The Best Pastries in Kennington
Where to Find Kennington’s Best Pastries
There is a particular sort of London morning when the streets smell faintly of butter, toast and rain, and the only sensible plan is to follow that aroma to the nearest bakery. Around Kennington, that might mean a short hop towards Waterloo, Borough Market, Herne Hill or Camberwell, where sourdough loaves share counter space with flaky croissants, filled buns and cakes worth rearranging your morning for.
Whether you are hunting for a proper weekend treat or searching for artisan sourdough London can be proud of, these are the nearby bakeries that make getting up early feel entirely justified.
Pastry Stops Worth the Journey
1. Café Pedlar
Location: 20 Lower Marsh, Waterloo, London | Rating: 4.4/5 | Hours: Mon-Fri 7:30am-3:00pm; Sat-Sun 8:30am-4:00pm
Café Pedlar is the sort of bakery that makes a simple coffee-and-pastry stop feel like a small pilgrimage. Its Lower Marsh counter is known for long-fermented sourdough, rye bread and baguettes, but the pastry selection deserves equal attention: think croissants, rosemary focaccia and hazelnut chocolatines with serious chocolate credentials. The bakery supplies acclaimed London delis, including La Fromagerie, which tells you something about the standard of the bread.
2. Bunhead Bakery
Location: 145 Dulwich Road, Herne Hill, London | Rating: 4.9/5 | Hours: Thurs-Fri 9:00am-4:00pm; Sat-Sun 10:00am-4:00pm
Bunhead Bakery has turned the humble bun into a full-blown event. Its Palestinian-inspired sourdough creations come scented with rose and cardamom, folded around spiced Medjool date, or finished with za’atar and cheese; the baklava-inspired buns are particularly hard to ignore. The bakery is female and Palestinian-owned, and its Thursday-to-Sunday opening pattern means weekend queues can form before the doors open. Arrive early, ideally with a plan for sharing.
3. Irene Bakery
Location: 31-33a Denmark Hill, Camberwell, London | Rating: 4.6/5 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-5pm; Sat-Sun 9am-5pm
Irene Bakery is a Camberwell institution with a rather lovely double life. By day, it serves artisan sourdough, pastries, sandwiches and coffee; by Friday and Saturday evening, the space shifts towards its natural wine bar identity. It is a good choice when you want a pastry with a sense of place: unfussy, carefully made and enjoyed in a neighbourhood setting that feels as much like a social hub as a bakery.
4. The Flour Station
Location: Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London | Rating: 4.5/5 | Hours: Thurs-Fri 10am-5pm; Sat 9am-5pm; Sun 10am-4pm
A permanent Borough Market trader since 2004, The Flour Station has had plenty of time to perfect its craft — and it shows. The bakery’s range moves from country sourdough and rye to flavoured loaves, cakes and seasonal pastries, all made with traditional care. It is an excellent market stop when you want to browse, nibble and leave with a loaf substantial enough to anchor the rest of the weekend.
5. Artisan Foods
Location: Stoney Street, Borough Market, London | Rating: 4.6/5 | Hours: Tues-Sun 11am-3pm
Artisan Foods brings a welcome German accent to the Borough Market baking scene. Its traditional sourdough range includes dense rye breads, spelt loaves and seeded multi-grain varieties, while giant soft pretzels and Bienenstich — the famous “bee-sting cake” — offer something delightfully different from the usual croissant circuit. With more than 20 years at the market, it is a dependable destination for bread with depth and character.
6. Dough Artisan Bakehouse
Location: 284 Milkwood Road, Herne Hill, London | Rating: 4.5/5 | Hours: Mon-Fri 7:30am-6pm; Sat-Sun 8am-5pm
Dough Artisan Bakehouse is a warm, community-minded place where the day’s baking runs from crusty sourdough to flaky pastries, cakes and sandwiches. Everything is baked fresh daily, with slow fermentation at the heart of its bread programme. Add excellent artisan coffee and seven-day opening, and you have the kind of neighbourhood bakery that becomes part of the weekly routine before you quite realise it.
