Dreamy Dessert Bars in Auckland Worth Saving Room For

Dessert bars are a sweet lover’s dream. Whether you’re a die-hard dessert fan or just looking for a sweet treat at the end of a meal, Auckland’s dessert scene is packed with creative inspiration that satisfies every craving. The rise of dessert bars in Auckland reflects the cities love for unique indulgent sweet treats. 

From gluten free desserts to French classics, these standalone dessert bars prove that desserts deserves to be the star of any meal. Save some room, because we’ve rounded up six dreamy dessert bars in Auckland worth visiting.

Miann has two outposts in Britomart and Ponsonby and a little chocolate factory in Morningside, a bean-to-bar spot that uses ethically sourced cacao beans and organic sugar. At Miann’s you can indulge in perfectly shaped mushroom cakes. These cakes are famous in Auckland’s dessert scene and comprise layers of milk chocolate mousse, creameaux, and dulce de leche sponge with a gingerbread biscuit base. They come in a variety of flavours including raspberry, matcha, salted caramel and chocolate. Other coveted sweet treats include chocolate lamington bears inspired by Paddington Bear, Mont Blanc’s, charcoal vegan ice-cream and cake-in-a-can which consists of layers of cake, mousse, and rich fillings, all packed into a sleek, portable can. Pop the lid and dig into pure indulgence, anytime, anywhere!

Giapo, a specialist gelato parlour, is famous for its unique artistic ice-cream designs like the Colossal Squid and The Selfie which are popular favourites among its fans. Giapo’s aim, since opening twelve years ago, is to create a different kind of ice cream.  The husband and wife team set out to redefine the way we think about ice-cream. Their ice cream lab pushes the boundaries of traditional ice-cream, cones and flavour profiles. 

Their unique wearable ice cream cones can be worn as finger puppets and rings and they even have wearable lip ice-cream which you don’t need to hold with your hands. Two standout dishes at Giapo include their Yorkshire Pudding (pastry lined with milk chocolate and served with any ice cream flavour) and Māori Fried Bread. The ‘fried bread’ has a  soft donut casing with a velvet ice-cream centre. These two distinct cultural savoury dishes from the UK and New Zealand respectively have been transformed into delicious cold desserts.

The OKO Dessert Kitchen in New Market is Auckland’s sweetest escape offering up miniature cakes, which are made to look stylish with pastel hues and expert layering like the strawberry shortcake and the lemon cheesecake. The coral-coloured rose cake looks like a perfect rose and the Matchamisu and Tiramisu cakes are delicious when paired with coffee or a liqueur. You can also enjoy Belgian waffles, chai lattes and dark chocolate and salted caramel ice-cream shakes.

The signature Volcano is draped in steamy goodness and consists of salted caramel mousse, coffee cake, crunchy chocolate sponge, vanilla milk foam and salted caramel chocolate sauce. OKO also serves a delectable menu of dessert-inspired cocktails. Top picks include the sorbet and bubbles combo and the Frangelico and walnut ice cream mix.

Hidden away on Windsor Street in Parnell, VANIYÉ Patisserie serves an array of freshly made French pastries, baguettes, buttery croissants and savoury tarts every morning – Tuesday to Saturday. Other French favourites crafted by Cordon Bleu trained chef, Sonia Haumonte include handcrafted chocolate, macarons, pain au chocolat, and mille-feuille.

The dessert menu changes frequently and seasonally with four out of twelve desserts being gluten free. The perfectly made, individual cakes feature exotic flavours like matcha green tea, toasted yellow bean and seasonal specials like the rhubarb almond-pistachio frangipane cake. Top favourites include the walnut dacquoise, the Midnight Gunaja chocolate tart,  and the gâteau aux pommes" (apple cake) with its caramelised apples set atop vanilla brûlée

Head to Elisabeth’s for late-night dessert, an inner-city chocolatier and coffee bar in Kingsland on new North Road. Usually open weekday evenings, and from midday on weekends. This sweet spot offers bottomless coffee alongside decadent desserts late into the night. You can also enjoy their artisanal hot chocolate mess, vanilla/chai latte or beetroot latte. 

There is also a collection of vegan lattes and gluten-free macarons and brownies. Their desserts are almost too-pretty-to-eat but we urge you to go ahead and indulge in the Affogato Trifle or sticky Baklava Crumble. You can also share a dessert degustation board, perfect for date night.

Eggloo is a specialty dessert shop that is usually only open on weeknight evenings in Mount Albert. This is one of the few spots in Auckland where you can enjoy a traditional Hong Kong egg waffle with ice-cream. The Eggloo waffles are made fresh to order, and are filled with your choice of ice cream, and toppings. Try the chocolate waffle filled with mocha ice cream, chocolate sauce, whipped cream and topped with Maltesers. Other notable flavours are cookies and cream and Oreo. 

You can also enjoy iced coffee drinks and bubble tea in a variety of flavours including passion fruit and mango, strawberry and raspberry, brown sugar and creamy taro.

Auckland’s amazing dessert scene offers an indulgent experience, with a range of creative options to satisfy even the most demanding sweet tooth. From Miann’s famous mushroom cakes to Eggloo’ s Hong Kong egg waffles and ice cream, there is no shortage of imagination and innovation. If you love exploring new flavours, Auckland’s dessert bars deliver the sweetest culinary journey.