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New York / New York City

Brooklyn Vegan Bakery Guide: 7 Spots for Cake, Donuts & More

I swear, every time I visit NYC, I never allocate enough time to eat my way through Brooklyn! The vegan scene in Brooklyn is as diverse and vibrant as its neighborhoods, and it keeps growing (hooray). If you’ve got a true sweet tooth, I recommend devoting at least one full day (two would be best) to exploring all of the neighborhoods and sweet treats (I mean, this is if you’re just visiting).

While there are quite a few options, they are spread out. For instance, it can sometimes take upwards of 40 minutes to get from Williamsburg to Brooklyn Heights — distance-wise, it’s only a little over three miles!

But I promise, visiting these vegan bakeries is worth the Brooklyn (well, all of NYC) traffic headache. These fantastic sweet spots offer everything from classic cookies and cakes to gorgeous pastries and savory treats.

The Best Vegan Bakeries to Visit in Brooklyn

#1 Happy Zoe Vegan Bakery

102 B Nassau Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222
It’s hard to miss this spot—the entire front window is covered in pictures of their delicious vegan desserts and treats. It kind of reminds me of how real estate offices lure you in with photos of homes out front—you just can’t look away, right? Well, it works just the same with dessert. 

This little laid-back spot isn’t fancy, but what it lacks in décor, it makes up for in sweet flavor! Every day, their dessert case is loaded with a variety of giant cakes, cinnamon rolls, donuts, cheesecake, and more! I was also greeted with a little chalkboard sign declaring their gluten-free options, and it wasn’t just two things! They’ve got vegan and gluten-free donuts, cookies, brownies, cheesecake, and more.

One more super awesome bonus: if you fall in love with this spot, which I am sure you will, you’ll be happy to know they ship their cakes! Maybe treat yo’self to a chocolate and donut-covered cake for your upcoming birthday?

vegan cake covered in a white buttercream and topped with chunks of cookies and slices of strawberries and then heavily drizzled with chocolate at happy zoe vegan bakery in brooklyn
Credit: Happy Zoe Vegan Bakery

#2 Clementine Café & Bakery

395 Classon Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11238
Somehow, I went on a wild adventure to find this spot — I am not sure how I got turned around or initially missed it (there’s a giant green outdoor patio with their name on it), but I did. It’s probably because I was lacking my daily allotment of sweet sugar! That sounds like a way better reason than the fact that I got lost. Once I finally got there, I was smitten with the greenery covering this café that’s actually more than a bakery!

In addition to delicious vegan desserts and treats, Clementine also has a small provisions shop. While picking up cupcakes, you can grab various home and personal care products and refill products like dish soap, detergent, etc.

Anyway, back to the desserts! This hip bakery always has so many hard-to-resist treats, like golden croissants, brownies, peanut butter blondies, cupcakes, and more. They also take custom cake orders!

One more bonus (there are so many bonuses at this spot): they also have a breakfast and lunch café menu. In addition to sweets, you can also order biscuits and gravy, tempeh Reuben, veggie bowls, and more.

a cardboard box filled with six vegan pastries like cookies, croissants, and a danish from clementine vegan bakery in brooklyn
Credit: Clementine Café & Bakery

#3 Le Petit Monstre

Two locations in Brooklyn
These two spots are oozing with charm — I was in love with everything from the exposed wood shelves filled with plants and the vintage penny tile on the floor to, of course, their gorgeous pastries. As you probably already guessed from the name, a bit of French inspiration is going into the baked goods at Le Petit Monstre!

If you feel like (or maybe are with someone who feels like) you’ll never find decadent pastries again, you must come here. This hip patisserie has an army of golden pastries standing at attention, waiting for you to take them home. You’ll find your basic plain croissants (perfect with an oat milk latte), but the pastry fun doesn’t end there. You’ll also find pain au chocolate, palmiers, cheese Danish, canelé, and more!

