El Panadero Bakery

"Considered an Uptown gem, El Panadero is best known for tropical-flavored pastries, fluffy Dominican-style cakes like dulce de leche, and Cuban sandwiches. Like all other Uptown bakeries, this is also a great place to grab café con leche." - shelley worrell 31

"The massive refrigerator at the entrance of this Washington Heights bakery should be a stop on any neighborhood walking tour. The pretty frosted cakes within in spur daydreams of your next birthday, and the silky tres leches here is particularly lovely, with a delicate crumb, and thick but light layers of whipped cream frosting. El Panadero also serves sweet, cinnamon-spiked cups of oatmeal, and very good, toasty sandwiches. Get one with pernil (theirs is salty and moist, with tons of flavor), ham, and cheese con todo—just be sure to eat it quickly, so the crispiness doesn't steam away in the foil wrapper. That won’t be too difficult." - willa moore, bryan kim, molly fitzpatrick, will hartman, sonal shah

"Most of the panaderías on this guide specialize in cakes, cookies, and breads (as they should, this is a bakery guide). But I’m giving this spot a shout-out for their avena (oatmeal). Seriously, it’s thick, milky, sweet, and made with entire cinnamon sticks. And served in a paper coffee cup. I love that. The Washington Heights Domincan cake spot also makes a creamy dulce de leche cake so good that you’ll grab a second slice for Future You, and they’ll be glad you did. Get that, some tres leches or flan, and if you are feeling something savory, a giant toasted jamón y queso sandwich." - marisel salazar

"Most panaderías specialize in cakes, cookies, and breads - as they should. But I’m giving this spot a shout-out for their avena (oatmeal). Seriously, it’s thick, milky, sweet, and made with entire cinnamon sticks. And served in a paper coffee cup. I love that. The Washington Heights Domincan cake spot also makes a creamy dulce de leche cake so good that you’ll grab a second slice for Future You, and they’ll be glad you did. Get that, some tres leches or flan, and if you are feeling something savory, a giant toasted jamón y queso sandwich." - Marisel Salazar