Every year Durham Magazine lets the public vote for the Best of Durham. To eat the best desserts and pastries of Durham, you can go to four different places in the Bull City.
Guglhupf Bakery, Cafe, and Restaurant (2706 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd.) was established in 1998 and features an upscale menu of German cuisine using local and seasonal ingredients. Open every day but Monday, they offer delicious desserts and pastries such as:
- Almond Schnecke: their croissant dough with almond filling rolled up and baked in a muffin tin for a bit of a crisp exterior
- Berliners: the German version of the ultimate doughnut, filled with raspberry jam and rolled in sugar
- Chocolate Mount: genoise and hazelnut butter creme form the foundation of this decadent chocolate covered classic called the “Granatsplitter”
- Cream Puffs: sugar encrusted puff pastry squares filled with vanilla whipped creme
- Fruit Tart: their house specialty currently with artfully arranged raspberries, composed of a tart shell, genoise, and vanilla whipped cream
Loaf (111 W. Parrish Street) is an urban bakeshop known for its sweet and savories pastries and desserts. Loaf first began as a vendor at the Durham Farmers’ Market.
- Apricot Danish: with black raspberries
- Berry Eclair: with chocolate pastry cream and topped with vanilla whipped cream
- Bostok: chocolate babka topped with strawberry jam, almond cream, and sliced almonds
The Mad Hatter’s Cafe and Bakeshop (1802 W. Main Street) offers a wide variety of desserts and pastries. In addition to their bakeshop, they serve beverages, breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and provide private catering.
- Bars
- Brownies
- Cheesecakes
- Cookies
- Danishes
- Macaroons
- Muffins
- Scones
Scratch (111 Orange Street) is a seasonal bakery offering the best of locally-farmed foods each season has to offer. Scratch is known for their delicious homemade pies, including:
- Lemon Chess Pie: bright and sunny, with buttermilk and cornmeal
- Chocolate Chess Pie: dark, crackly, and gooey, in a chocolate crust
- Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie: sweet berries, tart rhubarb, and walnut-rye streusel