Ethnic Bakeries

Middle Eastern

Holy Land Middle Eastern Restaurant & Deli
2513 Central Ave. NE, Mpls., 612-781-2627; Midtown Global Market,  Stall 145, Lake St. at Chicago Ave., Mpls.
This sprawling Northeast Minneapolis grocery and deli is like an exotic bazaar—aromatic, bustling, noisy. Here, find mountains of pita breads (white or whole-wheat, with or without pockets) all made fresh daily, lavosh, baklava, and numerous pastries, from powdery wedding cakes to sesame-studded horns.

Scandinavian

Café Finspång
Midtown Global Market, Stall 148, Lake St. at Chicago Ave., Mpls., 612-872-2462
The tiny bakery stand serves up Scandinavian specialties, such as lefse, chewy almond crescents, macaroons, sturdy, black rye rugbrod, and open-faced sandwiches aplenty.

Finnish Bistro
2264 Como Ave., St. Paul, 651-645-9181
Soile Anderson’s light, elegant aesthetic resonates throughout this charming spot in charming St. Anthony Park. Expect beautiful tortes and European fruit cheesecakes (with lingonberries) plus Anderson’s trademark breads and pulla rolls.

Scandia Bake Shop
5011 34th Ave. S., Mpls., 612-724-8353
Come the holidays, those who aren’t Scandinavian sure want to be. Oh, those breads and pastries, those groaning-board feasts. A good holiday table requires at least seven different sweets—choose among julekake, krumkake, sandbakkels, Linzer tortes, marzipan cakes, and plenty of spritz. For weddings—the tower of almond rings (kransekake) and a three-tiered Bavarian cream-and-fruit–filled torte (blottekake). There’s also golden St. Lucia’s buns and cardamom or cinnamon twists. Scandia Bake Shop is Minneapolis’s oldest Scandinavian bakery.

Taste of Scandinavia Bakery & Café
Bloomington, Coon Rapids, Little Canada, North Oaks
The bakery founded by Soile Anderson (now of Finnish Bistro) features cardamom-scented, raisin-studded pulla the size of a fat fist, fancy cookies, gleaming cloudberry and lingonberry tarts, and tall, creamy tortes. There are also those oddly named kolacky, almond two o’clocks, and munkki (fried sweet dough loaded with fruit). All are beautifully displayed. Just point if you can’t pronounce them.