5 Great Nantucket Bakery Spots
Craving oven-fresh treats on Nantucket? Bakery lovers can get their fill at these island go-tos.
With more than 80 miles of beaches, a dozen bike trails, and countless hiking paths, the Massachusetts island of Nantucket is an outdoor exercise haven. But after you’ve swam, cycled, or strolled your way through nature, why not duck into a top-notch Nantucket bakery for a sweet reward? (And OK, even if you’re spending your vacation lounging around in do-nothing bliss, you’ll still want to rouse yourself long enough to get in on the goodies at the island favorites listed below.)
5 GREAT NANTUCKET BAKERY SPOTS
Photo Credit : Rebecca Love Photography
45 SURFSIDE BAKERY AND CAFÉ
Located next to the bike path leading to Surfside Beach, this polished little eatery may be one of the newest highlights of the island dining scene but it has a veteran at the helm: chef-owner Rebecca Moesinger, founder of the legendary Konditor Meister bakery. This award-winning pastry chef whips up baked goods fresh every morning, including muffins, croissants, and cinnamon buns. Hungry for more? Make a meal from 45 Surfside’s generous lineup of gourmet sandwiches and salads, taken to go or to stay — and in the evenings you can even settle in for a casual dinner on the patio.
Photo Credit : Magee Detmer/The Nantucket Bake Shop
THE NANTUCKET BAKE SHOP
An island institution for decades, this bakery relocated in 2012 from its landmark spot on Orange Street to a bigger, airier space on Old South Road. The new location also came with ample parking — which is a good thing, since longtime owners Magee and Jay Detmer keep the crowds coming back for their homemade cookies, scones, tarts, whoopie pies, and other tasty tidbits. (Locals know to get there early in the day for the best doughnut selection.) They also offer fresh-baked breads, the most famous of which is their hearty Portuguese bread, made from the same recipe for 40-odd years.
Photo Credit : Wicked Island Bakery
WICKED ISLAND BAKERY
Baked fresh daily in an authentic hearth oven, the rustic European-style breads on offer at Wicked Island are as addictive as any of their more sugary baked brethren. The lineup includes everything from Bohemian rye to baguettes, whole wheat to multigrain — all with an emphasis on local ingredients (right down to the wild yeast collected on the island itself). But sweet tooths can get their fill here, too. Ben Woodbury, who owns the bakery with his wife, Heather, is a pastry chef who trained at the French Culinary Institute and worked at a number of prestigious Manhattan restaurants. So count on finding delicious made-from-scratch pastries, muffins, tortes, cakes, cookies, and more at Wicked Island. (And don’t miss the signature morning bun, made with pure Vermont butter, Tahitian vanilla bean, and “secret spices.”)
Photo Credit : Something Natural
SOMETHING NATURAL
Another establishment with long ties to the island (it was founded in the 1970s), Something Natural is a popular bakery-deli set in a rambling clapboard house amid a lawn dotted with picnic tables. The menu is dominated by hearty, home-baked breads — six-grain, oatmeal, Portuguese, pumpernickel, and more — that are sold as loaves or as the base for one of the nearly 20 kinds of sandwiches they’ll make for you here. And for dessert, how about a chewy, supersize cookie (we recommend the simple but sublime oatmeal raisin)? Whether you’re starving or merely feeling snackish, Something Natural is a sure bet — as proved by the fact it just opened a second location, in Greenwich, Connecticut, in summer 2017.
Do you have a favorite Nantucket bakery? Let us know!
