Villani's Bakery

So many options of high quality pastries and desserts! The red velvet cake is the best I've ever had. I was so impressed. I bought about 8 different items just so I can try more than one and will be back to buy about 20 more because there were so many different things that made my mouth water. Paul has done an amazing job making it from scratch and the flavor and presentation are proof that he is a master at his craft. The staff were friendly and very helpful, also patient with me as I had difficulty choosing only a few things for the day.

Villani's Bakery is a sweet slice of heaven in Charlotte. Their pastries are next-level, especially the lobster tail, tiramisu, and Italian cream cake. The croissants are flaky perfection, and the macaroons? Little bites of joy. You’ll find everything from funfetti cheesecake to pineapple upside-down cake, all made with care and flair. The staff are warm and welcoming, and the outdoor seating adds a cozy touch to your pastry pilgrimage. Whether you're popping in for a quick treat or indulging in a full dessert tasting, Villani’s delivers flavor, charm, and a five-star experience.

Hunted everywhere and found this is the only place in charlotte that sells sfogliatelle and lobster tails. They are made to perfection. I do try the tiramisu too but it was not too good, they had coconut shavings in it. The affogato was, however, REALLY good

I visited this bakery on Sunday evening. We stopped by to try some desserts, and the selection was simply enormous. There were so many options that I didn’t know what to choose! Unfortunately, the pastries we selected were old, dry, and tasteless. This was quite disappointing, and I can’t recommend buying desserts here to anyone.

This is a tricky one. I'll start by saying the staff are friendly and welcoming. The space itself is smaller but enough for a grab and go. But of course we're here for the backed goods. If I would have came and grabbed cake and left, absolutely 5 star. The carrot cake was moist and utterly delicious. Not super sweet and worth the visit. But then there's the bacon cheddar biscuit and the cookie. While I think the biscuit has potential and I appreciate them warming it up it fell flat. You should think the bacon would add a good amount of salt but it doesn't. This biscuit absolutely needs some salted butter or something to wake it up. With out added salt it's very meh and not something I'd order again. Next is the oatmeal raisin cookie. While visually it looks like a great cookie it's extremely crunchy and not a chewy cookie at all. It reminds me of those iced oatmeal cookies that come in the pack at Walmart/dollar store with the 4 rows. The ones we ate as kids. So maybe they are going for nostalgia with these but it's not a cookie of order again being so crunchy. Hang came and just got the cake ? 5 stars! And the cake even carried this review to 3 stars because 2 ehh products out of 3 would have easily been 2 star review. The cake is delicious but proceed with caution else where. The deliciousness didn't translate through out all products.

Stopped into Villani’s bakery this weekend Saturday around 3pm. There was a good amount of parking as it’s next to an açaí and cheese steak place. The bakery was great, tiny, but the line moved very quick. They had everything from drinks to cakes to small bakery items like macaroons, croissants, cookies and bread. The staff was great super friendly and energetic. Also a great location. Just up the street are many shops and different food locations.

This review comes from a place of love. I spent 2025 often stopping into Villanis for their chocolate covered cream puffs, and putting my friends on to them as well. But lately, we all agree that the quality and consistency of the cream puffs has been going down. Sometimes the filling is watery or grainy. Sometimes the pastry bread has a stale texture. I hope the Villanis team can lock in on these cream puffs, and get them back to former glory, because they'd be doing a public service. We need dessert options like these cream puffs in Charlotte! Other feedback: Staff is efficient and nice. Prices are very reasonable. A lot of the other sweets are hit or miss, but the cream puffs were definitely my go-to. The cannolis are great. I think the chocolate chip cookies are a skip. Cheesecake can be good, when you're in the mood, but they can also be really heavy and dense. The selection here is really expansive but I get the impression that it might be hard to keep everything fresh, consistent, and delicious all at the same time.

Went to the bakery to order 2 cakes for my wife's 70th birthday party. The staff person that helped me was very knowledgeable, friendly, and professional. I got a half sheet yellow cake with a chocolate Swiss meringue frosting and a half sheet tiramisu. Both were phenomenal. This was the best tiramisu I've ever eaten! All of my party guests loved the desserts!

