New York City offers just about everything in the area of baked goods. Finding the perfect spot for a sweet, bready treat should not be a hard task, but there are a many mediocre places to sift through before finding the true gems.

This list below names not only my favorite shops that produce their own baked goods, but also places that have one or two specialty treats that I deem go above and beyond the competition.

Bourke Street Bakery - Ginger Brûlée Tart

This bakery is a relatively new competitor to the NYC scene. However, back in Sydney, Australia, the quality of Bourke Street is well known. Located just north of Madison Square Park, between Flatiron and Koreatown, this bakery is central, as well as spacious. I was surprised to see how much quality seating they provide for the bakery visit when you absolutely cannot wait another minute to eat your treats.

15 E 28th St, New York, NY 10016

Levain Bakery - Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookie

Levain began on the Upper West Side as a bitty, below-ground producer of breads and cookies. Fortunately, the phenomenal quality caught on and there are now a few additional locations around the city (and one in the Hamptons) with much shorter lines than the original on 74th Street. The Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookie is the masterpiece to purchase, but only for those you love dearly. An honorable mention must also go to the Bomboloncini doughnut disk filled with raspberry jam.

167 W 74th St, New York, NY 10023

Daily Provisions - Cruller

This bakery near Union Square shot quickly into fame thanks to their gorgeously designed cafe and rather instagrammable specialty: Dipped Crullers. They carry maple and cinnamon as regulars, but my favorite is snagging one of their specialty colors and flavors such as the rainbow pride edition or red strawberry. An additional location just opened on the Upper West Side.

103 E 19th St, New York, NY 10003

Four & Twenty Blackbirds - Salty Honey Pie

A Brooklyn favorite for years, Four & Twenty has earned their reputation for excellent pies. The best location is the original on Third Avenue in Gowanus, but they have a pie bar in Prospect Heights. After living in Brooklyn for the past 4 years, I’ve begun to wonder if it’s really holiday season without a Salty Honey Pie.

439 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

Orwashers Bakery - Jelly Filled Donut

Orwashers, an Upper East Side institution, not only has an adorable shop with friendly service and several excellent regular treats from Italian rainbow cookies to the Jewish classics like rugelach and hamantaschen. My favorite remains their dedicated station for filling donuts with fresh Upstate New York jelly, before your very eyes!

308 E 78th St, New York, NY 10075

William Greenberg Desserts - Black & White Cookie

There’s been a lot of attention given to the traditional New York cookie known as the “black and white”. And while everyone may have their go-to spot, I can say I’ve tried more than most and the only ones I keep coming back to are the cookies at William Greenberg. I’ve made it a tradition of sorts, each visit I pay to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I swing by William Greenberg to grab a B&W. Special shout out to their red velvet variety.

1100 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10028

Breads Bakery - Babka

Breads sure did its best to turn me off at first. Located next to Union Square and The New School, every visit was annoyingly crowded with students and made me wonder what the appeal was all about. Then, thankfully, I was pointed in the direction of their chocolate babka. I stopped by one morning before the students were awake, and ate some of the best babka in existence. Now I get it. And thankfully, they’ve opened a few additional locations.

18 E 16th St, New York, NY 10003

Dominique Ansel Bakery - Kouign Amann

This place is a semi-upscale French bakery, and known for the dessert phenomenon of 2013, the Cronut. Thankfully, you should know this place produces other quality french classics like the kouign amann. Known at Dominuqe Ansel as The DKA, their kouign amann is a wonderful balance of crispy chewy caramel and dense pastry. It’s the best I’ve found in the US. Just go get one, OK?

189 Spring St, New York, NY 10012

The Hungarian Pastry Shop - Napoleon Pastry

This shop makes my top 10 list for so many reasons: 1) Nerdy Columbia students who sit here wishing they were studying abroad in Europe. 2) Producers of desserts you don’t find in most other bakeries. 3) Old-school service with white takeaway boxes and red string. 4) Located across the street from the massive Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. And finally, 5) a baked creation called a Napoleon pastry. Beige in color, you might not understand the appeal of this mille-feuille creation at first, but once you get a bite of the frosted, crunchy layers with an overflowing custard middle, you will begin planning more weekend excursions to Morningside Heights.

1030 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10025

Bakeri - Best Bakery All Around

Bakeri is the like the bakery one dreams about finding, hidden in the coolest nook of Brooklyn, but doesn’t ever seem to actually exist. Luckily for us all, it does exist, and it’s run by a group of women who wear utilitarian jumpsuits and produce dozens of expertly baked items, served up on vintage service ware at marble tables! You cannot miss this place on your next outing to the hip neighborhood of Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

105 Freeman St, Brooklyn, NY 11222