Queensland’s best vanilla slices: Here’s where to find them

Crispy, flaky pastry, gooey custard filling – the vanilla slice is an all-time favourite. Now we name the top five in Queensland.

The humble vanilla slice has been the after school treat of generations.

Adapted from the classic French patisserie, the mille-feuille, this custard and pastry combination has long hit the sweet spot.

Now we can reveal where to buy the best versions across Queensland.

From incarnations created with a hint of alcohol to those tweaked in different flavours such as salted caramel or hazelnut cream, here are the top five vanilla slices in the state as voted in our inaugural delicious. 100 Best of the Best.

Have your say on which of the five deserves to be crowned Queensland’s No.1 in our reader vote at delicious100.com.au

Voting closes on November 3.

RISE BAKERY

Sanctuary Cove and Hamilton

risebakery.com.au

Vanilla slices at Rise Bakery.

French-trained chefs Maxime Bournazel and Adrien Marcinowski make Rise’s mille-feuille – the original French vanilla slice – daily from scratch. Their deeply caramelised, just bitter pastry is made with French butter, offsetting their sweet creme patissiere made using local ingredients with visible flecks of real vanilla beans and the French liqueur Grand Marnier for a subtle hint of orange.

CHRISTIAN JACQUES BAKERY

8 Baildon St, Kangaroo Point

christianjacquespastries.com

Vanilla slices at Christian Jacques in Kangaroo Point.

French-born baker Christian Jacques has people driving across town for his croissants, but his mille-feuille-style vanilla slices are also a must-order. The French pastries have three layers of tanned, crispy, caramelised, inverted puff pastry made with French butter in between layers of silken creme patissiere and finished with a dusting of icing sugar.

PREECE’S AT THE JETTY

155 Redcliffe Pde, Redcliffe

preecesatthejetty.com.au

Vanilla slice at Preece's at the Jetty, Redcliffe.

The self-proclaimed home of Queensland’s best vanilla slice, this Redcliffe cafe loves to experiment with the old-school Aussie bakery classic. While their classic with oozy custard in between thin sheets of crumbly pastry is the usual
go-to for customers, their new flavours such as doughnut jam, salted caramel and chocolate hazelnut also attract plenty of attention.

THE WONKY LOAF

2-4 Melaleuca St, Kuluin

thewonkyloaf.com.au

A Salted caramel vanilla slice at The Wonky Loaf.

This adventurous bakery known for its killer sourdough is also responsible for stand-out mille-feuille. French pastry chef Benjamin Bauer makes a classic version with three layers of ultra crumbly, golden pastry held together with firm, vanilla bean-dotted custard, but loves to experiment with new flavours such as strawberries and cream, and salted caramel featuring whipped ganache.

FLOUR & CHOCOLATE

Morningside, Northgate, Redcliffe

flourandchocolate.com

Vanilla slice from Flour & Chocolate.

Thick vanilla custard made with free-range eggs gently wobbles between layers of richly caramelised, crumbly, flaky pastry in this take on a classic French mille-feuille. The bakery uses so much butter in its pastry it becomes sensationally short, almost like a biscuit. As well as regular size, the vanilla slice can be custom-ordered in 25cm and 35cm slabs.