Amazing. So so good!! Came here after dinner nearby to try it out because I was seeing rave reviews and it's absolutely worth it! The place is super small and the lot is basically a step away from a little free-for-all dirt lot type vibe, but I didn't have any issue with parking. Service was super friendly and informative. I grabbed a tiramisu and some macarons and all were delicious. I can't wait to try the olive oil cake that I've heard everyone raving over.

I've really wanted to like Villani's, especially given all of the positive reviews on here. Unfortunately, every time I've gotten something from there (which is about 3 times at this point), it's just been a bit meh or even a downright disappointment. The first time I went, I got a chocolate babka loaf which was really dry. The next time, I got a strawberry poptart which seemed like it hadn't even been cooked. The last time I went I got some cookies which were just alright. I don't have it in me to keep giving this place a shot. Perhaps they are really good at some other things?

Recently tried Villani's after hearing so many great things. The croissants are really big and you can smell the butter in them, but I was disappointed that they were dense instead of light and flaky. (The croissants at Whole Foods are better IMO) The chocolate cake was also just ok, but if you heat it up for 10 seconds it's better. They share a gravel parking lot with Cheat's so it can be hard to find a parking spot if you go at peak times.

I frequently crave a pistachio cheesecake from Villani's. It might be the best cheesecake I've had. I've really never had anything bad here though, so if you haven't tried it yet, make your way there!! Go early, because they can sell out of things, hence why I haven't had another pistachio cheesecake in months. You can order full cakes or cheesecakes when you call ahead.

Stopped by Villani's bakery and was blown away by how delicious this place is! I had the pistachio croissant (I devoured this thing before I could get a photo) and it was absolutely AMAZING!!! My wife got a slice of cheese cake which was phenomenal. I cannot wait to go back to try more from this bakery!

This place is busy for a reason! Friendly staff, kind patrons and a line that moves fairly quickly. Got there at 11 ish on a Sunday and still had a massive selection available. Passing through town, would recommend stopping for coffee and delicious classic pastries, breads and breakfast treats. Outdoor seating is available, parking is a little tough if busy but it seems the locals just make it work. Can't wait to dive into my muffin and cheesecake turnover on the drive to Ohio.

If I'm seeing this right, this is a bakery, but....a lot of their treats are not as sweet as usual. Especially the sfingy.. It literally tastes like oxygen. NO FLAVOR @ ALL. But it's yelp popular. I got chocolate cake, 2 cheesecakes, and 2 cookies. It's not a chocolate chip cookie. It's a chocolate chip scone. Lol. Missing sugar also, which makes me think it's a theme here. Small place but was crowded the whole time. This whole section was popping. I LOVE ME SOME CHARLOTTE!!!! LOVE THE MELTING POT ENERGY. Therapeutic coming from where I'm from. They were missing a few items I saw on yelp. Courteous staff. They are very patient. They know how hard these decisions are. Lol. I'm not going to rest until I have everything on the menu. Hit it arnold.....I'LL B BUK!!!

Hands down best bakery! A must if you are in the area. The macarons are AMAZING This place does not disappoint

I had such high hopes for this bakery as most reviews were good. The rainbow cookies were dry with almost no jelly, the cannoli and macrons were flavorless. I spent a decent amount of money and was sadly disappointed. The staff was very nice and helpful.

It's like a little NYC/NJ bakery in the heart of Plaza. Everything you'd expect from an Italian bakery, but without the craziness. Sure the counter is busy, but everyone there is helpful and can guide you to what you're looking for. It's a great bakery with delicious treats (get the cheesecake)!

Chocolate cake is amazing! Service was super friendly and accommodating. I plan to go back way too soon!

Stopped in for a quick coffee and picked up a few sweet treats . The scone was good, but was not a standout. My daughter tried the brownie and said it was one of the best she has had. It was moist and the chocolate was rich. They had a large selection and variety of bakery items . The place is small and does not have any indoor seating, but a nice neighborhood shop.

Tiramisu was good the original cheesecake was okay. Would come back to try the pistachio cheesecake

Villani's is just the BEST. Everything I've had from here is amazing. We were sooooo lucky that they had tiramisu left at 9:45 pm when we squeezed in right before close. Their tiramisu is to die for - it's so light and fluffy but sooo flavorful and amazing. But y'all knew that. Everything from here is amazing - they won't disappoint you

Everything is fresh and tasty Villani's Lobster Tail is better than Michael's in Boston's Northend!

