Every sweet tooth needs more than one favorite bakery. The Bay Area boasts lots of legacy and specialty shops, but this is a culinary niche that always has room for more. Over this past year, we’ve discovered new bakeries, expansion shops, hidden gems and home bakers who decided to turn their talents into a business and share their recipes with us. The array is impressive, from beignets to meringues, plus new croissants, cookies, tarts and cheesecakes. Ready to indulge? Here’s a sampling of our discoveries:

Drive by the corner of Meridian and Hamilton avenues around 3 a.m. and you’ll see one shop with the lights on. That’s the bright promise of freshly baked croissants, danish, muffins, scones, cookies — dozens and dozens of them that will be ready by the 7 a.m. bakery opening.

Owner and

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