The Best Pastries in Penge
There is a particular kind of London morning that begins with the smell of butter, coffee and warm bread drifting down a residential street. Around Penge and its neighbouring south-east London districts, finding a truly excellent pastry often means following a queue, checking a weekly menu or arriving before the best bakes disappear. Luckily, the reward is considerable: from flaky morning buns to Basque cheesecake and seasonal brioche, this is a corner of London with serious pastry credentials.
Whether you are planning a Saturday pastry crawl or searching for artisan sourdough London residents genuinely rave about, these are the bakeries worth knowing.
The Best Pastries Near Penge
1. Chatsworth Bakehouse
Location: Crystal Palace | Rating: 4.8/5 | Opening hours: Wednesday–Friday, 12:30am–4pm; Saturday, 11am–4pm
Chatsworth Bakehouse has become a Crystal Palace institution, and the queues down Anerley Road tell their own story. Founded by Tom Mathews and Sian Evans as a lockdown project in 2020, it is known for a weekly-changing menu that might include a marshmallow-frosted cookie, an enormous focaccia sandwich or a beautifully wobbly Basque cheesecake.
The menu sells out quickly, so this is one for pastry hunters who enjoy a little anticipation. Its pillar box-red shopfront is almost as recognisable as the bakes themselves.
2. The Dulwich Bakery
Location: West Dulwich | Rating: 4.4/5 | Opening hours: Tuesday–Thursday, 7am–3pm; Saturday, 8am–3pm
Established in 2008, The Dulwich Bakery has the reassuring charm of a local favourite that has earned its staying power. Its artisan sourdough is made with stone-ground organic flour, while the counter also offers fresh baguettes, cakes, paninis, pies and homemade soups.
For celebrations, locals can pre-order cakes and doughnuts, making this a particularly useful stop when an ordinary coffee-and-pastry run needs to become an occasion. It is dependable, generous and refreshingly rooted in the neighbourhood.
3. Eric’s Bakery
Location: East Dulwich | Rating: 4.8/5 | Opening hours: Thursday, 8am–5pm; Friday–Saturday, 9am–3pm
Eric’s Bakery brings serious bread expertise to a cosy neighbourhood café setting. Founded by Helen Evans, formerly head baker at Flor, it makes loaves with UK-grown wheat, including sourdough porridge bread, seeded rolls, rye tin loaves and focaccia.
The pastry counter is where things become especially tempting: think doughnuts, croissants, morning buns, millionaire’s shortbread and wild garlic and cheese scrolls. It is the sort of place where choosing just one item feels needlessly optimistic.
4. Bara Cafe
Location: Peckham | Rating: 4.7/5 | Opening hours: Wednesday–Friday, 8am–4:30pm; Saturday, 8:30am–4:30pm; Sunday, 9am–3pm
Bara arrived on Choumert Road in February 2026 with a Welsh-inspired approach to bread, brunch and baking. Founded by MasterChef: The Professionals quarter-finalist Cecily Dalladay and former head chef Zoë Heimann, the café bakes its own focaccia, sesame rolls and sourdough using regenerative Wildfarmed flour.
Look out for bara brith and the Caerphilly cheesesteak, alongside a menu that celebrates Welsh produce in playful, substantial fashion. It is walk-ins only, which makes an early visit the sensible move.
5. Cooper’s Bakehouse
Location: Brockley | Rating: 4.6/5 | Opening hours: Thursday–Sunday, 9am–2pm
Cooper’s Bakehouse is a small-batch bakery with a strong sense of purpose. Its slow-fermented organic sourdough breads and pastries are made for local residents and independent cafés, with home delivery and collection available.
There is no conventional public shopfront, but that is part of the appeal for anyone interested in how good bread reaches the door. The bakery uses renewable electricity and delivers by bicycle, giving its craft-led operation a notably thoughtful footprint.
