| Area or street | Dessert stop and verified detail | Planning use |
|---|---|---|
| Northeast Minneapolis | Sarah Jane’s Bakery, 2853 Johnson St NE, open since 1979; known for lemon bars, doughnuts and coffee cakes | Classic neighborhood pastry case. Order ahead for anything special. |
| Uptown | Isles Bun & Coffee, 1424 W 28th St; known for cinnamon and caramel buns | Go for a bun, and plan for a line at busy times. |
| West Lake Street | Rustica Bakery, a local bakery since 2004 | Everyday bakery stop for baked classics. |
| Lyndale Ave S | Sonny’s Ice Cream, 3403 Lyndale Ave S; 4.2/5 from 141 Yelp reviews (Feb 2025); tagged for gelato | Cold treat when you want ice cream or gelato. |
| N 1st St | Porzana, 200 N 1st St; 4.6/5 from 241 Yelp reviews (Feb 2025) | Highest-rated entry on a Yelp-based dessert list. |
| Hennepin Ave S | Black Walnut Bakery, 357 Hennepin Ave S; custom cakes sized up to nine inches | Occasion cakes that need a custom order. |
The figures above come from Stacker’s Yelp-based dessert roundup and a 2023 Twin Cities bakery roundup.
The best desserts in Minneapolis depend on the kind of treat: neighborhood bakeries for pastry and bars, ice cream shops for cold treats, and a few late-opening kitchens for after-dinner cravings. Start with the area you will already be in.
This guide sorts desserts by neighborhood and by type, so you can match a craving to a street instead of scrolling a generic ranking. When you want a deeper comparison of pastry shops, the guide to the best bakeries in minneapolis goes further than the summary here.
Choosing where to start
Choose by craving and by the clock before you choose by rating. A pastry case, a scoop counter and a kitchen that stays open after dinner solve different problems, and a single neighborhood often holds more than one of them.
Pastries, bars and buns
Pick a bakery when you want something to eat right away or to carry home. The bakeries in this guide are strongest on baked classics such as lemon bars, coffee cakes and cinnamon buns. Those are the items that regional roundups keep returning to, and they travel well in a box.
Cold desserts
Pick an ice cream shop when the plan is a walk with a cone, or when you want gelato or an ice cream cupcake. Frozen desserts are the easiest category to compare across shops, because the question is mostly flavor and format rather than a long pastry menu.
After dinner
Pick a dessert-first kitchen when dessert is the evening’s main event. Hours matter more here than anywhere else in this guide, because most bakeries are built around daytime trade. The late-night section below names the one verified option with posted hours past 10 PM on weekends.
Occasions and orders
Pick a bakery with a custom-order process when the dessert has to be a particular size or design. Walk-in pastry cases rarely help with a birthday cake. The custom-order section below separates the places that publicly advertise made-to-order cakes from those that simply sell by the slice.
Northeast, Uptown and Lake Street bakeries
Three neighborhood bakeries anchor the baked-goods side of Minneapolis dessert: Sarah Jane’s in Northeast, Isles Bun & Coffee in Uptown and Rustica on West Lake Street. Each suits a different mood, from nostalgic to busy to everyday.
Northeast Minneapolis: Sarah Jane’s Bakery
Sarah Jane’s Bakery has operated at 2853 Johnson St NE since 1979, and a 2023 Twin Cities roundup calls it a Northeast neighborhood favorite known for lemon bars, doughnuts and coffee cakes. The pastry case is stocked for walk-ins, but the same roundup advises ordering ahead for anything special.
That combination makes it a good first stop for someone who wants an old-school bakery experience. Go in for a lemon bar or a coffee cake when you can take what the case offers. Call ahead when you have a particular item in mind.
Uptown: Isles Bun & Coffee
Isles Bun & Coffee, at 1424 W 28th St in Uptown, is known for its cinnamon and caramel buns, according to the same roundup. The roundup also notes that lines can be long at busy times.
A bun shop suits a casual sweet stop more than a planned dessert outing. If your schedule is tight, treat the line as part of the decision and choose a quieter moment, or pick a different bakery that day.
West Lake Street: Rustica Bakery
Rustica Bakery has been a local icon since 2004, and it is located at 3224 W Lake St. Stacker’s list of highly rated Minneapolis dessert shops is a useful companion for comparing options. Rustica is the choice when you want a dependable bakery that fits into an errand run, rather than a destination built around a single signature item.
