Paris-trained (at a 300-year old patisserie) Marc Heu, who is of Hmong descent, left native France for St. Paul over two years ago. Here, he started his namesake bakery and brought over the kind of intricate wizardry commonly found in only the most storied of pastry ateliers. Some of his finest creations, such as vanilla Saint Honoré, are sculpted with an accordion-like symmetry; others, such as isaphan (a nod to Heu’s idol, Pierre Hermé) and several of his viennoiseries, are appealingly furled. Even his “craggier” offerings, like a rich and eggy flan, are not to be missed. A second location is in the works. 

Trung Nam’s vaunted banh mi need no introduction. But the rest of its pastry program may. With a dizzying variety of fruit-filled croissants (apricot, blueberry, raison, raspberry, strawberry, apple) and more unique flavors, like coconut, on offer, chef-proprietor Tony Le nails the French Asian culinary diaspora with aplomb. His pastries are ethereal and fruit-forward without being too sweet. Cash only. 

Like the gold leaf that adorns Bellecour Bakery’s magnificent crepe cake, everything that Gavin Kaysen adds to the Twin Cities’ already bustling food scene is more than polish. Kaysen and acclaimed pastry chef Diane Moua opened Bellecour in Wayzata, originally — after a pandemic closure, it now lives within Cooks of Crocus Hill on Grand Avenue and in downtown Minneapolis. The kouign amann here are exceptional — they’re caramely and buttery and intricately layered — and Moua’s famous crepe cake, layered with rich pastry cream, is a must.

Tara Coleman has worked under such heavyweights as Stephanie Izard and John Kraus, but make no mistake: She makes St. Paul’s Snelling Avenue Hot Hands Pie her own. Home-style chicken pot pies and fried chicken biscuit sandwiches are served atop retro red-checkered parchment in a space awash with blush-pink walls. Similarly, her retro-ish sweet pies are towering and rustic but have contemporary flourishes, like teardrop-shaped swipes of mascarpone, meringue burnished with concentric patterns, and a candied peanut topping molded like a crown.

Asa Diebolt got his start selling his trademark bagels and bialys at farmers markets throughout the metro. (Bialys are not bagels, though they may seem similar — they’re only baked, not boiled, and have a depressed center filled with sweet roasted onions.) Now at a new, bigger location on 34th Avenue, Asa’s Bakery is serving both old favorites and new, like smoked whitefish sandwiches and vegan smoked cream cheeses. There’s fresh bread, too. Stop by Thursday through Sunday to grab a loaf of sourdough, cheddar scallion, or deli pumpernickel, and be warned that Asa’s sells out early.

Run by Michelle Kwan, daughter of founders Sunny and Paulina, Keefer Court has been a pillar of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood since 1983, and a go-to for traditional Hong Kong-style pastries (not to mention congee, kung pao chicken, and noodles). Start with a pillowy steamed bun for lunch, like the curry beef or barbecue pork. For a sweet bite, the classic, custardy egg tarts can’t be beat — nor can the chewy red bean sesame balls.

Aki’s BreadHaus may be the only bakery in the Twin Cities that specializes in German bread, and it carries that mantle with aplomb. Owner Joachim “Aki” Berndt, a native of Germany, whips up nutty currant ryes, bauernbrot (a dark sourdough), and brötchen, the ultimate dinner rolls in his Northeast Minneapolis kitchen. The buttery pretzels come dusted with cinnamon sugar, parmesan, or an “everything” seasoning. Aki’s pastries are noteworthy too — supplement a Sunday morning loaf with apple streusel or a glazed lemon poppy seed roll.

Two generations of Botzet family bakers run Sarah Jane’s, a Northeast neighborhood favorite since 1979. The bakery leans into classic American bakery traditions, favoring lemon bars, doughnuts, and muffins over croissants and kouign amann. The coffee cake menu, which spans from butter pecan to cardamom almond, is unrivaled. Sarah Jane’s pastry case is always stocked, but it’s best to order ahead for anything special (like a harvest apple pie).

Kentucky-native, London-trained pastry chef John Kraus is several things — lauded chocolatier, former instructor at the French Pastry School in Chicago, and a one-time team captain representing the United States at the Coupe Du Monde de la Patisserie, the famed Olympics of pastry competitions. But he’s a baker at heart. Now, he presides over the Bread Lab, a production and training facility, while running both Patisserie 46 and its newer outpost, Rose Street, with his wife Elizabeth. All a roundabout way of saying that his breads — like a stellar miche and a unique baguette, made with a combination of rye and wheat flour — are flawlessly constructed. As are the kaleidoscope of cakes and confections on offer. 

It’s not just the vaunted kouign amann — buttery with an armor of caramelized gloss — that makes Black Walnut so iconic. Everything on its menu lures us back. There’s a cassis vanilla Bavarian cake, layered with an airy chiffon sponge and an intense ganache. There are radiant lemon tarts and, of course, croissants, which are consistently flaky across both sweet and savory offerings. Custom-order cakes, sized up to nine inches, are recommended for special occasions. 

Pastry maven Shawn McKenzie first wooed the Twin Cities with tahini cookies, chocolate babka, and Turkish scones at Café Cerés. In March of this year, she joined Rustica Bakery, a local icon since 2004, as executive chef and patissier. All the classics are still around, from the cross-hatched miche loaf and baguettes to kouign amann and bittersweet chocolate cookies. For a dreamy dessert fix, try the roasted banana tart, ringed with spheres of mascarpone mousse.