Eat Dessert First: Treat Yourself At These Philadelphia Sweet Shops

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has a long history with sweets. For decades, the city’s popular Italian Market area has been home to some of the country’s best bakeries, churning out cannolis, biscotti and pizzelles. Today, Philly’s new wave of sweets spots—cupcake shops, bakeries, dessert-only cafes—are ensuring that it remains one of the best dessert destinations in the U.S. Here’s where we’d go to eat dessert first and get a sugar rush in the City of Brotherly Love.

Get a doughnut with a side of fried chicken

There’s a reason there are now five locations of this doughnuts-and-coffee hot spot in Philly (and one in Miami, Florida, too): Federal Donuts is that good. Unimpressed with the city’s doughnut offerings, acclaimed Philadelphia chef Michael Solomonov and his team decided to open a doughnuts, fried chicken and coffee spot to satisfy their hankering for something other than cupcakes and cannolis. Inspired by the Korean fried chicken at Café Soho, Solomonov and his team of culinary wizards created cakelike doughnuts in an array of flavors. The result: melt-in-your-mouth, delicately fried doughnuts—the honey flavor is our favorite—that are the perfect complement to a cup of coffee.

Savor an Italian delicacy

You can’t go wrong with a classic. For nearly a century, the family-run Termini Brothers Bakery, in the heart of Philly’s famed Italian Market, has treated its guests to delicious Italian pastries and cakes. We won’t try to box you into choosing just one dessert but do not leave without trying Termini’s classic cannolis, the true star here. Handmade cannoli shells are filled with a subtle sweet vanilla or chocolate Italian pastry cream or, a customer favorite, ricotta cheese with chocolate chips and citron.

Treat yourself to grown-up versions of your childhood favorites

If you love a modern twist on an old classic, The Bakeshop on Twentieth is your spot. This small-batch bakery gives you a dose of nostalgia with its to-die-for homemade Oreo cookies (aka the Uh-Oh Oreo) and Bakeshop Krispie Treats that bring you back to your childhood. Don’t miss out on the shop’s Brookie, a part-cookie, part-brownie treat sure to satisfy any sweet tooth.

Try them all

When it comes to finding as many dessert options as possible under one roof, Philadelphia’s historic Reading Terminal Market has you, well, covered. Start out at the market’s Flying Monkey Bakery—you may recognize baker Elizabeth Halen as an expert baker on the Cooking Channel’s Sugar Showdown. Come hungry. You’ll want to try at least one whoopie pie (choose from chocolate, red velvet and pumpkin) plus the bakery’s famous Pumpple Cake. It’s a monstrous mashup of an apple pie, pumpkin pie, vanilla cake and chocolate cake; the flavor is delightfully sweet.

Get the scoop at a Philadelphia tradition

Finish off your sugar high with another offering that can be found at Reading Terminal Market, but one that deserves a call-out all it’s own—a scoop of house-made ice cream at Bassetts Ice Cream, the country’s oldest ice cream company. Established in 1861, the fifth-generation family business makes nearly 100 flavors—usually about 40 are offered at a time—including the popular cookies and cream, green tea and raspberry truffle. Get ready for handcrafted goodness!

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