, but you can also buy the dough and practice your tosses in the privacy of your own kitchen. 2308 W. 50th St., Mpls., 612-925-3113, broders.com

(MORE: Upper Crust: Our Favorite Local Breads)

SWEET ROLLS AND BUNS

Sun Street Breads

The home of the Downtowner, a cinnamon roll made like no other. First they twist curls of croissant dough, then add cardamom, spicy cinnamon, and cloves. The result? A spice-filled delicacy that you can hold in one hand. 4600 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-354-3414, sunstreetbreads.com

Honey & Rye Bakehouse

You’ll want the ooey-gooey cream cheese frosting–topped cinnamon rolls, which make any morning into a deluxe brunch situation. 4501 Excelsior Blvd., St. Louis Park, 612-844-2555, honey-and-rye.com

Isles Bun and Coffee

Uptowners are spoiled thanks to Isles Bun’s gargantuan caramel rolls, cinnamon buns, and pecan caramel rolls. 1424 W. 28th St., Mpls., 612-870-4466, islesbun.com

ÉCLAIRS

Butter Bakery Cafe

Butter Bakery’s pâte à choux, the dough you need to make a proper éclair, is almost thick and chunky in the mouth, like good buttercream frosting. Slicked with chocolate ganache, this éclair will make you sing like a bird. 3700 Nicollet Ave. S., Mpls., 612-521-7401, butterbakerycafe.com

Patisserie 46

This Minneapolis favorite sometimes makes fancy, extreme éclairs like its Peach Melba, with basil mascarpone cream and peach compote. Friends, if you love éclairs, finding one of these fascinations is like spying a triple rainbow. 4552 Grand Ave. S., Mpls., 612-354-3257, patisserie46.com

MUFFINS

Turtle Bread Company

Steadfast and true, the muffin used to be the workhorse of the breakfast grab before scones and bagels took sway. But Turtle Bread still believes in the morning glory of a solid and sturdy muffin, from the resolute blueberry to the apple hazelnut made with brown sugar and buttermilk for a bit of tang. 4762 Chicago Ave., Mpls., 612-823-7333; 3421 W. 44th St., Mpls., 612-924-6013; 4205 E. 34th St., Mpls., 612-545-5757, turtlebread.com

Empire Coffee + Pastry

This place has a loyal following for lots of its scratch pastries, and the Dirty Chai muffin is certainly reason to put it on your roster. 451 Stinson Blvd., Mpls., 612-331-3877;807 NE Broadway St., Mpls., 612-259-7053, empireminneapolis.com

Patisserie 46

Its textbook blueberry muffin with a plush interior and crackly sugared crust will ruin your future big-box coffee shop grabs. 4552 Grand Ave. S., Mpls., 612-354-3257, patisserie46.com

CUPCAKES

The Copper Hen Cakery & Kitchen

Copper Hen’s little cupcakes are treated with attention to quality ingredients, like the perfect blob of buttercream frosting. And then they go and jam a syringe full of booze in them, for the win. 2515 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-872-2221, copperhenkitchen.com

Groundswell

Can’t choose between Groundswell’s chocolate blackout cupcake and its salted honey caramel cheesecake wonder? You don’t have to—it has cupcake flights. 1340 Thomas Ave., St. Paul, 651-645-6466, groundswellmn.com

The Buttered Tin

Its Ho Ho–style cupcake kicks all kinds of butt over the Hostess original. 237 E. 7th St., St. Paul, 651-224-2300, thebutteredtin.com

Nadia Cakes

The reigning queen supreme of cupcake creativity can make even gross-sounding cupcakes delicious. Nadia’s Unicorn Poop, for example, features a rainbow vanilla bean cake topped with vanilla icing and swirly, colorful fondant. 11650 Fountains Dr., Ste. 207, Maple Grove, 763-575-8885; 429 Commerce Dr., Woodbury, 651-314-4444, nadiacakes.com

GLUTEN-FREE

French Meadow Bakery & Cafe

Nobody in the city does gluten-free and vegan treats with such ease and aplomb as French Meadow. Its elegant gluten-free cakes, cookies, scones, and wicked chocolate caramel crunch bars are just as tasty as its gluten-packed counterparts. 2610 Lyndale Ave. S., Mpls.., 612-870-7855; 1662 Grand Ave., St. Paul, 651-789-8870, frenchmeadowcafe.com

BitterSweet Gluten Free Bakery

This fully gluten-free bakery in Eagan offers it all, from brownies and cakes to breads and pizza crusts. We dare you to walk out without rosemary-garlic breadsticks. 2105 Cliff Rd., Eagan, 651-686-0112, bittersweetgf.com

Sassy Spoon

A fully gluten-free restaurant with a mighty fine double-decked chocolate turtlecake. 5011 34th Ave. S.,Mpls., 612-886-1793, sassyspoonmpls.com

BARS

Yum! Kitchen and Bakery

Featuring a peanut butter binding under a thick swath of chocolate, the Special Yum Bar understands our deeply personal, Minnesotan need for bars. Nut GoodleyBar, meanwhile, raises the bar with fat layers of nutty decadence. 4000 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, 952-922-4000; 6001 Shady Oak Rd., Minnetonka, 952-933-6001, yumkitchen.com

