To update my list of favorite bakeries, I set out to explore Honolulu’s newest ones, but in the process, fell back in love with some of our old ones. I shouldn’t have been surprised—nostalgia is my favorite ingredient, and in our rapidly shifting world, it’s totally trending right now. So here are some of the O‘ahu bakeries I’ve added back into my rotation.
Sing Cheong Yuan Bakery
My perfect dim sum bento at Sing Cheong consists of a few pieces of its super plump shrimp dumpling, pork hash, a lup cheong manapua, a slice of layer rice cake and an egg tart. In the mid-morning, most of it is fresh out of the steamer or oven and still warm. I often have aspirations of taking it to the park or beach, but usually I end up eating it immediately in my car and getting shoyu mustard everywhere.
1027 Maunakea St., Chinatown, (808) 531-6688, singcheongyuan.com, @singcheongyuanbakery
Big Time Bagels
If we want to talk about a bakery renaissance, we should also mention the bagel blowup happening across the country and in Honolulu. I’m not an expert on New York style bagels; all I know is I like Big Time Bagel’s balance of chew and loft. Plus, with bagels like ‘ulu rosemary and fixings that include aku lox, ‘inamona and hazelnut spread, and smoked marlin cream cheese, Big Time feels like a true Hawai‘i bagel.
Farmers markets, @bigtimebagelshi
Epi-Ya
When Saint-Germain’s bakeries closed in 2018, some of its employees opened Epi-Ya about a year later. Epi-Ya is proof that sometimes the best of the new(er) is keeping a tradition alive. I come here regularly for a loaf of family bread, which I can request cut to my desired thickness (extra thick for dessert toast and thinner for sandwiches), and am usually also tempted to pick up an arabiki roll or butterflake roll … or an entire custard pie. The wobbly, just-set custard pie is second only to Lee’s…