6. Maya’s Bakehouse
Location: Tulse Hill | Rating: 4.8/5 | Opening hours: Wednesday–Saturday, 7:30am–3pm
Maya’s Bakehouse began as a dining-room micro-bakery during lockdown, building a waiting list through weekly Delli drops before opening a permanent shop in 2023. Its speciality is the seasonal savoury brioche bun, with past fillings including pulled pork and pickled jalapeños, pumpkin and lamb shoulder, and cheesy leeks with béchamel and crispy kale.
The menu changes, the bakes sell quickly and the whole operation has the energy of a brilliant local secret that everyone is trying to share at once. Arrive hungry and keep an eye on the weekly offering.
7. Ed Baker
Location: Hither Green | Rating: 4.8/5 | Opening hours: Friday–Saturday, 8am–5pm
Ed Baker is an artisan bakery and deli where the bread deserves just as much attention as the pastry counter. Its sourdough and pastries are made with a focus on craft, while heritage-grain breads won five Great Taste Awards in 2023.
The deli adds another reason to linger, with artisan cheeses, charcuterie and other quality provisions available alongside the bakery’s own work. It is a very good place to assemble an excellent weekend breakfast without overcomplicating things.
8. Brooks and Gao
Location: Streatham | Rating: 4.5/5 | Opening hours: Wednesday–Thursday, 9am–2:30pm; Friday, 9am–3:30pm; Saturday–Sunday, 10am–3:30pm
Brooks and Gao has built a loyal following with creative seasonal pastries and an artisan sourdough range that keeps regulars coming back. The menu rotates, so there is always a reason to check what is fresh rather than settling into the same old order.
The relaxed café atmosphere makes it equally suited to a sit-down coffee or a loaf to take home. For a leisurely weekend pastry mission, it is a particularly inviting choice.
What If Getting There Isn’t an Option?
Not every excellent pastry needs to involve a queue, a timetable and the logistical challenge of carrying a loaf while drinking coffee. The growing appeal of artisan breakfast delivery London-wide is simple: people still want bakery-quality food, but they also want it waiting at home, ideally before the day properly begins.
That shift has made bread subscriptions and pastry subscriptions especially attractive. A pastry subscription UK customers can pause, skip or adjust suits busy households, while sustainable food delivery London services are helping reduce unnecessary packaging, food miles and unsold stock. Add bicycle delivery food London-style and the result is a more considered way to enjoy weekend breakfast delivery London residents can look forward to.
Butter & Crust: Bakery Quality at Home
For pastry lovers in Penge, Butter & Crust is a lovely way to enjoy the spirit of these independent bakeries without making a full morning of the journey. It partners with some of London’s best local artisan producers, bringing together sourdough, pastries and breakfast goods for delivery by 9am every weekend.
The service uses bicycle delivery in inner London and recyclable packaging, while everything is baked to order to avoid food waste. That makes it a thoughtful option for anyone searching for a zero waste bakery London approach without compromising on the pleasure of tearing into something warm and flaky.
Subscriptions are flexible, too: pause, skip or cancel whenever life gets in the way. Butter & Crust currently covers most of London zones 1–3 and is expanding, making it a practical choice for anyone who wants artisan sourdough London-style, a pastry delivery or a properly indulgent breakfast brought to the door.
Sources
- Chatsworth Bakehouse — Crystal Palace, SE19 2AN | chatsworthbakehouse.com
- The Dulwich Bakery — West Dulwich, SE21 8BW | dulwichbakery.com
- Eric’s Bakery — East Dulwich, SE22 9EF | ericslondon.com
- Bara Cafe — Peckham, SE15 4SE | baracafe.com
- Cooper’s Bakehouse — Brockley, SE4 2FJ | coopersbakehouse.com
- Maya’s Bakehouse — Tulse Hill, SW2 2TJ | mayasbakehouse.square.site
- Ed Baker — Hither Green, SE13 6QT | iamedbaker.com
- Brooks and Gao — Streatham, SW16 1EX | brooksandgao.com
- Great Taste Awards — 2023
- Good Food Guide — 2026
- British Baker Baker’s Dozen — 2026
- Telegraph Best Bakeries London — 2025