One more bonus: They have gluten-free sweets too! Sadly, I didn’t see croissants (maybe that’s coming soon), but I found gluten-free cream cheese brownies, cheesecake, fresh bread, and more.

two golden vegan pastries on a wax sleeve with the logo for le petit monstre in brooklyn
Credit: Le Petit Monstre

#4 Dun-Well Doughnuts

222 Montrose Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11206
Sometimes, finding super delicious vegan yeasted donuts is a little more challenging than its cake counterpart unless you come here! This artisanal donut shop makes these plump little puffs of joy and covers and fills them with decadent sweets every day!

Their donut lineup changes often, but one thing that doesn’t change is their creativity. You’ll find classics like chocolate sprinkle and Boston cream, but you’ve got to check out their creative flavor concoctions like mango tajin, cinnamon roll with cream cheese frosting, lavender lemon cream, and chocolate cherry amaretto cream!

Bonus: You can order a half or full dozen via DoorDash, GrubHub, or Seamless and have them delivered! That’s one way to beat NYC traffic!

two boxes of round vegan cake donuts topped with glaze, powdered sugar, coconut and more from dun well doughnuts in brooklyn
Credit: Dun-Well Doughnuts

#5 Cloudy Donut

14 Columbia Pl, Brooklyn, NY 11201
There’s not just one vegan donut shop in Brooklyn; there’s two! In my opinion, you can never have too many vegan donut shops — and it gets even better; they also have a location in Manhattan! This spot took Brooklyn Heights by storm with its outrageously delicious and massive donut menu — they have over 50 different flavors (you won’t find them all at once, but you’ll find a ton). This makes deciding what to get difficult; as you can imagine, these aren’t your basic, boring donuts!

If you need help deciding, I’d recommend not skipping over the brown butter chocolate chip or bright blue cookie monster! The cookie monster is as cute as it is delicious; it’s a bright blue donut covered partially with cookie crumbs and finished with two googly eyes. In addition, there are plenty more to drool over, like s’mores, peanut butter cookies, grapefruit mimosa, cotton candy, and more.

a box of six colorful vegan donuts topped with chocolate, powdered sugar, berries and more from cloudy donut co in brooklyn
Credit: Cloudy Donut

Vegan-Friendly Bakeries to Checkout in Brooklyn

#6 Chez Alex

72 Ralph Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11221
If you can’t make it to Le Petit Monstre, you have one more opportunity for unbelievably gorgeous vegan pastries in Brooklyn! The small vegan-friendly spot is popular with locals looking for a caffeine boost or to change up their office view (it’s nice to get out of your house from time to time, right?).

The bakery and café has a great all-day menu, but let’s first start with the treats. You’ll find classic options like double chocolate cookies, scones, and muffins, but you can’t miss the light, flaky, buttery pastries! They generally have a couple of vegan pastry options, like apple turnovers and plain croissants, that you can’t miss. Just be sure to look for the little “v” to know which items are vegan.

a colorful tiled plate with two mini vegan cakes covered in a dusting of powdered sugar at chez alex in brooklyn
Credit: Chez Alex

#7 Mia’s Brooklyn Bakery

139 Smith St, Brooklyn, NY 11201
This spot reminded me of a bakery I used to get so excited to visit as a kid — it was a sugar wonderland. Mia’s is exactly the same; you’re greeted with a long, gleaming dessert case filled to the brim with fantastic options. I wish I could say that they were all vegan! To be honest, I didn’t expect anything to be vegan, so I’ll take what I can get!

On the vegan side of things, they’ve got a pretty stellar lineup of cakes (available options change regularly), like chocolate fudge, hazelnut, peanut butter, raspberry, and more! You might also find cupcakes and mousse tarts.

About Author

Rebecca is the founder of the vegan travel company Veggies Abroad. In 2021, she bid her 15-year career goodbye and ventured into the world of ethical business with the launch of a vegan travel blog (the one you’re reading!). As the blog flourished, Rebecca expanded her vision to encompass personalized travel planning services and launched Veggies Abroad's inaugural vegan tour to Thailand, marking the beginning of many more eco-conscious, plant-powered adventures to come. Follow her adventures on Instagram or Facebook @veggiesabroad