Favorite neighborhood bakery?

[ohmyganache]

Hello NYC eGulleteers! My wife and I will be coming up to NYC from south jersey for the food show in November. What are the best neighborhood bakeries? We were fortunate to have lived in Paris for a month this past summer, and we loved the little off-the-beaten-path places. The big boys (Fauchon, Pierre Herme) were nice, but...

Where should we go? We like simple stuff done well... california style perhaps. Thanks in advance!

-S&J

[emsny]

We're very fond of Yura and Company. Two locations: one (where they do the baking) at Third Ave and 93rd, the other on Madison at 92nd or 93rd. Regular American stuff, but good recipes and good ingredients.

[Noodlebot]

For basic cakes I like Billy's and Amy's. For French style pastries, Payard is great. For croissants, try Patisserie Claude or La Bergamote.

[emsny]

Where's Billy's?

[Noodlebot]

9th Ave around 22d St. You should find it on Google.

[emsny]

Had I but known. We were two blocks from there this afternoon.

[bethala]

i enjoy the quality of ceci cela's pastries. but is it just my imagination, or do the ones at the spring street location taste better than those at the chambers street shop? i particulary enjoy ceci cela's paris brest - great custardy coffee filling with the perfect texture. also, second la bergamote, although i've gotten an occasional dry piece of cake there. and financier for fancy individual cakes and eclairs. i particulary like anything financier does with pistachios, as well as their macarons (especially the pistachio). and i simply cannot let fauchon 's "big boy" status get between me and their macarons, butter cookies, or breakfast pastries.

ps, if you find yourself stuck in midtown east, ceci cela's pastries are also sold at a great little coffee shop called manhattan espresso cafe, on 49th street btwn lexington and 3rd aves.

ceci cela

55 Spring Street (just east of Bowery)

166 Chambers Street (just east of Greenwich St.)

la bergamote

169 9th Ave. at 20th St.

financier patisserie

62 Stone St., at Mill Lane

3-4 World Financial Center (Battery Park City)

35 Cedar Street @ 10 Liberty Plaza (btwn Pearl and William)

fauchon

442 Park Avenue, northwest corner of 56th St.

[ELA]

I am not a bakery expert, and while it may not be a full-blown retail bakery, I have always enjoyed everything I ever got from Blue Ribbon (Bakery). Have lunch there as well. I've always enjoyed it tremendously.

Eric

[nixienox]

Sugar Sweet Sunshine on the Lower East side.

http://www.sugarsweetsunshine.com/index.html

very neighborhoody, open late too.

[daisy17]

While not your typical bakery, I always love popping into City Bakery for a pretzel croissant or a tart. Great mac & cheese too, and cookies, and lemonade, and hot chocolate . . .

18th St. between 5th & 6th aves

[ewindels]

I'm currently working in the Hell's Kitchen area, and it requires no small amount of determination and will power not to visit Amy's Breads every day. I haven't really delved into the breads there yet, but the cookies and cupcakes are a serious treat, and their sticky buns are just wrong.

672 Ninth Avenue (Between 46th & 47th Streets)

[Eatmywords]

I'll second Bethala's recs on Ceci Cela and Financier. I think Financier edges out though. - the Stone st location is charming - one of the oldest blocks in Manhattan......cobble stones, original buildings (albeit restored), historic monuments etc.

Essayez le flan aux fruits....c'est merveilleux!

[Felonius]

It may be one of the "big boys" in NYC, but in my opinion Payard sets the local standard for French style pastries and chocolates.

My favorite neighborhood place is Levain Bakery (164 West 74th, just off the NE corner of Amsterdam). It certainly fits your "off the beaten path" request. It's a tiny shop in the basement of a brownstone, and offers a limited selection. Everything they do they do extremely well. Their cookies are some of the best in NYC, and I get cravings for their thin crusted pizzettes (carmelized onion with parmesan cheese and artichoke with gruyere are both fantastic, ask them to heat them up for you). Also, great brioche. I think I'm going to walk over there now!

Edited November 2, 2006 by Felonius (log)

[SusanGiff]

We happened by Cookies and Milk (Milk and Cookies? Sorry....) in the West Village a couple of weeks ago. Those cookies are incredible--very down home and delicious. The oatmeal-raisin were the best I'd ever tasted.

Susan