Cake in Münster: Bakeries and Konditoreien to Try
Cake in Münster means the Krimphove Konditorei counter and its French-style pain & gâteau cafés, plus coffee spots that serve a slice or a pastry.
On this page
The quickest answer on cake in Münster is Krimphove, a family bakery that has traded since 1860 and runs both a Konditorei cake counter and a chain of French-style pain & gâteau cafés. Buy a slice over the counter for later, or sit down with a coffee at a café and order a pastry. The two habits are different, and knowing which one you want shapes your whole afternoon.
This guide covers the Krimphove cake counter, what its French bakery-café format serves, and the Münster cafés worth a stop for coffee and something baked; the best restaurants in Münster takes the rest of the day.
Where to buy cake in Münster: the short answer
Two formats cover most cake cravings here. A Konditorei is a confectioner's shop with a cake counter, and a Bäckerei is a bakery; Krimphove is both, with cakes in its Kuchentheke and breads and pastries from the bakery side. The distinction matters when you want a whole cake to take away versus a single slice with a fork.
Krimphove's own description of its range is bakery specialties in the Münsteraner and French traditions on one side and a cake counter freshly baked for daily enjoyment on the other. In practice that means you can buy bread, Brötchen and cake in the same stop. If you are stocking up, do the savory shopping first so the cake survives the walk.
Krimphove: Münster's traditional bakery and Konditorei
Krimphove has been baking in Münster since 1860 and is run as a family business in its sixth generation, according to the company. Its main backshop and administration sit at Loddenheide 45 in the southeast of the city, while the shops are spread across Münster. That explains why you see the name in several neighborhoods rather than on one central street.
For a visitor, the useful part is the everyday range: a bakery counter for bread and Laugengebäck, a Konditorei counter for cake, and branches with seating and a changing lunch menu. The bakery describes its own products as Münsteraner and French baking side by side.
What to order at the Krimphove cake counter
Treat the Kuchentheke as the default stop for a slice: it is stocked with cakes the company describes as freshly baked for a daily treat. Choose by eye rather than by menu translation, point, and say how many slices you want. If you are buying for a group, ask at the counter what can be boxed whole rather than assembled slice by slice.
The rest of the counter runs to French pastry as well, which is where the split personality comes from: a Münsteraner bakery on one side, a pâtisserie on the other. That makes Krimphove a practical compromise when one person wants a hearty slice and another wants something delicate with coffee.
Pain et Gâteau: Krimphove's French bakery-café format
Pain et Gâteau is Krimphove's café concept, styled after a French boulangerie and pâtisserie and run at several Münster locations, including Michaelisplatz in the city center, Loddenheide, Marktallee in Hiltrup and the Hauptbahnhof. Each branch pairs the bakery range with French café atmosphere, so you can order cake or pastry with a coffee and sit. For a traveler arriving by train, the station branch is the lowest-effort introduction.
Think of it less as a restaurant and more as a pause: fresh baked goods, cakes and specialties, with a seat if you want one. That suits a mid-morning break or a late-afternoon coffee rather than a full meal. If a proper sit-down lunch is the plan, the best restaurants in Münster are the better starting point.
Sitting down for coffee and cake in Münster
The local rhythm is Kaffee und Kuchen, coffee and cake taken in the afternoon, and Münster's cafés cater to it at very different speeds. Some are institutions where the coffee is roasted in-house and the wait is part of the visit; others are quick corner spots for an espresso between errands. Decide whether you want a destination or a pit stop before you pick a chair.
What the cafés share is a loose, unhurried feel: newspapers, strollers by the door, students with laptops, and tables outdoors whenever the weather allows. Bakeries such as Krimphove supply the bread and pastry side of the same culture, with counters rather than table service. Both are worth building into a morning.
Röstbar on Nordstraße: cake and brownies with house-roasted coffee
Röstbar on Nordstraße is the local coffee-roaster café, and its Münstermischung is the house blend to try; the beans are roasted in-house and sold on site. The cake and Panini counter covers the sweet and savory sides, and the brownies get singled out for being especially moist. Expect a wait while your coffee is prepared, because each cup is made to order rather than poured from a pot.
Seating is casual, with a long table near the door that works well if you are on your own and want to watch the room. The Nordstraße branch sits slightly outside the center but close to the Promenade, the ring path around the old town, so a takeaway cup and a walk is a reasonable combination. The chain has cafés across the city, each with its own layout but the same core range.
