In line with Great British Bake-Off fever sweeping the nation once again, we pick our favourite patisseries and bakery-come-cafés worthy of a Hollywood handshake.

Exploding Bakery
1 & 2 The Crescent, Queen Street, Exeter. EX4 3SB
www.explodingbakery.com
Don’t let the unassuming exterior and laidback dining area fool you – the moment these delicacies hit your tongue is when the explosion happens! Head to the counter to struggle choosing between flapjacks, brownies, cheesecake slices, or my favourite – the sour cherry & pistachio cake. The emphasis here is on texture and taste over size and design. That’s not to say these bakes aren’t eye-catching, but more rustic-chic and homely ready to pack a punch when it comes to flavour. Don’t let the experience end here – grab their unique 90 recipe one-pan cookbook to attempt to create the magic at home.

Sara’s Petite Cuisine
80 Fore St, Topsham. EX3 0HQ
www.saraspetitecuisine.co.uk
This humble little bakery/café offers a diverse array of mouthwatering showstoppers, with the unexpected surprise of specialising in a Portuguese/French infusion of cakes. Sara’s small but inviting eatery has recently celebrated five years of business and boasts a loyal local customer base in Topsham and beyond which helped see them through the pandemic. Customer favourites include the brioche and Portuguese classic – pastel de nata. Eat in and enjoy a live action view of pastry rolling and cake decorating or grab your sweet treat to go. Either way you won’t be disappointed.

Browns’ Kitchen Bakery
East St, Sidmouth EX10 8BL
www.brownskitchen.co.uk
Liv and mum Louise started their journey producing cakes and scones for their restaurant before realising their passion was all in the mixing bowl. In 2019 they opened Browns’ Kitchen Bakery and haven’t looked back, offering visitors a chance to sample their constantly evolving offering of decadent bakes including the caramel Freddo blondie, billionaire’s brownie and ultra-naughty deep dish cookie pies. Try their mixed traybake boxes delivered to your door for your very own bake-away!

Café Patisserie Glacerie
Sideshore, Queen’s Drive Space, Exmouth. EX8 2GD
www.sideshore.co.uk/food-drink/cafe-patisserie-glacerie
Perfect patisseries don’t get much better than those from Michael Caines and Sylvain Peltier’s personally devised menu of tempting treats. Expect a wide variety of intricately crafted pastries and cakes to struggle to choose between. What’s more, Café Patisserie Glacerie’s location in the new Sideshore development is designed to be as environmentally low impact as possible with a ban on single use plastics, using solar and ground source heat pumps, and utilising local suppliers where possible. Enjoy this light and airy casual space by the seaside to enjoy homemade pastries and more with a fabulous beach view.

James’ Patisserie & Sandwiches
84 High St, Honiton EX14 1JW
www.jamespatisserie.co.uk
Cream cakes, cupcakes, tray bakes, cronuts and roulades – they’re all here and made fresh on-site each day alongside a selection of sandwiches too. James trained and worked at Waddesdon Manor and The Grove where his impressive patisserie skills were highly commended. Expect larger cakes by the slice too, including a recent chocolate and passionfruit cake topped with silky Italian meringue. Yum!