Wondering where to find the best bakeries in town?
Hoodline crunched the numbers to find the top destinations for freshly baked cakes, cookies and pastries in Cleveland, using both Yelp data and our own secret sauce to produce a ranked list of where to venture when cravings strike.
1. Farkas Pastry Shop
Coming out on top is Ohio City's Farkas Pastry Shop, at 2700 Lorain Ave. The 50-year-old institution is known for its napoleons — the vanilla or chocolate layered puff pastry also known as mille-feuille — but visitors will find other European classics like tortes and buttery linzers. With five stars out of 39 reviews on Yelp, the verdict is in — it's a local favorite.
2. Presti's Bakery
Next up, Presti's Bakery is also a Cleveland institution. It started operations in 1903 and settled in Little Italy in 1943. While it now also serves main dishes like pizza, stromboli and salads, its core business remains its breads and baked desserts: cookies, like biscotti and walnut ganache; pastries, like cannoli, cream puff and tiramisu; and cakes, such as chocolate mousse and carrot cake. Located at 12101 Mayfield Road, Yelpers give it four stars out of 310 reviews.
3. Campbell's Sweets Factory
Campbell's Sweets Factory is a chocolatier, popcorn maker and bakery at 2084 W. 25th St. in Ohio City. You may struggle to detect the cupcakes, cookies and pretzels over the smell of caramel and popcorn, but according to its 4.5 stars out of 64 Yelp reviews, it will be worth the effort. Look for the sea salt caramel cupcake, frosted sugar cookie and smothered turtle pretzel.
4. Koko's Bakery
Over in Asiatown, check out Koko's Bakery. This Asian-style bakery offers a variety of tarts, cookies and pastries, but what stands out are the list of buns — the neutral-tasting pastries that deliver whatever sweet or savory fillings are thrown at them. Sweet examples at Koko's include strawberry jam, coconut cream and coconut almond. On the savory side are the likes of barbecue pork and curry beef. Koko's, located at 3710 Payne Ave., has earned four stars out of 175 reviews on Yelp.
5. Fluffy Duck Cafe
Last but not least, there's Fluffy Duck Cafe, near the Cleveland Clinic at 10001 Chester Ave. Owner Ben Woods is a trained pastry chef, and pastries are unsurprisingly the subject of many of the positive reviews on Yelp. (Fluffy Duck Cafe has earned 4.5 stars from 56 reviews.) The kouign-amann (a caramel-flavored puff pastry from the Breton region of France) and croissants are among the items getting a lot of attention. The cafe also serves a full breakfast and lunch menu.
