Living in London means you have a whole range of cinnamon buns on your doorstep. The Scandi-style knots, the extra gooey American kind, crisp and flaky swirls made from laminated dough, a quest for London’s best cinnamon bun really depends on how you like it. Bread-like and not too sweet, or laden with so much buttery, syrupy stickiness that it feels like dessert.
Settle for your type or surprise your taste buds with something different, this is the ultimate guide to London’s best cinnamon buns…
Cinnamon bun: The Snapery
Squidgy, pillow-soft dough rolled in cinnamon butter, vanilla syrup plus a sprinkling of crunchy pearl sugar on top. Sweet and cakey and never a moment dry, this is a joy to eat from start to finish.
Maltby St market every Saturday and Sunday
Scandinavian cinnamon bun: Bageriet
Cardamom-spiced dough swirled with cinnamon paste and pearl sugar on top. The softness of the dough, a crunch to accompany every mouthful and the filling, so generous it oozes out the top, no wonder Bageriet always has a queue.
24 Rose St, London WC2E 9EA
Cinnamon bun: Miel Bakery
Big, brioche-style bun made with cream, lots of butter plus a subtle filling of cinnamon sugar. Not as cinnamony as you might hope, but with the finest French butter (Poitou Charentes), it’s incredibly buttery and rich.
57 Warren St, London W1T 5NR
Sticky bun: Fortitude Bakehouse
Long-fermented, deeply flavoured dough smothered in fermented butter, cinnamon and molasses sugar. A sticky sugar-laden swirl, but with a dark, bittersweet, almost smoky back note.
35 Colonnade, London WC1N 1JA
Scandinavian cinnamon bun: HJEM
Sweet yeasted dough rolled in a generous amount of brown sugar and cinnamon. A Danish-style knot that is soft and slightly chewy, warming and not too sweet, it’s the perfect ‘hygge’ treat.
3 Launceston Pl, London W8 5RL
Cinnamon bun: Sweet Things Cakery
Tall, syrupy-sweet bun filled with cinnamon paste plus lashings of glossy, slow-cooked cinnamon syrup on top.
138 Regent’s Park Rd, London NW1 8XL
Cinnamon bun: E5 Bakehouse
Organic cinnamon bun swirled with dark, toffee-like, muscavado sugar. The filling at E5 Bakehouse has a much stronger, richer flavour profile than others in the city.
396 Mentmore Terrace, London E8 3PH
Cinnamon bun: Karma Bread
Shokupan dough rolled in butter, golden caster sugar and cinnamon, plus a light drizzle of syrup and icing on top. Similar to traditional Japanese milk bread, the bun has a lovely milky-like sweetness, with a texture that is ultra springy and soft.
13 S End Rd, London NW3 2PT
Cinnamon bun: Pavilion Bakery
Swedish-inspired cinnamon bun with a sugar syrup glaze, a dusting of icing sugar and extra cinnamon top. Expect a crusty bread-like exterior and a light, cushiony-soft centre.
Multiple locations
Croissant cinnamon bun: Buns From Home
Laminated dough rolled in muscavado sugar, cinnamon and a drizzle of icing on top. Crisp and flaky like a croissant, this quintessential ‘Bun from Home’ comes with dessert-inspired fillings too.
128 Talbot Rd, London W11 1JA or 92 Holland Park Ave, London W11 3RB
American cinnamon bun: Mughead Coffee
American-style cinnamon bun with a thick layer of cream cheese frosting. If you arrive in New Cross at around 11am, the reward is a warm, meltingly soft, extra gooey bun.
359 New Cross Rd, London SE14 6AT
Danish cinnamon bun: The Bread Station
Kanelbullar with cinnamon sugar, a pool of pudding-like vanilla custard and chopped hazelnuts on top. Organic ingredients, traditional Danish baking techniques and a former Michelin-starred chef in the kitchen, it really is more than just a cinnamon bun.
373 Helmsley Pl, London E8 3SB
Morning bun: The Elder Press
Croissant dough filled with cinnamon sugar, orange zest and heaps of cinnamon sugar on top. While hefty in size, The Elder Press morning bun is light and flaky with a refreshing, citrusy-sweet twist.
3 S Black Lion Ln, London W6 9TJ
Kanelbullar: Scandinavian Kitchen
Cardamom-spiced dough filled with a mix of cinnamon, cardamom and vanilla sugar, plus pearl sugar on top. While it’s a sturdy, bread-like bun, Scandinavian Kitchen brushes the top with golden- and date syrup, which makes it deliciously sticky and sweet.
61 Great Titchfield St., London W1W 7PP
American cinnamon bun: House of Cinn
Huge, fluffy cinnamon bun with tangy cream cheese frosting, swirls of salted caramel and crunchy pecans on top.
Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, London W1A 1AB
Cinnamon bun: Little Bread Pedlar
Scandinavian-style bun with a cinnamon glaze and pearl sugar on top. Moist with crisp, almost caramelised edges, the LBP cinnamon bun has a wonderful texture, but more than anything, it’s the strong citrusy notes that will take you by surprise.
Multiple locations
Cinnamon social: Ole & Steen
Long, braided pastry dough with smooth cinnamon paste, blobs of vanilla custard and a drizzle of icing on top. Imagine the gooey centre of a cinnamon bun… in every bite.
Multiple locations
Scandinavian cinnamon bun: Fabrique
Swedish cinnamon bun made with freshly ground cardamom, a cinnamon butter filling and pearl sugar on top. Fragrant with speckles of cardamom, the crusty golden-brown loop makes way for a tender, buttery centre.
Multiple locations
Croissant cinnamon bun: The Dusty Knuckle
Croissant dough made with Estate Dairy cultured butter and a mix of cinnamon and sugar on top. Tall but shatteringly light, crisp on the outside but ever-so flaky within, The Dusty Knuckle bun is an East London favourite.
Abbot St, London E8 3DP or of their wholesale cafés, including the lovely Burnt Provisions in Hammersmith
American cinnamon bun: Luminary Bakery
Warm, fluffy dough swirled with golden syrup and cinnamon butter, plus generous drizzles of cream cheese frosting on top.
71-73 Allen Rd, London N16 8RY or 47 Chalk Farm Rd, London NW1 8AJ
Scandinavian cinnamon bun: Nyborgs Kitchen
Swedish-style twist made with organic spelt flour, a pinch of ground cardamom and a classic cinnamon sugar filling. Soft and chewy with a sweet, buttery flavour, the pull-apart loops keep you coming back for more.
Stroud Green Market + other markets in London
Cinnamon swirl: Margot Bakery
Sourdough cinnamon swirl with sugar on top. Margot Bakery might have replaced its big cinnamon buns with something much smaller, but these ultra-thin layers carry a toasty, caramelised sweetness and a texture that is fabulously flaky and crisp.
121 E End Rd, London N2 0SZ
Cinnamon bun: Niste at Benk & Bo
A vegan, weekday-only option you don’t want to miss, The Niste cinnamon bun at Benk & Bo is made with Wildfarmed flour and good-quality olive oil. It’s more dessert-like than doughy, with an astonishingly fluffy texture, a filling of sticky cinnamon date paste and zingy lemon icing on top.
4 Gravel Ln, Greater, London E1 7AW
