The Tried-and-Tested 9 Best Cookies in London

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If on the savory side London is having a grilled cheese moment, on the sweet side London is having a cookie moment. It’s become necessary to create the definitive list of the best cookies in London, and the only way to create such a list is to allocate a very high number of calories to the cookie safari (this isn’t something that should be recorded on MyFitnessPal).

The result is this article which curates the best cookies in London right now. It was a joy to write (mostly because of the research component). And in the period between the end of our research expedition and publication, one cookie is no longer available. But it makes appearances and deserves a special mention so that you can look out for it.

The Great London Cookie Crawl

If you happen to have a few hours free and want to cycle around London’s best cookie spots while also exercising (to offset the calories, you understand), we’ve designed the ultimate London cookie crawl which coincidentally takes you through some of the best parts of London. The order of stops is not based on our ranking below but rather the logical path.

You’ll need at least 5-6 hours to really enjoy this. But it’s not a waste of a day: you’ll see so much of London by bike.

And you even get to cycle through London’s idyllic Hampstead Heath (including the famous ponds) and picturesque Notting Hill, as well as through the exciting streets of Spitalfields. We have designed the route such that you start and end in Soho, but you could easily go to the last spot (which is also in Soho) at the beginning, and end at Rinkoff Bakery.

Cycling through London

Unfortunately, not all of London has cycle paths. You’ll necessarily by riding along motor vehicles and other road users during parts of your journey. You absolutely should wear a helmet during your ride.

London’s 9 Best Cookies

9. Egg Yolk & Chocolate Chip Cookie at Violet Bakery

Violet Bakery has been through the full lifecycle of an exceptional eatery, from a stall in Broadway Market to a full bakery and cafe in East London that has become something of an institution. Claire Ptak is known for exceptional cakes made with high-quality organic ingredients like Yorkshire rhubarb and Kentish cherries.

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Beyond Violet’s cakes, the egg yolk & chocolate chip cookie is reason alone to visit Violet. Egg yolks make a cookie tender and chewy, and there is deeper flavor profile created from the additional fat of the yolk. There aren’t any whole eggs in this cookie which means it is gooey and very unique.

8. Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookie at The Spence Bakery

Spence Bakery has been around for over 20 years, yet somehow it’s still a community secret and able to keep their food fresh and exciting. I think it’s pretty safe to trust a bakery that has been serving its community well for that long, and I can confirm that you can absolutely trust them with their chocolate chunk shortbread cookie.

A shortbread cookie that is this thick might seem a bit worrying, but it is incredibly delicious and doesn’t make you feel like you’ve eaten more than you should (though it’s probably best to share it). Make sure you allow yourself some time to explore the rest of the bakery.

Some may say that a shortbread cookie doesn’t belong on this list of the best cookies in London, but we’re confident that you’ll think differently when you’ve had your first bite.

7. Matcha & White Chocolate Cookie at Rinkoff Bakery

If, in the world of sweets, cookies are having a moment in London, matcha is having its moment in the world of cookies. The fan favorite combination appears to be matcha & white chocolate so you’ll find these in cafes around the city, but it’s Rinkoff Bakery on Jubilee Street (not the Whitechapel branch) that has perfected it.

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It’s thick, gooey and hot (as long as you can get in closer to 9 am when they’re hot out of the oven). This is our pick for the best matcha & white chocolate cookie in London and is therefore one of the best cookies in London generally. What Rinkoff has managed to achieve that seems to have alluded others is a flavor that isn’t dominated by the matcha (which can be quite a strong flavor).

Rinkoff also makes a mean peanut butter & chocolate in the same style, but if you’re going on our cookie crawl then you might not want to double up.

6. Triple Chocolate Soft Cookie at Byzantium Cafe

The triple chocolate soft cookie at Byzantium was entirely unexpected. In fact, this wasn’t even on the initial list of cookie spots to visit, but Byzantium Cafe has truly outdone itself with this cookie – and given that this is a Greek cafe, we don’t even think they intended for their cookie to be so good.

So which three chocolates did they choose? It’s milk chocolate chip, dark chocolate chip and – the dark horse – caramel chocolate chip. The flavors come together in a very generous portion that will keep you coming back for more.