South Minneapolis pastry and Scandinavian baking
South Minneapolis offers the most contrast on a short walk or drive: a French-style patisserie on Grand Avenue and a Nicollet Avenue bakery that sells a Norwegian loaf cake. Both are better matches for shoppers who want something other than the usual cookie or brownie.
Patisserie 46 on Grand Avenue
Patisserie 46 sits at 4552 Grand Ave S and is known for cakes, confections and rye-wheat baguettes, as listed in the Twin Cities bakery roundup. Choose it when you want a dessert you can plate at home, such as a cake or a box of confections. It is a stronger fit for gifts than for a quick snack on the move.
Sun Street Breads on Nicollet Avenue
Sun Street Breads, at 4600 Nicollet Ave S, sells fyrstekake, which the roundup describes as a Norwegian loaf cake with a crumbly shortbread crust and an almond cardamom filling. This is the pick for regional character. A fyrstekake tells you something about the Scandinavian baking tradition that a generic cupcake cannot, and the guide to a scandinavian bakery minneapolis shoppers can visit covers that tradition in more depth.
Shortbread and almond-cardamom flavors also hold up well when you buy a loaf cake ahead and eat it over a couple of days. Treat that as a general baking observation and ask the bakery about its own keeping advice.
Ice cream, gelato and ice cream cupcakes
Minneapolis ice cream shops cover three distinct needs: a scoop or gelato to eat now, an ice cream cake for a gathering, and the hybrid format of the ice cream cupcake. The strongest verified detail comes from Sonny’s on Lyndale Avenue and from Cold Stone’s own descriptions of its cupcakes.
Sonny’s Ice Cream on Lyndale Avenue
Sonny’s Ice Cream is at 3403 Lyndale Ave S. Stacker’s Yelp-based list shows a 4.2/5 rating from 141 Yelp reviews as of February 2025, a $$ price level, and Yelp categories of Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt, Gelato and Desserts. That gelato tag is the useful signal. It tells you the shop is worth considering when you want a denser, smoother-style scoop rather than a soft-serve cone.
For a broader comparison of scoop shops, see the guide to the best ice cream in minneapolis. If you are weighing lighter or tangier frozen options, the frozen yogurt minneapolis guide covers frozen yogurt and gelato side by side.
Ice cream cupcakes at Cold Stone
Cold Stone presents the ice cream cupcake as its own product, describing how ice cream and cake come together in three varieties, each served in a Belgian chocolate cup. If a regular cupcake feels too heavy and a plain scoop feels too plain, this format sits in between.
It also works as a portion-controlled option for a group. Everyone gets an individual dessert, and nobody has to cut and serve a cake.
Late-night desserts
Edwards Dessert Kitchen, at 200 Washington Ave N, is the verified late-night option in this guide, with posted hours that run to midnight on Friday and Saturday. Those hours come from a 2019 blog post, so confirm current hours with the shop before you plan a trip around them.
The listed schedule is Friday 2 PM to midnight, Saturday 10 AM to midnight, Sunday 10 AM to 10 PM, and Tuesday through Thursday 2 PM to 10 PM. In practice, Friday and Saturday are the nights to aim for if you want dessert after a late dinner or a show. On Sunday and midweek evenings, the listing points to a 10 PM close.
The same post says the kitchen makes its desserts fresh daily, including cookies, ice cream and pastries. That range is the reason Edwards works as a late stop. You can choose between something warm-baked and something frozen without changing venues. For other after-dark options as they are verified, the guide to late night desserts minneapolis is the place to compare.
Custom cakes and special orders
Several Minneapolis bakeries take custom dessert orders, and the verified examples are Black Walnut Bakery, Thirsty Whale Bakery and Cold Stone. Each handles a different kind of occasion, so match the shop to the event rather than to the rating alone.
Black Walnut Bakery on Hennepin Avenue
Black Walnut Bakery, at 357 Hennepin Ave S, takes custom cake orders sized up to nine inches for special occasions, according to the Twin Cities roundup. Nine inches is the stated ceiling, not a recommendation. It suits a family birthday or a small gathering and is not a fit for a large party. If your guest list is bigger, ask about alternatives or look at catering.