7. Bread Ahead
Location: Cathedral Street, Borough Market, London | Rating: 4.6/5 | Hours: Tues-Sat 9am-5pm; Sun 10am-4pm
Bread Ahead needs little introduction, particularly if you have encountered one of its deep-filled doughnuts. Vanilla custard, raspberry jam and salted caramel are among the flavours that have made the bakery famous, but its crisp-crusted sourdough and buttery croissants are just as worthy of your attention. The glass-fronted Borough Market bakery lets you watch the bakers at work, while the on-site Bakery School keeps the craft firmly on display.
8. Bánh
Location: 55 Long Lane, Barbican, London | Rating: 4.5/5 | Hours: Mon-Sat 7am-4pm
Bánh takes its inspiration from Vietnamese, French and British baking traditions, creating a menu that refuses to sit neatly in one category. Alongside bánh mì, the bakery and café makes Asian-influenced pastries and breads, resulting in a particularly distinctive stop for anyone bored by predictable bakery counters. It is an intriguing choice for a breakfast that leans savoury, creative and full of cross-cultural flavour.
9. Café Pedlar’s Sourdough Counter
Location: 20 Lower Marsh, Waterloo, London | Rating: 4.4/5 | Hours: Mon-Fri 7:30am-3:00pm; Sat-Sun 8:30am-4:00pm
For serious bread lovers, Café Pedlar is worth returning to rather than treating as a one-off visit. The choice of country, rye and seeded sourdough gives the counter plenty of variety, while baguettes, croissants and hazelnut chocolatines cover the more immediate pastry cravings. Its long fermentation and quality flour make this a strong destination when “just grabbing bread” turns into bringing home the best thing you have eaten all morning.
What If Getting There Isn’t an Option?
Sometimes the bakery queue is charming; sometimes it is raining sideways, the baby is asleep, or Saturday morning has vanished beneath a pile of laundry. That is where the growing appetite for artisan breakfast delivery London becomes rather understandable. Quality bread and pastries arriving at home can make a busy morning feel considered rather than compromised.
There is also a welcome shift towards better systems: sustainable food delivery London customers can feel good about, bike delivery food London that avoids unnecessary car journeys, and the convenience of a bread subscription London service or pastry subscription UK plan that fits around real life. For those who prefer a lie-in, weekend breakfast delivery London is a particularly persuasive idea.
Butter & Crust: Bakery Quality at Home
For food lovers who want the good stuff without crossing London before breakfast, Butter & Crust is a genuinely lovely alternative. It partners with some of the best local artisan producers in London, bringing together sourdough, pastries and breakfast goods so they arrive by 9am every weekend.
Deliveries travel by bicycle across inner London and come in recyclable packaging. Everything is baked to order, which keeps the food tasting fresh and means the model is designed around zero food waste — a reassuring detail for anyone seeking a more thoughtful zero waste bakery London option.
The subscription is flexible too: pause, skip or cancel whenever life changes, rather than being trapped in a pastry-based commitment. Coverage currently reaches most of London zones 1–3 and is expanding, making it an appealing way to enjoy artisan sourdough London favourites, breakfast delivery London convenience and a pastry subscription UK approach without leaving the house.
Sources
- Café Pedlar — Waterloo, SE1 7RJ | https://www.lbpedlar.com
- Bunhead Bakery — Herne Hill, SE24 0NG | https://www.bunheadbakery.com/
- Irene Bakery — Camberwell, SE5 8RS | https://www.irenebakery.co.uk
- The Flour Station — Borough Market, SE1 1TL | https://www.theflourstation.com
- Artisan Foods — Borough Market, SE1 9AA | https://artisanfoods.co.uk/
- Dough Artisan Bakehouse — Herne Hill, SE24 0EZ | https://www.doughbakehouse.co.uk
- Bread Ahead — Borough Market, SE1 9DE | https://www.breadahead.com
- Bánh — Streatham Hill, EC1A 9EJ | https://banhandbakery.co.uk/