Justice for Australia’s best dessert.

Australia’s baked desserts have come a long way since the lamington (no disrespect to the lamington). We’ve got gourmet croissants from the likes of Lune and Prove Patisserie to the best baked cheesecake you’ll ever taste at Pasticceria Papa’s. But one tasty treat is still not getting its just desserts: Australia’s best vanilla slice.

Every year, the French La Liste ranks the world’s best restaurants, including a category for the world’s best pastry shops, “from neighborhood bakeries to acclaimed establishments".

In 2025, 31 pastry shops and bakeries in NSW and 24 in Victoria made the list. As they should. But as Matt Preston pointed out in an article he wrote for Delicious, “…there were two glaringly obvious omissions: the two Aussie bakeries that hold the title for Australia’s best vanilla slice."

The vanilla slice at Casa Nostra in Alice Springs has a cult following. (Image: Tourism NT/Christopher Nayna)

While Preston concluded this means the humble vanilla slice is no longer an Australian favourite, I say that the more obvious answer is that the pure, messy pleasure of this delicious dessert is quite simply lost on the French, who prefer a more refined and delicate option.

Just last year, Banana Boogie Bakery in Belair, South Australia, won the title of Australia’s Best Vanilla Slice at the Great Australian Vanilla Slice Triumph (the first time a South Australian bakery has received the honour). Victoria’s Sharp’s Bakery, located in the north-western town of Birchip, came second.

 

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Meanwhile, Shepparton’s North End Bakehouse won Best Vanilla Slice for the second year in a row at the Baking Association of Australia’s 2024 Baking Show.

I would say the very fact that there’s an annual competition for Australia’s best vanilla slice is proof that it’s still a beloved Aussie staple. And the French need to pay attention. I would argue that a vanilla slice washed down with strawberry milk is the most elite road trip combination. I don’t care how old you are.

But beyond that, Australia’s bakeries aren’t just resting on tradition with vanilla slices. They’re shaking things up.

Banana Boogie Bakery might have won in the classic vanilla slice category, but they also have a deep-fried option (and as we know, everything is tastier deep-fried). Then they serve it up with ice cream, cream cheese and chocolate ganache. Plus, the bakery’s Chocolate Biscoff vanilla slice also won the ‘innovative vanilla slice’ title.

 

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North End Bakehouse has invented a Salted Caramel Popcorn/Choc Top option. Hungie Fangs Artisan Bakery in Cobram, Victoria, created a more subtle Lemon Wattle variation. In Alice Springs, Casa Nostra has earned a cult following for its vanilla slice that uses Sao biscuits instead of pastry.

All this to say, the vanilla slice is simply perfect as a traditional bakery dessert, but it’s also become an innovative queen of sweet treats. And the French better reflect and not overlook this Aussie icon again come 2026. Give a treat a red hot go!

The French need to learn the art of enjoying a vanilla slice. (Image: Getty/Christine McKim)

Find more of Australia’s best road trip delights and the other Aussie foods worth travelling for.