Best Bakeries in Victoria To Visit On Your Holidays
With a celebrated café culture and restaurants that routinely top global dining hotspot lists, the state of Victoria offers some of Australia’s best bakeries.
From neighbourhood gems in Melbourne to regional artisans, Victoria’s bakeries produce exceptional bread, pastries, pies, cakes and more baked goods daily.
Using high-quality, seasonal ingredients, the care and craftsmanship at these bakeries attract legions of loyal fans and savvy visitors alike.
In this article, we will explore just five of the many standout bakeries across Victoria worth
adding to your must-try list. We’ll learn about their specialties, signatures and most popular menu items.
Discover what makes these beloved bakeries such fantastic destinations when visiting different Victorian cities and country towns.
Lune Croissanterie, Melbourne
Lune Croissanterie makes the once humble croissant an object of global perfection and acclaim from their tiny bakery café in Melbourne’s Fitzroy.
Dedicated owners Kate Reid and Morgan McGlone begin handcrafting Lune’s heavenly croissants and other pastries daily before dawn using traditional techniques.
Beyond the perfect classic butter croissant, Lune fills theirs with creative seasonal combinations like salted caramel or ham and Swiss cheese too. Their sweet kouign amann pastries with shattering caramelised sugar layers earn equal praise.
Though compact in size, Lune’s warm hospitality and phenomenal baked creations make it a quintessential Melbourne foodie pilgrimage where queues snake down the block. Now, with additional locations plus nationwide shipping, Lune’s only expanded its fandom.
Most Popular Item: Lune’s signature kouign amann features layers of lightly caramelised dough that shatters into plumes of butteriness. Fans call it life-changing!
Best Meat Pie: Lune offers their exceptional all-butter pastry in a classic Aussie minced beef pie baked fresh daily.
Best Vanilla Slice: Though famous for viennoiserie, Lune nails this Australian classic with silky crème pâtissière custard sandwiched by their signature shattering, flaky, buttery puff pastry.
Specialty: Skillfully laminated, flaky French viennoiserie pastries like croissants in sweet and savoury stuffed versions.
Babka, Melbourne
As their name promises, babka in all its glorious forms is the spotlight at this contemporary Melbourne bakery and café with multiple locations.
Co-owners Katherine Sabbath and Mark Wee embrace both traditional and uniquely Australian twists on the sweet-yeasted Hungarian tea cake. All babkas are hand-rolled and feature generous swirls of chocolate, cinnamon spice or even flavours like Milo malt and jam.
Their exceptional coffees and friendly, laidback hospitality enhance Babka’s already perfect treats even more.
Most Popular Item: The O.G. chocolate babka remains the top choice of the ever-changing daily babka flavours on offer to highlight its fame.
Best Meat Pie: Babka pays homage to Australian meat pie culture by offering a consistently exceptional wagyu beef version encased in their signature pastry.
Best Vanilla Slice: Smooth vanilla custard meets layers of chocolate streusel “pastry” in their decadent twist on this classic.
Specialty: Quality crafted and creatively flavoured babka pastries for dine-in or takeaway enjoyment.
Le Third, Warrnambool
This tiny corner bakery in seaside Warrnambool has amassed a cult local following for its exceptional sourdough bread, pastries, cakes and sandwiches.
French-born owners, Stephanie and Henri fill loyalty cards almost daily for their baguettes, fruit galettes and salads using primarily regional produce.
With extremely limited seating, most regulars grab Le Third’s comforting creations for beach picnics or home brunch, enjoying every nourishing bite. On Saturdays alone, they sell over 300 classic sourdough batards, a testament to their fantastic flavour and texture.
Most Popular Item: The classic sourdough baguette remains their top seller, moving over 300 just on Saturdays!
Best Meat Pie: Local free-range chicken baked into Le Third’s signature parsley and sage flaky pastry pie signals a stellar savoury choice.
Best Vanilla Slice: A vanilla bean panna cotta-like cream meets notes of fresh local strawberries when layered between their crispy all-butter puff pastry.
Specialty: Source locally-driven bakery and café with genuine warmth enhancing simplicity.
Tivoli Road Bakery, South Yarra
Tivoli Road Bakery brings seasonal magic daily to locals from their cozy suburban Melbourne shop.