Sarah Jane’s Bakery

This humble bakery’s bars are perfect little squares that are matriarchy approved. Think lemon bars like your aunt Lucy brought to your graduation, and Snoopy bars with peanut butter and chocolate like you stole from your mom’s pan. 2853 NE Johnson St., Mpls., 612-789-2827, sarahjanesbakery.com

Mon Petit Chéri

The bars at Mon Petit are a bit more elegant than usual. The rhubarb-lemon, for one, is astonishingly light, and the nut-studded grain bar is something new altogether. 2401 Franklin Ave. E., Mpls., 612-236-4831, mpcbakery.com

The Buttered Tin

Finding a worthy blondie bar can be tough. Lucky for you, we found one in The Buttered Tin’s Mocha Choca Blondie. 237 E. 7th St., St. Paul, 651-224-2300, thebutteredtin.com

SCONES

The Lynhall

Scones can be a dicey affair to judge. Some are savory, some sweet, some crumbly, some brick-like. But the buttery, herby, savory scone at the new Lynhall makes all the right moves, doubling as an egg sandwich. 2640 Lyndale Ave. S., Mpls., 612-870-2640, thelynhall.com

Groundswell

Salt hounds: Try the bacon Gruyère scone at Groundswell. Sugar freaks: You’ll want the chocolate cherry scone licked with almond icing. 1340 Thomas Ave., St. Paul, 651-645-6466, groundswellmn.com

Rustica

Rustica makes pitch-perfect scones, offering a different special flavor daily (kick off your Monday with Maple Oat). 3220 W. Lake St., Mpls., 612-822-1119; 8107 Eden Prairie Rd., Eden Prairie, 952-479-7631; Cookies & Creamery, Mall of America, 952-854-4373, rusticabakery.com

QUICK BREADS AND COFFEE CAKES

Lucia’s To Go

You can’t fail here, whether you try the standard weighty and moist chocolate pound cake lolling under dulce de leche, or the lighter walnut brown butter cake. And keep an eye out for the special spice-topped banana bread with black walnuts. 1432 W. 31st St., Mpls., 612-825-1572, lucias.com

Cafe Alma

The bakery here does a textbook-perfect brown butter pound cake in a sweet little brown-wrapped loaf. 528 University Ave. SE, Mpls., 612-379-4909, almampls.com

Mon Petit Chéri

The Longfellow fave brings a twist with seasonal zucchini rosemary bread that’s lilted with lemon and citrus. 2401 Franklin Ave. E., Mpls., 612-236-4831, mpcbakery.com

Sarah Jane’s Bakery

Its cinnamon circle bread is packed with so much cardamom you’ll feel Norwegian by proxy. 2853 NE Johnson St., Mpls., 612-789-2827, sarahjanesbakery.com

Yum! Kitchen and Bakery

Order the cinnamon pull-a-parts and you get a convenient little personal serving size that fits in your car’s cup holder. 4000 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, 952-922-4000; 6001 Shady Oak Rd., Minnetonka, 952-933-6001, yumkitchen.com

PIES

Power, Corruption, and Pie at Salty Tart

Pie is personal. Pie is seasonal and occasional, controversial and sometimes mystical. No one understands that better than Salty Tart’s Michelle Gayer, whose pie concept will have more of a presence in her Midtown Global Market stall due to her commercial space expansion. From Meyer lemon to bourbon pecan, there are no misses. 920 E. Lake St., Mpls., 612-874-9206, saltytart.com

Birchwood Cafe

Its lard-crusted French silk is a yardstick for greatness. 3311 E. 25th St., Mpls., 612-722-4474, birchwoodcafe.com

Revival

Its epically delicious banana cream pie looks like Mount Vesuvius. 525 Selby Ave.,St. Paul, 651-340-2355; 4257 Nicollet Ave., Mpls., 612-345-4516; revivalfriedchicken.com

Patrick’s Bakery

The Bourbon Chocolate Pecan is the real winner here. 12489 Elm Creek Blvd., Maple Grove, 763-420-7770; 2928 W. 66th St., Edina, 612-861-7570; Bachman’s, 6010 Lyndale Ave., Richfield, 612-861-9277, patricksbakerycafe.com

The Buttered Tin

You’re ordering the tart key lime pie, which sits in an all-butter crust. 237 E. 7th St., St. Paul, 651-224-2300, thebutteredtin.com

Turtle Bread

Its peach blackberry pie will stand out on any picnic table. 4762 Chicago Ave., Mpls., 612-823-7333; 3421 W. 44th St., Mpls., 612-924-6013; 4205 E. 34th St., Mpls., 612-545-5757, turtlebread.com

Key’s Cafe & Bakery

Hard-to-find scratch-made Boston cream pie reveals itself at the iconic local Key’s Cafe chain. 114 S. 9th St., Mpls., 612-339-6399; 500 N. Robert St., St. Paul, 651-222-4083; several more metro locations, keyscafe.com

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More of the Best in Local Bakeries:

Ask a Baker

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A Love Letter to Local Donuts

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Our Favorite Local Breads

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Bagel Madness

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A Night in the Life of a Baker

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