This gluten-free and dairy-free bakery offers an entire array of kosher sweets, from small pastries to cakes, as well as a challah that is available in the shop on Fridays, or by custom order. While one’s mileage may vary on the gluten-free rugelach which sport a softer texture, By the Way’s menu has a number of standouts, including the mini apple bundt cake, crumbly and subtly sweet, a surprisingly airy chocolate whoopie pie, and crusty, chewy almond cookies.

For many, William Greenberg’s name is synonymous with the iconic black and white cookie. Opened in 1946, and run by owner Carol Becker since 2008, the Upper East Side bakery’s classic take on these deceptively named, cake-like cookies boast a moist and sponge-like texture. “A great black and white cookie has the perfect balance between cake and cookie.” says Becker. “It should have a fine crumb, topped with a fondant that melts in your mouth.” Becker also recommends the less commonly found schnecken, a kind of pecan cinnamon twist, as well as pecan brownies that made an appearance on Mad Men. Look out for apple macaroon cake during Rosh Hashanah: Instead of a crumb crust base, William Greenberg uses almond macaroons.

Orwashers, a bakery and wholesaler that started in 1916, remains a great all-around Jewish bakery. Standouts include Orwashers’ crisp, chocolate-dipped rugelach, breakfast-or-dessert sticky bun babka, cabernet-leavened sourdough, and Orwasheire, their namesake sweet olive oil brioche bun with candied orange. As with many Jewish bakeries, Orwashers also offers a holiday menu worth a serious look. Bonus tip: Get a jelly donut filled to order while you wait for your coffee.

Tucked in a quiet street in Forest Hills, Rokhat is a special bakery that serves the tight-knit Bukharian Jewish community from the Uzbek region. The shop features a variety of Central Asian breads, including lepeshka, a chewy, soft flatbread stamped in a variety of designs and baked in a tandoor oven; and crisp and flaky samsas, flavorful triangular pies filled with savory meat or pumpkin. Others worth trying are the massive, cracker-like dome bread that resembles a baked lavash, and patir, a coiled, layered onion bread that recalls a larger, heartier scallion pancake. Look for products freshest from the oven, as the breads harden over time, and pop into the connected restaurant if it is open. To experience food that speaks so much about this unique community— of which globally there are only a few hundred thousand living members — Rokhat Kosher Bakery is an essential visit. 

There’s an on-going debate about the best knishes in the city, between Russ & Daughter faithfuls, Katz’s defenders, and those partial to 2nd Ave Deli. But nearly everyone agrees that Yonah Schimmel is a cultural institution, having served hungry Lower East Side customers since 1910. These hearty baked snacks, with a thin layer of dough wrapped around a large helping of savory or sweet filling, are not for the faint of appetite. Yonah Schimmel offers savory knishes filled with potato, buckwheat, or spinach, as well as sweet varieties with fruit and creamy cheese, which are the reason it made this list. We recommend one from each category — for many, savory knish is best eaten with a nose-clearing mustard.

Former Breads Bakery chef Adir Michaeli’s Lower East Side bakery echoes Breads’ refined approach to pastries and adds offerings from the chef’s home country of Israel. “Our goal is to bring our customers the flavors that we grew up with, so that they have a memory of home,” says Michaeli. Given his culinary pedigree, the kosher bakery naturally boasts knock-out chocolate babkas — in both dairy and vegan options — but also a wide array of holiday specials, like Rosh Hashanah-only apple crumble cake and dulce de leche-filled duvshaniot cookies. Michaeli’s personal favorite? “It’s my rugelach,” he says. “The aroma of the butter in the dough takes me back to being a kid.”

Established in 1959, Sander’s Bakery in South Williamsburg is the kosher bakery that supplies Moishe’s in Manhattan, which in and of itself is a testament to Sander’s quality. Serving a variety of cookies, three types of round babka (including a rare poppy seed edition), and an astonishing seven different layer cakes in rolled, square, and triangular chocolate dipped versions, Sander’s carries its traditions proudly. “We have people born in the 1950s who come in every week asking for the poppy cake,” says shop clerk David Posen. “And we have items for people born after the 90s, too.” Keep an eye out for donuts during Hanukkah.

Measured out on a scale, Oneg’s kosher chocolate babka is famous for good reason. The double chocolate version is so dense and laminated that it may be more chocolate and cocoa by weight than dough. Oneg, meaning “enjoyment,” according to one of the owners, is just that. The friendly staff may see you walk in intending to buy a slice of the babka, and then leave laden with other treats.

In Borough Park, a group of innovative kosher Jewish bakeries — all located within a few blocks of each other around 13th Avenue and 51st Street —are bringing high quality ingredients and baking techniques to traditional Jewish dessert forms. Notably, while all bakeries provide classic treats like the rugelach, each brings a distinct perspective to their menu. Shloimy’s Heimishe Bakery, one of the more established businesses in the group, is a great representative. Bite through one of their rugelach and their stamp is clear: The neat and tightly rolled dough is dense, chewy, and very subtly sweetened, unlike some of the more traditional rugelach. While Shloimy’s may be better known, we highly recommend a visit to the other shops — Sesame, Weiss, and Taam Eden — to taste-test other specialties, including a golden, pocket-sized cheese danish that tastes almost like a Brazilian pão de queijo, with a rich, crusty exterior, yet light and airy interior.

Isaac’s Bake Shop, located across the street from Di Fara Pizza, is an old world kosher bakery that’s been serving the Midwood Jewish community for years. Patrons seek out their oversized chocolate babka, featured on the Travel Channel, but equally classic are the kichel bowtie cookies, the kokosh slices — a flatter, denser cousin to the babka — and apple turnover. Isaac’s Bake Shop’s portions are generous and pricing reasonable, so it’s easy to try a few different items. Just remember to save some room if you’re also planning to get in line for pizza.