CANNOLI TASTE TEST: Which of Boston’s Cannoli Bakeries is Best?

Boston’s heated debate is settled today: which cannoli bakery is the best in Boston’s North End? These three famous cannoli bakeries are being judged on three categories: shopping experience, presentation, and their cannolis! 

Since Italian immigrants began arriving in Boston in the 1800’s, Italians have made their mark on the city everywhere from food to architecture, like the Isabella Gardner Museum. Boston’s North End has been long known for its delicious Italian restaurants that line its streets. Amongst those great Italian restaurants are three proud Italian bakeries: Modern Pastry, Mike’s Pastry, and Bova’s Bakery, each of whom make fantastic cannolis. We are hoping this video answers this key question for you:

Which bakery in Boston’s North End has the best cannoli?

SPOILERS AHEAD: MAKE SURE TO WATCH THE VIDEO FIRST!

The Results

The Best Shopping Experience: Bova’s Bakery

The lines were super short at Bova’s Bakery compared to Mike’s Pastry and Modern Pastry. While it isn’t the best looking place out of the three bakeries, the workers behind the counter were friendly and were very patient while we took forever to decide. Also, a huge plus for Bova’s is that they accept credit cards for orders above $10, which is a price that isn’t hard to hit.

Runner Ups:

#2: Modern Pastry – the line was a bit long, but the man (who was from Sicily) was incredibly friendly and was a joy to talk to. A warning: Modern Pastry is cash-only, so come prepared!

#3: Mike’s Pastry – the line wasn’t quite as long as Modern Pastry and it moved pretty fast. We didn’t have much of a chance to interact with the worker behind the counter, though. Mike’s Pastry is all about efficiency: getting you in and out quickly. A warning: Mike’s Pastry is also cash-only!

The Best Presentation: Mike’s Pastry

Modern Pastry’s box was the best looking of the bunch. The box had a classic look with a beautiful red and white string to tie it up. You almost feel bad cutting the nice string to open the box.

The Runner Ups

#2: Modern Pastry – Mike’s also had a really nice looking box, but it wasn’t quite as colorful as Modern Pastry’s box. Like Mike’s, Modern had a nice looking string to secure the box while we traveled back home.

#3: Bova’s Pastry – A nice looking box, but Bova’s presentation comes in third due to the lack of a string to tie up the box.

The Best Cannolis: Bova’s Bakery

While Modern and Mike’s certainly had the flashier-looking cannolis, the cannolis from Bova’s Bakery came out the best for their all-around amazing taste. Both the filling and the shell were absolute perfection. The ricotta cheese filling was the perfect cannoli texture: not too thick and not thin like whip cream. All of the cannolis were the perfect size to make sure you had a good ratio of filling and shell on every bite. For the best tasting cannolis, Bova’s was the clear winner.

The Runner ups

A tie for #2: Modern Pastry and Mike’s Pastry

Rachel and I couldn’t agree on whether Mike’s Pastry or Modern Pastry had the better cannolis. The cannolis are very different, so which is better seems to come down to personal preference. For one, Mike’s Pastry’s cannolis were absolutely massive compared to the other cannolis in the group. While they were cool to look at, it was hard to get a good filling-to-shell ratio in every bite since you could barely fit your mouth around it. Mike’s Pastry also differed in their cannoli filling, which was incredibly light – almost like whip cream – compared to Modern and Bova’s cannolis.

On the other hand, the cannolis from Modern Pastry had a very thick filling. It was so thick, in fact, that it sometimes got stuck on the way down our throats. I personally liked the filling from Modern more than Mike’s (Rachel was the opposite), but neither bakery had filling as perfect as the cannolis at Bova’s

The Winner: Bova’s Bakery

This small bakery may not be on the main strip of Boston’s North End like Modern and Mike’s are, but it is absolutely worth the extra walk to experience Bova’s Bakery. The lines are way, way shorter, they accept credit cards when have a $10+ order, and they simply have the best tasting cannolis in town.

Have you been to any of these bakeries? Which one is your personal favorite? Whether you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below!