This is yet another bakery that stole my heart...and taste buds! I love this place. It's a tiny bakery with great service and a sweet and lovely vibe. MENU The menu is about sweet pastries. It has a wide variety of cakes, macaroons, pies, etc., etc. It also offers a limited coffee menu. LOCATION AND PARKING It's easy to get to, and if you rely on GPS, it will take you straight to it. Beware, the free parking lot is shared with another business, so plan ahead during busy hours (mostly in the evenings and weekends). There is no sitting available inside, but there are wooded picnic tables outside. Overall, 100% recommended.

It was so packed but service was great. The bakery items were all delicious. I would go again.

Service was fast and cakes were delicious. Seating is limited outside we got ours togo. Highly recommended from our server at our restaurant. Give it a try you want be disappointed.

A friend of mine recommended this place for baked goods and other pastries. They did not disappoint!! I had a slice of chocolate cake and tasted my friend's brownie. My taste buds were dancing. Lol They tasted so rich and fresh. I can't wait to go back and try the other goodies.

It's intimate. Try not to come too late as it can get busy and there isn't a lot of inside space for standing. I always come when I see the apple cheesecake on their Instagram. It's my happy place.

Great macrons! I've been looking for a bakery that made their own macrons, most just use pre-made from the same vendor. Their ricotta cake is superb as well! The service is great, everyone was very nice. It's a small establishment but very nice.

I always feel good supporting small businesses, and when they taste good it makes them easy to support! Villani's is one of those places. It's location is great, with lots of shops within walking distance. The storefront itself is small, smells divine, but doesn't have inside seating. There was plenty of parking beside it, but multiple business share the lot so it'll vary depending on time! The staff was accommodating and I didn't feel rushed to make a selection. Some will say the service is slow, but I think they just focus on one person at a time. I'll revisit when in the area again!

If you're looking for some seriously authentic pastries and a wide array of baked goods to choose from, this is your place to go. It is a small.. I mean ssmmmalllll spot with free parking on gravel- on a weekend you'll see the line probably outside, but it will go by fast and it's worth it. I recommend the s'mores bar, any of their scones, the puffy French pastry (I'm so not French I can't recall it's name )but it's got the mild, light and airy almond cream inside the perfectly flaky outer. They also have all kids of cakes, macarons, cookies, any fresh hot or iced beverage your little heart desires, and probably more. I had the chai and it was really good- a teensy bit sweet, but wayyyyy better than the Starbucks ones.

Great atmosphere friendly staff. Good choices of baked goods and pastries. My wife and I got the German Chocolate, chocolate on chocolate and pound cake. The pound cake was my favorite

Solid Italian bakery with most of the items that can't be found so easily in the south. They got the rainbow cookies with not too much jelly as the baked ones tend to have. They also got biscotti, Italian cheesecake, and a bunch of other Christmas desserts that I'm used to seeing in my childhood. The place is small, which is why a line forms outside and moves slowly. The staff were friendly, patient, and helpful.

Best Italian bakery in the CLT area! The staff are great and all the baked goods are worth a try. There is no indoor seating but outside seating is available, perfect on a nice day! 100% worth a visit!

I've been here many times and service is always good, but whenever I've ordered any type of cake, it was dry, stale, and inedible. The crumb cake is abominable. The pastries aren't a whole lot better, with the exception of the lobster claw. It's astounding to see all these rave reviews. There are much better bakeries in Charlotte, like Renaissance, Copain, and Suarez.

We stopped after dinner for some treats. Terrific carrot cake. My s'more bar was delicious and very rich. Hubby had the Napolian but the dough wasn't crispy like he loves it. Overall good eats.

Wow wow wow! Looking for a NY style bakery? This is your place! Super small little shop with friendly and helpful staff! Amazing choices, wide variety, and really fresh! Seems like the menu always changes but they have staples that are constant. My husband and I got a few things to share and it was all great! We got the bacon and cheddar biscuit, delicious and flavorful thought it would be great if we heated it up with butter but honestly plain is amazing. The everything bialy with cream cheese, not doughy at all and had caramelized onions on it! A pistachio biscotti, just the texture between crisp and soft didn't taste artificial at all, real pistachios in it! Rainbow cookies, were okay not the best I've had but I've also had Much worse, seemed to be missing something. All in all this is our new spot, definitely recommend!!