5. Chocolate Pecan Cookie at Miel Bakery

Miel Bakery’s owner, Shaheen Peerbhai, describes Miel Bakery as her “dream realized”. Our dreams were also realized in the form of Miel Bakery’s chocolate pecan cookie, which is unequivocally one of the best cookies in London.

It’s indulgent at just the right level, and you know that there’s a secret ingredient in there that you can’t quite put your finger on but makes it taste just that bit more delectable. But a Le Cordon Bleu- and Alain Ducasse-trained chef wouldn’t give away her secrets so quickly.

Miel Bakery has become a fixture of the Fitzrovia food scene, and it’s not uncommon to see queues outside Miel on the weekends. Miel is also known for its seasonal baked goods, so make sure you check out the rest of the team’s offering (including the very indulgent pistachio swirl).

4. White Chocolate Pistachio & Halva Cookie at Beit Cafe

The cookies at Beit Cafe are aggressively gooey and are the type that stop conversation to appreciate them. The white chocolate pistachio & halva cookie is playing in a league of its own though. White chocolate, pistachio and halva is such a great flavor combination that we found ourselves wondering why it hasn’t entered the mainstream yet.

Beit Cafe is kosher so it is closed from the mid-afternoon on Fridays and Saturdays, so if you’re doing our cookie crawl and want to try Beit Cafe’s cookies, then you’ll need to go on any other day (Sunday is probably best).

This is a list of the tried-and-tested best cookies in London so none of them can be skipped, but there really isn’t anything quite as tasty and unique in flavor as Beit Cafe’s white chocolate pistachio & halva cookie so you might want to make a special effort.

3. Bueno Cookie at Crumbs & Doilies

Adjectives like “chunky,” “gooey” and “thick” are all indicators that you’ve discovered a good cookie, and that is what the cookies at Crumbs & Doilies are. They have the widest variety of flavors of any cookie spot on this list (at least 15 flavors from birthday cake to biscoff), but if we had to choose it would be the bueno cookie (closely followed by the cereal milk cookie) for living up to chunky, gooey and thick.

When a pastry chef awakes one day and says “I am going to make an excellent cookie”, the world becomes just a little happier that day. The team at Crumbs & Doilies wakes up every day and makes excellent cookies, so you’re guaranteed a tasty cookie every single time. They also love experimenting with flavors which means there will be something new and exciting every time.

They won’t reheat the cookies, so make sure you get in early – or hope you arrive when a fresh batch comes out.

2. Pecan & Valrhona Dulcey Caramelised White Chocolate Cookie at Le Choux

Le Choux makes choux. Their choux are great and worth a trip on their own, but it’s the pecan & Valrhona Dulcey caramelised white chocolate cookie that blew us away – and it was created just as an ancillary to the choux. It’s pretty incredible when once place can get something so right when it’s not even intended to be their main act.

The cookie is soft, has chunks of high-quality Valrhona Dulcey chocolate and is topped with roasted pecans for that necessary crunch. What sets Le Choux apart is that the pastry team knows how to use sugar and salt together, and it comes out beautifully in this cookie. This isn’t nearly as indulgent as the bueno cookie or our choice for the best cookie in London, but it is super tasty all the same.

And the Best Cookie in London is…

The Miso & White Chocolate Cookie at Crème is very, very special. I still very fondly remember my first time trying the miso & white chocolate cookie at the Taste of London Food Festival many years ago. The memory has stuck with me ever since, and I’ve since shared the joy of this magnificent cookie with many others since then.

It’s sweet and salty in all the right ways, it’s gooey, it’s thick and they’ll make sure they get you a freshly baked, hot cookie if you ask for it. Miso and white chocolate are not a combination that you often see together, but once you have it you’ll be very pleasantly surprised. Crème only does cookies, and specifically they only make four cookies – because perfection is created through focus.

We’ve been assured that the Crème team is working on new flavors (including a crookie in keeping with current trends) that will surprise and delight just as the miso & white chocolate cookie does. Until then, the gooeyness keeps us coming back, and there really isn’t any debate that this is the best cookie in London.

Special Mention: Ube Marble Cookie at Araw Ice Cream

This unique and unexpectedly tasty cookie from Araw only ever makes an appearance at Araw’s pop-ups in London. The moment we hear about a planned appearance, we’ll update this space immediately so you can go try it – it’s well worth the trip to wherever they’ll be.

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