Cake, bread, ice-cream and sandwiches. I’m convinced these are the little luxuries that make daily life better. We’re lucky in Melbourne that so many talented chefs have opened shops that specialise in these items. From a new gelateria in Carnegie to a market stand selling some of the best bagels in town, and a kakigori shop from a Japanese master here, in alphabetical order, are our picks for the best new bakeries, dessert spots and sandwich shops of the year so far.

Before December 2023, chef and baker Lindsay Oates’s bread only appeared on restaurant menus and at farmers markets. But getting your hands on his slow-fermented loaves, fougasse and focaccia is much easier these days at Akimbo. The bakery’s two-tone exterior (and prominent Hot Bread signage) is a beacon opposite the swarming Northcote Aquatic & Recreation Centre. Peel off the footpath for tartines, palmiers and (a personal favourite) pepperoni pizzetta. Hot stuff.

–Stephanie Vigilante, head of social media

Amanda Lowrensa cut her teeth working as a pastry chef at Supernormal and then under Lucy Whitlow at Osteria Ilaria before branching out on her own and founding Amande.

It started as a weekly cake box with bakes inspired by European pastries and American cakes. Now Lowrensa has mostly retired the cake boxes (although they’re occasionally available) and pops up at markets around Melbourne including at the Abbotsford Convent, Heide Market and the Carlton Farmers Market, selling fruit-forward, not-too-sweet bakes that remind me of Beatrix.

Amande’s quince and brown butter tart is one of the best desserts I’ve had this year, and the squiggly piping on her chocolate and coconut frangipane tart is mesmerising.

– Audrey Payne, Melbourne food and drink editor

I’m a proud member of the Joey Leung fan club. The pastry chef behind Joy Jaune at the Preston Market uses market produce to create incredible treats including choux pastry swans, olive oil cake served with poached pear and candied cumquats, and the best strawberry panna cotta I’ve ever had.

Leung also sells torched sago pudding and hot chocolate with house-made marshmallows flamed-to-order from her tiny butter-yellow-coloured store. She may be one of the best pastry chefs in Melbourne, but it’s her joyful personality and clear adoration for her work and community (which shines through on her very fun Instagram account) that makes Joy Jaune a true delight.

– Audrey Payne, Melbourne food and drink editor

Pay-by-weight cheesecake is a fun (and practical) concept. But to make Lulu & Me worth revisiting, the cheesecake has to be good, too. And good is an understatement. Here, the Basque cheesecake is creamy, the Japanese cheesecake is fluffy and the New York cheesecake is a classic.

The pay-by-weight model means you get to tell the team exactly how much you want. Try a sliver (or a slab) of the traditional or pandan Basque cheesecakes. Or take home a whole cake for the perfect show-stopping dinner party dessert.

– Lachsley Parton, contributor

There aren’t many bagels in Melbourne like the ones made by Masses Bagels. They’re light and chewy with a thin blistered outer layer. Founders Jack Muir-Rigby and Carmen Newton first sold their bagels to Etta during lockdowns.

But now, Masses Bagels does what it says on the tin – it feeds bagels to the masses at its Carlton Farmers Market stall and at the occasional pop-up around town.

Toppings vary, but a personal favourite (and I’m not unique in this choice) is the hot smoked trout, curly cucumber pickle and preserved cumquat on a fermented potato bagel. Find its next market dates on Instagram – just make sure to get there before 11am or you might walk away empty-handed.

– James Williams, creative solutions manager

I’ve taken multiple people to this gelato store from Vera Teodori and Alex Toretto, who first met in a gelateria in Rome more than 10 years ago, and I’ve yet to have anyone complain.

Nuvoletta is on the bustling restaurant hub that is Koornang Road and makes for the perfect post- (or, let’s be real) pre-dinner dessert stop.

Gelato is churned on-site with high-fat Jersey milk and St David Dairy cream. It has excellent rich flavours including coffee, cookie crumble, and dark chocolate. But the fruit flavours, like Kensington mango, blood orange and mandarin, and watermelon, strawberry and rose, are the standouts for me.

– Audrey Payne, Melbourne food and drink editor

There’s been no shortage of sandwich shop openings in Melbourne this year. But Piccolo Panini has an unmatched energy that blurs the lines between a mate’s place and a panini shop. The vibes (and sandwiches) are topnotch, and you can expect a friendly greeting from best mates and owners Damian Iaconis and Stephen Hatzikourtis upon arrival. At lunchtime, there’s a buzzing crowd out the front of the tiny shopfront as everyone waits for the Italian-style deli rolls. My favourite? The house-crumbed chicken cotoletta with salsa verde, rocket and pickled onions.

– Lachsley Parton, contributor

I first saw the towering bowl of shaved iced on Instagram in the earliest days of winter. It was hard to convince someone to brave icy winds and tram into the city for a cold dessert with me, but I assured my friend it would be worth it. Sebastian Kakigori did not make a liar out of me.

A block of special ice made from water from Mount Hakusan in Kanazawa is shaved into a little snow mountain. It’s then flavoured with syrup and toppings, such as mochi and fruits, and compacted into an impressive, slow-melting snow orb. The kakigori here is sweet, delicate and a bit messy in all the right ways.

– James Williams, creative solutions manager

This ice-creamery’s star flavour is the delightfully grown-up cardamom, burnt honey and pistachio. But what I love about the place is that owners Clinton and Karina Serex haven’t forgotten one very important thing: the connection between childhood and ice-cream. Like Miinot, Luther’s Scoops, Kenny Lover and Fluffy Torpedo, Sundae School has a ridiculously wholesome energy to it. Loved-up couples roll up hand in hand, and kids bunny hop through the doors giddy with excitement. Clinton, who’s often at the counter, greets everyone with a smile, and seemingly infinite patience as they endlessly deliberate over flavours like chocolate fudge and cookie crumbs, lemon creamsicle, mango lassi, and orange sherbet.

– Nick Connellan, Australia editor