After looking at reviews for this place, decided to stop by to try for myself. It was a Sunday evening and the line was out the door. We decided to order the carrot cake and a chocolate chip cookie which was reported to be one of the best in the city. The cake was delicious, but not as moist as I wanted. The cookie tasted more like a scone. Overall, a solid bakery. Excited to check out a few different options.

Great little spot for desserts. It can get busy within minutes of arriving. Pricing is fair if you want to try a couple things without spending $15. My favorite is the cannoli with pistachio. The confetti cheesecake was okay. Italian Cream Cake is what I imagine a wedding cake would taste like. You want to eat it the same day or the cake will dry out in the refrigerator (buttercream and nuts were fine). The iced Chai Latte was of great quality. Located near railroad in Plaza Midwood. Never met an owner but the staff are usually friendly, helpful, quick, and attentive.

My boyfriend went to go pick up Villani's for me and got a lobster tail, tiramisu and a crème sandwich. My favorite was the lobster tail- super crunchy on the outside and creamy fluffy filling on the inside ! The tiramisu was my next fav. This was easily the best tiramisu I've ever tasted. The crème sandwich I wasn't much of a fan of, I think they put too much almond extract in the filling. Not sure what their prices were like. This bakery is conveniently located about 10 mins from me :)

I just can't wait to get back here! We got the chocolate cake and a hummingbird cake as well as several little cookies from the Jars. They were better than the Italian cookies I had in Italy-by far. The Chocolate cake made my week. It looked like the one in Matilda. The service was actually hilariously bad as the guy who took our order seemed to completely forget about us when a friend of his walked in to say hi. We were just waiting to be checked out and holding up the line but we hadn't gotten anything yet Eventually someone asked us if we were waited on and we looked at the guy and said "yeah, um, he took our order." It suddenly clicked and was very apologetic. I didn't see a place I would have wanted to sit there so we brought it home and enjoyed it in the comfort of our Jammie's with a glass of milk. Perfection

After dinner in the Elizabeth Neighborhood we wanted a little something else. My wife found Villani's down the road and we we're off. We arrived to a very unassuming business. This is a small place, but don't let that fool you. WOW!! We picked a few things that included the Chocolate Peanutbutter cake, Brownie and Postacio Macaroon. Apologies for the lack of pictures, everything was that good! Service was friendly. It was a Saturday night and the place was packed. Even with the amount of people, they moved quickly. Great deserts, very nice people and a business that I will continue to support. I hope that you decide to do the same thing.

Have been here many times & will return !! Our favorites are the tiramisu & chocolate croissant. They also have espresso drinks & freshly squeezed lemonade. There is no inside seating but there are picnic tables right outside. The only thing I wouldn't recommend is the cheesecake, it is somewhat dry. Amazing service as well !

I really liked this place and was glad I was able to finally try it out! The staff is incredible and so warm and welcoming! They answered all my bizarre questions. I will list and review each item that I tried. Triple berry muffin: average, $3.50/pc so pricey & I wish they had more than 1 kind of muffin to order. Almond cheesecake: I'm a cheesecake nut and this was great! I was told to check out their Instagram or call if you want to know daily what flavors they have. Lobster tail: I will agree with the other reviews that a lot of the croissant-like-pastries were a little over cooked. And that part of it I couldn't eat due to it being too hard. Other than that it was delicious and had just the right amount of cream! I'd still recommend this guy. It's safe to say I will be back to try out more, but I would recommend them keeping an eye out for not over cooking some of the items that makes them look inedible.

My favorite chocolate croissant in Charlotte. Also me and my boyfriends favorite cheesecake. There are so many different types and it varies pretty often but over time we've tried red velvet, strawberry swirl, chocolate banana, pistachio, chocolate chip and probably some others I'm forgetting.

Tried a variety of their macaroons. So delicious and fresh! Would return to try some of the pastries

All the desserts that we have tried have been fantastic! The cakes are our favorite. Great service and worth the drive from Mint Hill NC

Love Villani's! Today we had our usual/favorite slice of carrot cake. The frosting is great and the cake is so moist and flavorful. We love the nuts in it. We tried something new (for us) in the chocolate sprinkle cheesecake and it was also delicious. The slices are always big enough to share . One of our favorite local treats!

