These are the legends of Sydney’s cafe and bakery scene – a non-exhaustive collection of the places that have stood the test of time, whether through consistent excellence, innovation or hospitality.

Some, like bills, have become internationally renowned, expanding to far-flung cities such as Tokyo and London. Others, such as Yummy Yummy Bakery, have thrived in situ, building a loyal customer base spanning multiple generations.

This category is one of our most loved entries in Good Food’s Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, the guide celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city’s best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on theGood Food app, and are discoverable on the map.) For those who’ve been to these before, maybe it’s time for a revisit. If you’ve never been, consider this your hit-list for the next few months.

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Bar Sport

We’re into the final minutes of Inter against Barcelona, and Francesco Acerbi has just made it 3-3. The San Siro rocks. In Leichardt, where it’s 7am, so does Bar Sport. Football and coffee: rules for life, in Italy and right here. There may be new owners, but the $3.50 espresso is still strong, the Serie A schedule still scrawled on the wall, with piccolo-sized brioche rolls and flaky sfogliatelle the star players. Forza.

Best for: A caffe latte and a breakfast roll, with eyes on the big screen.

2A Norton Street, Leichhardt

bills

Whether you’ve scored a coveted booth seat at the sunlit Double Bay restaurant, or seated at the communal table in Darlinghurst, Bill Granger’s four cafes have become the home of brunch in Sydney. From fluffy hotcakes flecked with honeycomb butter to soft, custardy scrambled eggs on sourdough; the late, great Bill Granger perfected breakfast staples. And, knowing our love of a weekend lie-in, he made them available all day. Since there’s no rush, follow your Single O coffee with a Korean chilli-spiked Bloody Mary.

Best for: Best-in-class brunch classics.

Multiple locations, bills.com.au

Black Star Pastry

Black Star offers so much more than its Instagram-famous strawberry and watermelon cake, which kicked off a new wave of patisserie-forward bakeries in Sydney. Innovation continues at its contemporary Newtown cafe, where East Asian flavours are woven into aesthetically driven desserts including a black sesame cheesecake resembling a Japanese rock garden and a “mug” made with rich cocoa pastry filled with airy, matcha mousse.

Good to know: Return for monthly chiffon cake specials in flavours such as tiramisu or ube.

1/325 King St, Newtown, blackstarpastry.foodstorm.com

Circa Espresso

Circa Espresso has been at the top of Parramatta’s cafe scene for the past 15 years, steady in its Victorian terrace home as skyscrapers have risen around it. Whatever the weather, there are pram-toting, dog-walking regulars queuing for house-roasted coffee and brunch with Middle-Eastern touches. Baked eggs bolstered with sujuk soothe the soul, and there’s soft house-baked focaccia for dragging through saucy remains.

Good to know: The tea selection, sourced from Ms.Cattea, is excellent.

21 Wentworth Street, Parramatta, circaespresso.com.au

Country Women’s Association Tea Room

Scones and tea and milk by the glass, the only CWA tea room in Sydney offers refreshments, handmade jams, pickles and knitwear. Prices start at a very competitive $3.50 for two scones with jam and cream or $6 for a Devonshire tea. Open Tuesday to Friday, 10am to 3pm, it’s also a little less busy than the Country Womens’ Easter Show canteen.

Must order: If you don’t order scones, can you really say you’ve been to the CWA?

Women’s Rest Centre, Corner of Hillview Road and West Parade, Eastwood

Harrys Bondi

There aren’t any beach views, but this busy spot is as Bondi as tan lines. That equals lots of outdoor seating, four pages of drinks (mostly matcha and coffee, plus a spicy marg) and an easy, all-day menu that’s generously portioned but not too heavy and complex. There are the usual culprits – ricotta pancakes, smashed avocado, burgers, big salads – plus a stack of add-ons, including fries, to ensure there’s something for everyone. Service is friendly and efficient, and its location on the sunny side of the street makes it perennially appealing.

Best for: Breezy all-day brunching with your pals and dog.

2/136 Wairoa Avenue, Bondi Beach harrysbondi.com.au

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Wellington Cake Shop

When Hungarian-born Lesley Brull and his wife, Georgina, opened in 1979, they had one cabinet of Austro-Hungarian cakes and tortes. As their popularity grew, so too did their selection, and the shop became a proud specialist of continental treats – goodies such as strudel, bagels, poppy seed slice, sour cherry crumble, kugelhupf, cheese pockets and biscuits, all of which are great. More than 45 years on, Brull is still on the tools by 2.30am each day at the modest, well-priced shop.

Must order: The famous chocolate kugelhupf, a bell-shaped bready cake with rivers of chocolate.

157 Bondi Road, Bondi, wellingtoncakebakery.com

La Renaissance Patisserie

A fixture of The Rocks since 1992, when you’ve need a celebration cake or croquembouche, La Ren is at the ready. Layered with white chocolate and coffee whipped ganache, the opera cake is an all-timer, but no one is ever upset when you bring its gold-standard Saint Honore to a party either. Meanwhile, the shaded courtyard is a top spot for a quick sausage roll and eclair.

Good to know: If you need to pick up a pre-ordered cake, La Ren’s Waterloo location tends to be much easier for parking.

47 Argyle Street, The Rocks and 197 Young Street, Waterloo, larenaissance.com.au

Pasticceria Papa

Thirty-five years after Salvatore Papa first opened the doors, it’s difficult to overstate how cherished this family-run institution remains. Zuccherati, biscotti, cannoli, arancini and pizzette are all part of the reason. But if there’s one thing keeping the queues coming, it’s the ricotta cake, soft-centred inside a shortcrust shell. Make like a local and order one for a celebration, or split a scaled-down version with someone you love.

Good to know: Diehards can visit their second venue at Five Dock and subscribe to Papa’s podcast, Sweet Traditions.

145 Ramsay Street, Haberfield and 95 Queens Road, Five Dock, papa.com.au

Single O

Single O is the platonic ideal of the neighbourhood cafe and, for more than 20 years, their Surry Hills outpost has attracted a steady stream of long-time locals and international tourists. The cafe doubles as a sustainable specialty coffee roaster, championing single origin beans and pioneering brewing technology. But it also does a great classic Aussie brunch, with a few twists such as yuzu in the eggs benedict and banana bread with espresso butter.

Must try: The signature oat milk cold brew.

60/64 Reservoir St, Surry Hills, singleo.com.au

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Yum Yum Bakery

You know it’s a great-value feed when the tradies turn up. They’re seated in a booth between a group of well-dressed women and some old friends gossiping over T2 tea. It’s a rainy weekday, the wood-fired oven is blazing and this revamped 35-year-old Lebanese cafe is pumping. There are fun menu additions, such as fried filo-wrapped haloumi, but the classics still hit. The big breakfast is a generously proportioned “wow” moment, colourful with fresh herbs, puffy fried bread, perfect fried eggs and so much more.

Good to know: The hospitality is as outstanding as the food.

273 Guildford Road, Guildford, yumyumbakery.com.au

Good Food’s Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2, celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city’s best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. Download the Good Food app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store to discover what’s near you.