NYC’s Sweetest Nut-Free Treats
- Sanjna Samrai
- Apr 7
- 4 min read
As a self proclaimed sweet treat lover with a nut allergy, I’ll admit it can be a bit frustrating trying to find nut free desserts that aren’t ice cream. But through lots of taste testing, I've put together a list of my top 5 favorite nut-free sweet treats in the city. From crispy beignets to fluffy ube cake, these spots are perfect for anyone with a nut allergy or just looking for more inclusive dessert options to share with your friends!
Spot Dessert Bar’s Matcha Lava Cake
13 St Marks Pl
Starting off strong with matcha and chocolate. Sounds like heaven to me! This matcha lava cake is my favorite dessert in the city for a reason. The spongy, decadent chocolate cake is already perfect, but cutting into it and watching the melted matcha and dark chocolate spill out just takes it to another level. The filling is the perfect blend of warm, sweet, and rich, and paired with the refreshing coolness of the matcha ice cream, is simply unbeatable.
Spot Dessert Bar is located on St. Mark’s Place, surrounded by some of the city’s best hidden food and dessert places. It's a tiny spot, and there’s usually a guaranteed wait, but trust me, it’s so worth it.
Grace Street’s Matcha Beignets
17 W 32nd St
Beignets aren’t exactly common in the city, and I have yet to find them anywhere else. Warm, fresh beignets topped with matcha powder and powdered sugar, served with a scoop of matcha ice cream—yum. They’re crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside, and just the right amount of sweet. The matcha ice cream with every bite adds a refreshing contrast, and keeps them from being too dry, though I do wish it had a stronger matcha flavor.
I would eat these for breakfast if I could. And lunch. And dinner. The location is great—right in the middle of Ktown and surrounded by tons of food options— making it the perfect place to obtain that post-dinner sweet treat. Grace Street is also known for its other desserts, such as the Basque cheesecake and churro waffle, and they have a wide variety of drinks to pair your dessert of choice with. But I have to say, these beignets are my favorite. It's usually packed, but again, so worth it!
If you’ve ever walked on Lafayette in the summer, I guarantee you’ve seen the line for Lafayette Grand Café & Bakery. And I also guarantee that more than half of the people in it are there for the Suprême. A cronut-adjacent (donut-shaped croissant) dessert, filled with chocolate and dipped in even more chocolate. Besides being super Instagrammable, it’s also super delicious. And nut-free!
I had wanted to try this ever since I first saw it, but most people go for the pistachio one, which, obviously, I can't have. But the chocolate is amazing, and (allegedly) the filling is pretty Nutella-esque. The croissant itself is flaky, buttery perfection, and the chocolate inside is thick, smooth, and not too sweet.
The only downside is that the line is always long. Would I wait in line again? Absolutely. Especially since it’s so close to campus.
Posh Pop Bakeshop’s Ube Cake
192 Bleecker St
Nut-free AND gluten-free? No problem, Posh Pop Bakeshop’s Ube cake is perfect for you. This gluten free bakeshop is located on Bleecker, super close to NYU, and makes one of my favorite cakes in the city. Their ube cake is soft, fluffy, and so moist, with each bite so light and airy that it basically melts in your mouth. Its unique flavor is the perfect balance between sweet and true ube flavor. Never had ube before? It's a purple yam from the Philippines and has a sweet has a sweet, nutty flavor with subtle vanilla notes.
To top it all off, the cake has the fluffiest ube cream cheese frosting. I genuinely feel like I’m eating a cloud of marshmallow with every bite. As a cake lover, and not a huge frosting fan, this is one of the only cakes I can eat and enjoy the perfect cake-to-frosting ratio. Even if you’re not a fan of ube, I’d definitely recommend you give this cake a try!
Munchies Waffles from Max Brenner
841 Broadway
Warm, fluffy waffles topped with chocolate and vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and a generous drizzle of chocolate sauce on top. Breakfast for dessert never sounded so good! At Max Brenner’s Chocolate Factory near Union Square, nut free desserts can be a bit tricky to find, but these waffles are close to perfect, and the presentation is sure to have your mouth watering. The ice cream melts right into the warm waffle, making it a chocolate lover’s dream. It’s definitely on the sweeter side, so it’s perfect for sharing. The restaurant itself is also great, and serves up a huge menu of lunch and dinner options to pair with their decadent desserts.
Finding nut-free desserts in the city can be frustrating, especially when so many bakeries use nuts in their most popular treats. But these five spots prove that having a nut allergy doesn’t mean you have to miss out! They’re not just great for those with nut allergies, they’re also perfect for anyone looking for delicious, inclusive dessert spots to taste with friends! So whether you have an allergy or just want a safe and tasty option for someone who does, these desserts make sure that everyone can enjoy a sweet treat together!
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