I've been wanting to try this bakery due to all the rave reviews on Yelp. It's a 30 min drive from me, so it's definitely an out of way stop for us. We decided to make a morning of it and got there at 9am. It's a small shop in a nondescript gravel parking lot with a few picnic tables outside. They have a lot of pastries available and the staff were quick to take orders. With this being my first visit, I needed more time and asked a lot of questions. The lady was helpful in answering them. We got a mixed box of items to sample because everything looked good. We also got a couple drinks. Pros: - the lobster tail was yummy and I liked the cream - my chai latte was exactly how I like it--not too sweet, not overly spicy We also got: -2 bialys with cream cheese: these were underwhelming but it was nice that they were toasted - tiramisu. Soooo bad! The sponge was incredibly dry and stale tasting. She told me this is one of their most popular desserts and I love tiramisu so I was excited. But it was the worst tiramisu I've had. Either they are bad at making tiramisu or this was an old batch. It definitely was not made that morning. - a ricotta and orange pastry dessert that was next to the lobster tail and had a complicated name. It was fine but not something I'd order again - berry muffin: again, pretty typical muffin. Nothing to write home about. Final verdict: everything looked better than it tasted for the most part and I would definitely not drive out of my way to go here. If I were in the neighborhood, I might stop by and try something else to give them another shot. For 6 items, two drinks, and tip, our order came out to about $40 so not cheap but I guess not as bad as some places. It would be worth it if more of the food had been satisfying.

One of our favorite bakeries. They have great macarons and they stay open later than alot of other bakeries. Their cakes are also amazing. Huge slices and great flavor, moistness is just right. Sometimes their other baked goods can be a little less than great though. The croissants are too bready and not flakey enough for me. And the turnovers were a little dry. But if you get the stuff they do well, which is a lot, then you won't be disappointed. Also A+ for consistency and great customer service.

Sooo good! One of the best tiramisus I've ever had. Pretty decent size. I think it was around $6 We went around 7:30 PM and the line was out the door. It moves pretty fast though. The staff was really nice. They don't have a big menu posted, so you can't see the names of the pastries and the price until you get up to order, which makes it hard to figure out what you want without holding up the line. Lots of different pastries, cookies, and cakes available. They don't have indoor seating, so you'll have to take it to go

I visited this bakery for the second time over the course of two years. It's kind of in an unremarkable location so you might miss it unless you are specifically looking for it. It's very tiny inside, so there's always a line. And in this age of COVID, you probably should wear a mask inside - again tight quarters. The staff are always very friendly. They will answer any questions that you have about the desserts with a very friendly and positive attitude. There is a lot to choose from. The cheesecakes are all great, the pastries are delicious as well. You could really go crazy in here and before you know it, you've spent $50. I'm not on this side of town often but whenever I am, I try to remember to stop in.

Their cake slices are some of the best in Charlotte. Carrot, red velvet, chocolate, Italian cream...you can't go wrong!

Cute little bakery with all kinds of sweet treats. I tried the lemon bar and my friend tried the blueberry cheesecake. We both enjoyed our selections. There is no seating inside but they have a cute picnic area right outside.

The best bakery in town. So many options and they are all fresh! Went here in a whim and holy cow it is my favorite now! The flavors are phenomenal!

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this hidden gem of Charlotte. It's located near the heart of Plaza Midwood! There is plenty of parking for you to run in and get your goodies. When the weather permits there are a couple of picnic tables outside with some nice shading. Everything here is delicious, this is why I try to get something new every time I go with my family. But my FAVORITE pastry I will say it's the lobster tail. To my knowledge it's the ONLY bakery in Charlotte that has the lobster tails pastries. There is something about the puff pastry when is perfectly baked golden with their light and fluffy cream in the middle. You must try it!

I'm ashamed to say I've never heard of this bakery until a friend dropped off some cheesecake for us recently. It was so good, that I had to make a trip to Villani's to see what else they had, and buy some desserts to gift to someone else. Arrived on a Saturday afternoon and there were only a couple of customers ahead of me, but that was fine, because there were so many pastries and desserts in the cases, and cheesecakes in the refrigerator that I needed time to figure out what I wanted. I ended up getting an assortment of Macarons, cheesecake, cookies and other sweets. I thought the prices were pretty reasonable, the employees were very friendly, the dessert was GOOD - and I will most definitely return.

Excellent! This team of bakers is doing something right when the crispy flakey crust of their croissant melts in your mouth! They have honed their craft into an impressive display of dessert and breakfast goods.