Despite the rising popularity of cardamom buns (“kardemommebolle” in Norwegian) and other newcomers over the past decade, the cinnamon bun (“kanelbolle” or “kanelsurr”) retains its dominate position among the Scandinavian pastries.
For most Scandinavians, the cinnamon bun is not just a traditional pastry for the afternoon tea break (“fika” as they say in Sweden), but also a symbol of leisure and unconditional happiness deeply rooted in memories since childhood.
In 1999, the first Cinnamon Bun Day (“Kanelbollens dag”) was instituted by the Swedish Home Baking Council (Hembakningsrådet) on October 4th to celebrate and promote the pastry. Since then, the Cinnamon Bun Day has become an annual theme day across the whole Nordic region. Following is our list of the best cinnamon buns you can find in Oslo:
5. Lut/Laget (57 NOK)
Cinnamon bun
Light, airy, with a bouncy crunchiness in the dough—Lut/Laget makes everything with their distinct style. The buns can be a bit dry from time to time, but they make up for it by being extremely tasty. The bakery/restaurant also boasts a great location right by Bjørvika, which makes it highly accessible from the city centre. Remember to try their beautiful bathroom on your visit—it is absolutely the best decorated bathroom among all cafés in Oslo. Click here for our full review of Lut/Laget.
4. Håndbakt (55 NOK)
Note that the picture is taken of their espresso bun, not the cinnamon bun. However, the cinnamon bun looks identical
If you are into vegan pastries and bread made with sourdough, then Håndbakt, housed inside Factory Tøyen, is a place you must not miss. The sourdough flavour can make or break the cinnamon buns—those who enjoy it can experience a deeper layer of taste under the exotic cinnamon fragrance, while those who are not used to it might find it a bit strange and unorthodox. If you are in the mood to give it a try, we also recommend the jasmine pearl tea sourced from the independent tea vendor Spill the Tea. There is an incredible chemistry between the sourdough taste and the jasmine fragrance unleashed by this classic Chinese green tea.
3. WB Samson (51 NOK)
Screen captured from samson.no on 4/10/24
As the signature pastry of WB Samson, their cinnamon buns have been one of Oslo’s best for many years. They boast a rather luxurious and imposing taste, with an overpowering combustion of sugar, butter and cinnamon in a compact form factor—quite opposite of Lut/Laget.
2. Fåbro (55 NOK)
Cardamom- and cinnamon bun
Since its opening earlier this year, Fåbro has become one of the most popular cafés in social media. Their cinnamon buns, made with a very distinct Swedish style, have been hailed as Oslo’s best by local newspapers and influencers. One of their biggest advantages is that the cinnamon buns are almost all fresh out of the oven. Nothing can beat the freshness and juiciness of a warm, freshly baked cinnamon bun. Our full review of Fåbro gård can be found here.
1. Babbo Øvrefoss (36 NOK)
Cinnamon bun
Loosely wrapped and slightly square shaped, cinnamon buns at Babbo feature a strong cinnamon flavour with no sugar on top, which makes it tastier, and yet less sweet. For us, their cinnamon buns strike the perfect balance among all the flavours. The bun’s body is juicy, moist, filled with cinnamon between the layers. It is a hard decision to compare Fåbro with Babbo Øvrefoss: both places make great cinammon buns with their distinctive styles. Taking into consideration factors such as price, location and accessibility, Babbo is our favourite and most recommended café for cinnamon buns in the city this year.
Do you have any tips for Oslo’s best cinnamon buns? Feel free to leave us a comment.