Using biodynamic and ethically sourced ingredients only, head bakers Emilie and Morgan shape exceptional organic sourdough loaves plus vegetarian/vegan-friendly baked goods from doughnuts to galettes reflective of what’s fresh.
Their exceptional croissants redefine buttery, flaky perfection, while Roman-style pizzas straight from the woodfired oven make ideal companions.
While compact inside, Tivoli Road’s scrumptious Victorian-focused creations are best enjoyed at one of Melbourne’s many closeby parks anyway.
Most Popular Item: Their organic sourdough loaves in varieties like five seed, activated charcoal and sprouted rye sell out almost instantly all weekend long.
Best Meat Pie: Local mushrooms and veggies like sweet potato star in Tivoli’s frequently rotating vegan/vegetarian hand pies enveloped in golden flaky pastry.
Best Vanilla Slice: A coconut milk vegan “custard” meets layers of raw cookie crumble for their dairy-free, refined sugar-free version.
Specialty: Seasonal plant-based bakery using biodynamic Victorian ingredients to create imaginative treats always dairy and meat free.
Heide Museum of Modern Art Bakery, Bulleen
Nestled within sprawling parklands by Melbourne’s iconic Heide Museum, trailblazing modern art, the Heide MI café and bakery prove exceptional baked goods and art readily coexist.
Under head chef Matt Levinson, Heide MI focuses on updated classics like organic sourdough and gluten-free loaves, plus rustic favourites matched seamlessly to the peaceful surroundings.
Menus spotlight seasonal Victorian produce in items like their beetroot friends, spectacular scones or fig and walnut muesli bars. Beyond sweets, Heide MI’s Wagyu sausage rolls and heirloom tomato tarts also attract picnickers and museum wanderers all afternoon.
Most Popular Item: The towering vanilla and wild berry millefeuille cake garnished with real silver balls of fresh blooms and offered by the centimetre slice makes countless special appearances.
Best Meat Pie: Heide MI’s signature beef and mushroom pie features locally sourced grass-fed beef and foraged regional mushrooms to represent Victorian terroir in a perfect flaky crust form.
Best Vanilla Slice: Lemon curd $ushi roll made with coconut cloud pastry encapsulating housemade vanilla custard and fresh raspberry preserves.
Specialty: Restaurant-standard baked goods celebrating hyper-seasonal Victorian offerings showcased in an equally Instagrammable artful backdrop.
Baker Bleu, Bendigo
This beloved Bendigo bakery cafe built its reputation around exceptional sourdough bread and pastries crafted from local ingredients.
Owner and head baker Lauren Watson starts early to shape Baker Bleu’s organic loaves along with sweet and savoury baked goods reflecting what’s seasonal in the surrounding Central Victorian countryside.
Beyond the shelves of whole grain loaves, customers rave about Baker Bleu’s smashed avocado and feta toast, freshly baked croissants, and wholesome sandwiches packed for picnics in nearby parks or adventures into the wineries nearby.
Most Popular Item: Baker Bleu’s signature sea salt and rosemary Dutch crunch sourdough earns devotion for its shatteringly crispy crust enveloping a soft, stretchy interior.
Best Meat Pie: Slow braised beef with local vegetables like parsnip and sweet potato are wrapped in exceptional pastry for their signature beef and veggie pie.
Best Vanilla Slice: Baker Bleu sandwiches a tangy passionfruit curd between light and flaky coconut macaroon clouds for their gluten-free vanilla slice twist.
Specialty: Organic artisan sourdough bread and pastries championing Central Victorian produce and ethical food systems through traditional techniques.
Conclusion
From the world-famous croissants of Melbourne’s inner suburbs to sourdough baguettes kissed by coastal sea spray in Warrnambool, Victoria’s beloved bakeries offer an incredible range and flavour reflective of diverse LOCAL cuisine and ingenuity. Walking into this restaurant you can smell the commercial chocolate machine with that beautiful melted chocolate and taste the fresh pastries.
When visiting any Victorian destination – city, regional town or rural art enclave – you’re guaranteed exceptional handcrafted baked treats to savour, from pie purveyors to organic artisans.
Don’t hold back requesting butter-laden or plant-based, gluten and dairy-free either…Victoria’s talented bakers eagerly accommodate all diets.
