Where to Find The Best Hot Cross Buns in Melbourne This Easter
Your ultimate guide on where to find the best hot cross buns in Melbourne for Easter and beyond.
Every year, bakers across Melbourne rise early so that we can satiate our annual cravings for fresh from the oven hot cross buns. And in a city that has an enviable selection of artisan bakeries, we are well and truly spoilt for choice.
But not all hot cross buns are made equal. In the weeks leading up to Easter, hit up the city's finest bakeries that are renowned for serving up the best hot cross buns in Melbourne. Butter up!
Hot Cross Bun-Inspired Treats in Melbourne
Hot Cross Bun Latte
Love hot cross buns so much, you wish you could drink them? ST. ALi has taken that and run with it, creating a Hot Cross Bun Latte that's (almost) too good to be true). Featuring their house-made raisin spice syrup, Ethiopia Natural espresso and finished off with a sprinkle of cinnamon, this drink is any hot cross bun lover's dream. To sweeten the deal, ST. ALi is open their regular hours during the long weekend, so you can even start your Easter long weekend off on the right foot.
12-18 Yarra Place, South Melbourne
1 Dhanga Djeembana Walk, Melbourne
Limited Edition Easter Babka at Ruben's Deli
New York-inspired Ruben's Deli is recreating its much-loved babka with an Easter twist this year - and we're here to tell you it's one of the most delicious festive treats in the city right now.
Available individually ($9) or as a wheel ($40) the dough is filled with their signature cinnamon filling mixed with traditional Easter spices, marinated currants and housemade candied zest before being rolled, baked and topped with a citrus-infused cream cheese.
The result is a lusciously fluffy, delicious Easter treat. But get in quick - this limited edition babka is only available in store from Friday 22nd March until Friday 29th March. Hop to it!
KINGS ARCADE, 978 High Street, Armadale
The Hot Cross Cake and Quack Quack Adventure Cake at Le Yeahllow
In a playful change-up from the conventional cooler weather ambiance of toasted hot cross buns, Le Yeahllow has ushered in a breath of warm Easter air with their take on the ‘not cross bun’. These hyper realistic Hot Cross Cake's. are the stuff Easter dreams are made of, and feature a moist centre of hot cross bun sponge enriched with plump raisins, chocolate chips, and a decadent Valrhona chocolate cremeux.
Each slice is adorned with layers of allspice whipped ganache and detailed chocolate decorations. Available as a singular ‘bun’ or in a larger slab of 6, 9, 16, or 24, they make for the perfect treat for Easter gatherings, or as a delightful me-time indulgence.
The little ones don't miss out either, with Le Yeahllow’s Quack Quack Duck Adventure cake a showcase of pure joy. A rich chocolate brownie sponge, crunchy chocolate streusel and smooth chocolate mousse are perfectly balanced with tangy passionfruit curd. It's all housed within a vibrant mango glaze, adding a burst of tropical excitement. To top it all off, playful fondant ducks swim atop it. How cute is that?!
Prices vary, browse the range here
366 Little Collins Street, Melbourne
Best Hot Cross Buns in Melbourne
AM Bakehouse
Keeping it sweet and simple (because who can ever pass up a good ol' classic), AM Bakehouse has added both traditional and chocolate hot cross buns to their menu for Easter...except the chocolate hot cross bun has a unique twist. Bite into this hot cross bun and you'll find a pleasant Nutella surprise to go along with the choc chip-filled chocolate bun; it's any chocolate-lover's heaven. Not so much of a sweet tooth? Their traditional fruit hot cross bun has the potential to sway even the stubbornest of fruit nay-sayers if warmed and paired with butter, it's simply that good.
286D Tooronga Road, Glen Iris
Hamptons Bakery
The Hamptons Bakery is known for their signature hot cross buns - and they tend to sell out as quickly as their team can bake them! This year's selection includes a cranberry and chocolate combo as well as the classic hot cross bun flavour we all know and love.
Each bun here is exquisitely crafted in-house, with bits of caramel-glazed orange and a carefully macerated dried fruit mix.