Thirsty Whale Bakery on Fremont Avenue
Thirsty Whale Bakery, at 4149 Fremont Ave N, is listed under Desserts, Custom Cakes and Donuts, with a 4.5/5 rating from 111 Yelp reviews as of February 2025, according to Stacker’s dessert list. The combination of custom cakes and donuts makes it a flexible stop. You can order a decorated cake for an event and add a box of donuts without a second trip.
Cold Stone ice cream cakes
Cold Stone builds its cakes from layers of ice cream and moist cake, covered in frosting or fudge ganache, and offers them in several sizes. Choose this route for a warm-weather party or for anyone who prefers ice cream to a traditional sponge. Because the cake is frozen, it also changes how you transport it and how long it can sit out, so ask the store for handling advice.
For larger events, the dessert catering minneapolis guide covers options beyond a single cake. If the dessert has to come to you, dessert delivery minneapolis explains what delivery and shipping involve.
When the occasion is a dinner for two rather than a party, a plated dessert is the better fit. The date night dessert minneapolis guide is the place to look for those.
Gluten-free dessert options
Atuvava Bakery and Sift Gluten Free are the two Minneapolis bakeries listed as dedicated gluten-free, so they are the strongest starting points for anyone who must avoid gluten. Both listings come from Find Me Gluten Free, which flags them as reported to be dedicated gluten-free.
Atuvava Bakery is at 3800 S 28th Ave, and the listing shows gluten-free cakes, bread, cinnamon rolls, pastries and muffins. Sift Gluten Free is at 4557 Bloomington Ave and lists cakes, donuts, muffins and cinnamon rolls. Choose Atuvava when you want the widest baked range in one place. Choose Sift when donuts or cake are the goal.
A listing that says “reported” is a starting point, not a safety guarantee. If an allergy or celiac diagnosis is involved, ask the bakery directly about its ingredients and handling before you order. The guide to a gluten free bakery minneapolis shoppers can trust goes into more detail on this category.
Minnesota treats worth seeking out
Minnesota’s dessert identity leans on bakery staples rather than a single dish. In this guide, the clearest examples are lemon bars, coffee cakes, cinnamon and caramel buns and Norwegian-style fyrstekake, all of which appear in the Twin Cities roundups and listings above.
Bars are the format worth learning first. Lemon bars at Sarah Jane’s are an easy way to try the bar style in a shop setting, and the explainer on minnesota bars dessert traditions covers what the category means locally. For a wider survey of the region’s home-baking classics, traditional minnesota desserts is the companion read.
Donuts form a second thread. Thirsty Whale and Sift Gluten Free both list donuts, which makes them useful when you want a classic shop donut, and the best donuts in minneapolis guide compares donut-focused shops. Mini donuts fall on the event side of dessert. If you are planning around fair-style treats, the minnesota state fair desserts guide is the better starting point.
Beyond the neighborhoods
Some dessert plans do not fit a single street. Shopping trips, tight budgets and delivery needs each change the answer, and each has its own guide.
- Combining dessert with shopping: the mall of america desserts guide covers dessert stops inside a major shopping destination, which suits visitors who want one parking spot and several options.
- Keeping costs down: the cheap desserts minneapolis guide looks at free and low-cost treats. Sonny’s $$ price level is one verified benchmark for a scoop shop, but a bakery slice or a bun can cost less than a plated dessert.
- Planning ahead: custom cakes, catering and delivery all reward early contact. A bakery that advises ordering ahead for anything special is telling you how it runs its day.
Frequently asked questions
Does Cold Stone have a Minneapolis-area location?
Cold Stone’s Minneapolis-area listings are in St. Anthony at 2700 39th Ave NE, Ste A116, phone (612) 788-1599, and in Edina at 6807-F York Ave S, phone (952) 582-1511, according to its directory entries.
Is a high Yelp rating the same as being the best dessert shop?
No. Stacker’s list included restaurants tagged “desserts” on Yelp within a 10-kilometer radius of Minneapolis, rated as of February 2025, and some of those places also serve other foods. A rating shows popularity among reviewers, so use it to shortlist and then pick by dessert type and hours.
Where does Minnesota’s baking reputation come from?
A 2023 Twin Cities bakery roundup points to Minnesota’s history as home to baking leaders such as Gold Medal, Pillsbury and Betty Crocker. That heritage is context for the local bakery scene rather than a ranking of any single shop.
