Famous New York Cookie Store Named One of America’s Best Bakeries

New York is home to many incredible bakeries, but only one is considered America's best.

Everyone had a favorite bakery. Growing up, I was obsessed with the Colchester Bakery, which shut down permanently in 2013. Since then, I have been trying to find a place that hits the spot like they did. I have since found Florentine Pastry Shop on Bleecker Street, whose cookies have the same taste and textures of those I scarfed down as a kid.

But while a certain bakery may be king or queen of our hearts, only one can be recognized as the best of the best.

America's Best Bakeries

Popular food blog Restaurant Clicks recently issued a list of the top bakeries in the country and shined the spotlight on 12 different locations.

Topping the list was Tartine Bakery in San Francisco, California. The outlet raved:

Tartine is known in particular for its bread. It has been operating since 2002 since it opened its first bakery at 600 Guerrero Street. The founders also have a few cookbooks.

Second place went to Arsicault Bakery, which is also located in San Francisco. The food vloggers said this place deserved a second place finish because "it offers delicious French pastries such as croissants, kouign amann, buns, scones, cookies, and other pastries."

Read More: Tiny Upstate NY Eatery Named Best Place for French Fries

When it came to shining the spotlight on New York, a famous bakery managed to snag a 10th place finish.

Levain Bakery

Located on 167 W 74th Street in New York, Levain Bakery earned kudos from Restaurant Clicks for its cookies.

 It offers several cookie varieties, including dark chocolate, peanut butter, oatmeal, rocky road, and more.

I will be honest here, I don't understand why Levain managed to even secure a spot on this list because their cookies are... all right?  I can comfortably say I have had better cookies in other places, like my middle school cafeteria. That's not a lie, the chocolate chip cookies from Haddam Killingworth's Cougar Cafe were legendary.

Levain's cookies earned an international reputation for their size and softness. The bakery soon became a "must try" spot for tourists, but I doubt many locals are repeat customers.

I lived in New York City for several years and would walk by Levain every day to go to a different bakery, Délice Macarons, located on 321 Amsterdam Avenue.  I also lived by ChocNYC, which was also incredible. Those places I visited almost on a weekly basis because they were simply incredible.

I'm just one person, though. The question here is: Is Levain really one of America's best bakeries, or was their designation based off their popularity alone?

New Yorkers will agree there are far superior bakeries that are more deserving of Levain's spot on the roundup. Here's some Central New York suggestions.

Did I miss any? Let me know in the comments below.

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