Wanna know the only way you can be sure you're eating an authentic Hamptons Bakery HCB? Look for the unmistakable 'H' on top!
Available from Post Office Club Hotel (St Kilda), Rumour Has It Cafe (Hawthorn East) and The Hamptons Bakery (Hampton) as singles or in a 6-pack.
Pre-order here
Ferguson Plarre
Ferguson Plarre has something for everyone this Easter. While they have their usual traditional and choc chip flavours, the much loved bakery has added two more varieties to the roster: jam donut and white chocolate and raspberry. These two flavours will excite and dazzle your tastebuds, combining flavours and textures that are never typically mixed together. If you feel like venturing out of the two Easter staple bun flavours, we recommend trying these.
Various locations throughout Melbourne
Ritzy
While Ritzy is known for their delicious bagels, they also bake up a mean hot cross bun. This bakery is keeping things traditional, offering the classic fruit hot cross bun and chocolate hot cross bun. Grab your morning coffee and add a hot cross bun to your order to be a part of the Easter festivities.
25 Pratt Street, Moonee Ponds
605 Hawthorn Road, East Brighton
Penny for Pound
Melburnians love and adore Penny for Pound's hot cross buns, so it's a delight to hear that they're back for another Easter - and they're better than ever! This year's lineup consists of three different flavours, all as delicious as each other: traditional, double chocolate, and their signature sticky date. Think plump dates and beautifully caramelised white chocolate, all mixed into one mouth-watering bun.
Want to try something out of the ordinary? Well, these hot cross buns in Melbourne offer exactly that. Penny for Pound has partnered with Holla Gelato to serve up hot cross bun ice cream sandwiches - yum! There are three different ice cream flavours destined to be paired with each individual hot cross bun flavour like the perfect, Easter-y match-made in heaven.
418 Bridge Road, Richmond
387 Camberwell Road, Camberwell
7 Cochranes Road, Moorabbin
Tokyo Lamington
Tokyo Lamington's beloved lamington hot cross buns are back for another year, and this time, they've brought a couple of friends along with them. This bakery has uno reversed their original lamington hot cross bun for a hot cross bun flavoured lamington, and has also created a Yuzu lemon and sultana hot cross bun for a spicy and citrussy treat.
258 Elgin Street, Carlton
Black Star Pastry
Black Star Pastry is serving up two delicious and classic hot cross bun variations this year: traditional and chocolate. Whether you're in the mood for a spicy and sweet allspice traditional bun with a frankincense glaze, or a rich, indulgent chocolate bun made Koko Black's 60% dark chocolate chips, Black Star Pastry has something to satisfy your cravings,
Various locations across Melbourne, See website for details.
Brunetti
Loved by Melburnians far and wide, Brunetti has joined the ranks of cafés and bakeries providing hot cross buns in Melbourne - and there are three different flavours to choose from. There's the classic traditional flavour - which you can never go wrong with - or if you're really craving something sweet, you can bite into a Nutella or Biscoff Cream hot cross bun. The Nutella hot cross bun is a unique twist on an old favourite - chocolate - providing a hazelnutty and gooey surprise when you bite into it. As for the Biscoff Cream? Words can't describe how divine this bun is...you need to try it for yourself.
Various locations across Melbourne, see website for details
Bread Club
The best club, Bread Club, truly know how to hot cross bun. Taking just enough liberties with tradition, Bread Club's bun holds surprises like blueberries and cardamom, but nails the basics like a fluffy dough. Fermented for 24 hours, it's got a good, generous mix of sultanas, currants and cranberries and a gentle peel taste throughout. Despite all that, the sweetness is in check. Need we offer more information? Get in line today!
Side note: Keep an eye out for their twice baked hot cross bun, occasionally available at both Albert Park and North Melbourne. In a word: magical.
558 Queensberry Street, North Melbourne
65 Cardigan Place, Albert Park
Dench Bakers
This café bakery has a well-earned reputation for its bready goodness and every year they pump out some of the best hot cross buns in Melbourne. Dench Bakers take on the delicious parcels includes a secret blend of spices, whole pureed oranges and vine fruit that’s added to the batter, which flavours the dense yet chewy buns. They’re seriously good, especially when paired with your brew of choice.
