Soft dough or flaky croissant buns, classic spices or unconventional extras, these sweet buns include everything from cinnamon sugar to coffee-soaked ladyfingers – layered like tiramisu – and endless amounts of vanilla custard.
Cinnamon bun with cream cheese frosting: Luminary Bakery
A fluffy, super gooey bun full of cinnamon butter, it’s drizzled in cream cheese frosting – optional, but highly recommended – that melts straight into the warm dough.
71-73 Allen Rd, London N16 8RY. Open for take-away.
Tiramisu croissant bun: Buns From Home
Flaky, crisp croissant dough layered with coffee-soaked ladyfingers, chocolate soil – not cocoa powder, the soil adds so much more depth – plus a generous amount of creamy mascarpone.
128 Talbot Rd, London W11 1JA. Open for take-away and local delivery.
Vanilla custard croissant bun: buns from home
Croissant bun with vanilla custard, it’s not as inventive as their other dessert buns – strawberry cheesecake, apple crumble, tarte tatin – but the filling is so thick and rich, full of vanilla speckles and incredibly satisfying.
128 Talbot Rd, London W11 1JA. Open for take-away and local delivery.
Sticky bun: Spice Deli
Cardamom and cinnamon-spiced bun with chopped pecans, heaps of honey butter syrup – super thick, more buttery than sugary sweet – and a touch of salt, it’s only available at the weekend.
11 Goldhurst Terrace, London NW6 3HY. Open for take-away and local delivery.
Belgian bun: Dunn’s Bakery
A big swirly bun with plump raisins inside, a thick coating of raspberry icing and a sticky glace cherry on top, it’s soft and slightly chewy, doughy but not dry
6 The Broadway, London N8 9SN. Open for take-away and local delivery.
Cinnamon bun: Bageriet
Cardamom dough covered in brown sugar cinnamon paste, it’s soft and so delicate – especially when warm from the oven – with a topping of crunchy sugar crystals to finish.
24 Rose St, London WC2E 9EA. Open for take-away.
Custard bun: Bageriet
A sugar-coated, cardamom-spiced bun filled with vanilla custard, it’s firm but still fluffy, hugely generous – not just the bun, the filling is never-ending – and the custard is so silky and light.
24 Rose St, London WC2E 9EA. Open for take-away.
Pandesal bostock: Kapihan
A sourdough bun filled with frangipane and calamansi blueberry compote, it’s more sour than sweet, crusty around the outside – not soft or buttery like traditional Filipino pandesal – and super juicy inside. This was a weekend special but Kapihan has done many bostock variations since.
13A Parkgate Rd, London SW11 4NL. Open for take-away.
Blueberry bun: Fabrique Bakery
A massive, knotted bun with sugar and a seasonal filling of blueberries, it’s doughy and thick, not super sweet and full of juice inside.
Multiple locations. Open for take-away.
Morning bun: Fortitude Bakehouse
Morning bun with a filling of custard and whole berries, it’s super fluffy and soft inside – freshly baked in Bloomsbury, still warm from the oven – with a slight crisp, sugar-coated top.