Herr Hase in the Kreuzviertel: sourdough and a cold Milchkaffee
Herr Hase on Gertrudenstraße sits in the middle of the Kreuzviertel, a residential neighborhood with a lively street scene. Order a cold Milchkaffee, a cold milk coffee, with a Croque Monsieur or one of the open-faced Schnittchen made from house-baked sourdough. The terrace is small and fenced off from the street, and there is a bench by the entrance if the tables are full.
This is a café for atmosphere rather than a cake counter: high ceilings, a long bar, and a busy local crowd. If your priority is a slice to take away, a bakery is the better stop; if it is a coffee and a sit, this works. The neighborhood itself rewards a short wander afterward.
Café Montmartre: French pastries rather than a cake counter
Café Montmartre on Wolbecker Straße is deliberately unpolished, and the draw is the smell of coffee and freshly baked croissants rather than a glass cake display. The croissants come in several versions, including vegan ones, and the pistachio version is the one to ask for. The kitchen also turns out French snacks such as Croque Monsieur and Flammkuchen, plus breakfast.
The crowd is mixed, from families with strollers to couples and business lunches, which makes it an easy solo stop too. Because the pastry case is French rather than a German Konditorei spread, come for croissants and coffee rather than a wedge of cream cake. That is also why vegan Münster eaters often have an easier time here than at a traditional confectioner.
Breakfast from the bakery counter: bread, Brötchen and coffee
A Münsteraner breakfast is a bakery breakfast: bread and Brötchen from a counter, butter and cold cuts, coffee alongside. At Krimphove, the company describes the family breakfast as one of the everyday pleasures its baking is meant to serve, which is a fair description of how the city eats in the morning. Build your own from the bakery counter and add a coffee from a nearby café.
Because the bakeries open early and the cafés fill later, the two overlap for only part of the morning. Buy bread and pastry first, then find a table if you want to sit. The Münster farmers market, covered in the Münster food market guide, is another place to build a morning around.
Ordering and paying at a Münster bakery counter
In a bakery you usually queue at the counter, say what you want piece by piece, and pay at the register at the end; some shops have a separate till for coffee. Cake slices are boxed or plated on request, so ask if you plan to carry it. Keep some cash for smaller shops even in the city center.
For a full cake, ask at the counter rather than hoping for one in the case, since counter stock is meant for slices. If the queue is long, coffee from a café and cake from the bakery is a workable split. The same counter logic applies at the bakery branches outside the center.
Choosing between a Konditorei, a Bäckerei and a café
Pick a Konditorei when cake is the point: a counter, a slice, a box to carry. Pick a Bäckerei when you want bread, Brötchen and coffee to go, with cake as a bonus. Pick a café when you want a table, a proper cup and a place to sit for an hour.
Krimphove blurs all three by running a bakery, a Konditorei and the pain & gâteau cafés under one name, which makes it the simplest single stop if you are unsure. The independent cafés are stronger on atmosphere and weaker on takeaway cake. Mix them: buy in the morning, sit in the afternoon.
Which Münster cake stop fits your day
For takeaway cake and bread, go to a Krimphove counter or one of its pain & gâteau cafés; for a seated coffee with something baked, choose Röstbar, Herr Hase or Café Montmartre depending on the neighborhood you are in that day. The Münster food angle is worth pursuing further if you want local dishes to go with the sweets.
Keep the plan loose: buy the cake in the morning, walk the Promenade or the Kreuzviertel, and take coffee when you need a table. If you would rather sit down for a full meal afterward, the best restaurants in Münster are the next step.
Explore more Münster guides
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Münster bakeries sell whole cakes or only slices?
Counter stock is aimed at everyday slices, and Krimphove describes its Konditorei cake counter as freshly baked for daily enjoyment. For a whole cake, ask at the counter rather than relying on what is in the display case when you walk in.
Can I get vegan cake or pastries in Münster?
Café Montmartre offers several croissant versions, including vegan ones, according to a local café round-up. At a traditional confectioner, ask at the counter what is suitable before you commit to a slice.
What is the difference between a Konditorei and a Bäckerei?
A Bäckerei is a bakery focused on bread and rolls, while a Konditorei is a confectioner with a cake and pastry counter. Krimphove runs both under one name, which is why you can buy bread and cake in the same stop.
Sources
Notes for your next German food trip
Optional updates to our guides.
You might also like
Continue reading
More guides you'll find useful