109 Scotchmer Street, Fitzroy North
Loafer Bread
Fitzroy North delivers in a big way on baked goods, and Loafer Bread is no exception. The hot cross buns here are made of sourdough, so they’re dense with fruit, lemon and orange peel which is candied in-house. The buns are then topped with malt syrup glaze. Yum!
146 Scotchmer Street, Fitzroy North
Tivoli Road Bakery
A café bakery that foodies city-wide swear by, mainly because it's a sourdough lover's dream, but when Easter rolls around, it's all about their hot cross buns. At Tivoli Road Bakery, the buns are on the softer side with a zesty spice mix and sultanas and currants. All buns are cut, weighed and rolled by hand – a big reason why these are considered some of the best hot cross buns in Melbourne – so be sure to order enough to take home with you.
3 Tivoli Road, South Yarra
Zeally Bay Sourdough
Vegans have been trying to keep this bakery under wraps, but word is out, because Zeally Bay Sourdough bake bread that is so mouth-watering delicious, and they roll out some of Melbourne's best hot cross buns. Located in the beachside town of Torquay, the guys here bake their buns slowly and simply – the old pre-industrial way. They use dried fruits, fresh citrus peel and their in-house blend of spices – all of which is certified organic.
10 Sawmills Way, Torquay
Phillippa’s
One of Melbourne’s all-time faves (and rightfully so), baker Phillippa Grogan likes to make her hot cross buns the traditional way – a yeasted bun with spices, organic vine fruit and candied orange peel – just like they were from her childhood. Her secret to creating one of the best hot cross buns in Melbourne is using six different spices that are freshly ground each week. They are then glazed to perfection, ready to be picked up from either their Armadale, Richmond, or Brighton stores.
Don't feel like a hot cross bun but still want to get into the Easter spirit? Phillippa has an entire Easter range, from hot cross buns to gingerbread bunnies or honey bunnies, Pain D'Epices to Simnel cakes.
Armadale, Richmond, Brighton
WildLife Bakery
At this ever-so-chic café style bakery, WildLife has crafted the perfect hot cross bun for you to devour. These guys specialise in sourdough, and yes, that means your hot cross bun gets the same 24-hour fermented treatment. The buns are airy but dense with candied orange, sultanas and currants; soaked in a little bit of rye whisky, all finished off with a sticky glaze. Delish! If you're looking for something a little less traditional, their magnificent chocolate and sour cherry buns are also available for pre-order, and on weekends until Easter.
90 Albert Street, Brunswick East
Falco Bakery
Falco is responsible for some of the best hot cross buns in Melbourne, according to . An all-rounder in their field, Falco’s HCBs are soft, chewy, fruity, spicy, and gloriously sticky all at once. Buns are priced at $4.60 each or $24 for half a dozen and sell out early, so get in fast.
288 Smith Street, Collingwood
156-158 Langridge Street, Collingwood
266 Johnston Street, Abbotsford
Baker Bleu
There's no chance of feeling blue this Easter if you're indulging in Baker Bleu's signature buns, which are back and better than ever. You’ve got two choices: a sour cherry and dark chocolate dream team, or a more traditional raisin and pecan. In the wise words of Alexander Hamilton, order both... or you will never be satisfied. They're delicious as is, or served warm with butter.
119/121 Hawthorn Road, Caulfield North
42 Errol Street, Prahran
Lune
Melbourne pastry icon Lune is never one to skip out on the Easter fun. Their hot cross cruffin is one for the ages, brimming with traditional dried fruit mix and oozing spiced custard from within.
Find it at all three Melbourne locations this month, with pre-order available here.
119 Rose Street, Fitzroy
161 Collins Street, Melbourne
835 High Street, Armadale
In a city that is mad about its food, there's an abundance of bakeries pumping out mouth-wateringly delicious bread. But every Easter, it’s the hot cross buns that take centre stage. And although these are our pick of the bunch, there are plenty of bakeries around town that once a year, rise to the occasion of creating the yummiest Easter treats around. These are the best hot cross buns Melbourne has to offer.
