It's rare for a restaurant's bread basket to deserve the spotlight, but at Commerce in the West Village, it is certainly worthy of all the attention and praise it has received. A variety of delicious breads, rolls, and pretzels are all baked fresh in house, every day, by their talented baker. This is a bread basket that competes with the main course for attention. More

Badri, the Georgian baker of Neptune Avenue, is a slave to his oven. Before he could open Georgian Bread, he had to construct a toné, the Georgian version of the tandoor. This beehive-shaped oven sits in the middle of his storefront bakery bellowing heat during the hottest summer days. Six days a week, he has to wake up at 4:00am to get to his bakery by five and light the oven. Then he ties a cloth around his head and begins to work. With just one assistant, he spends the next 12 hours mixing dough, baking bread, making Georgian salads, and tending customers. Everything he makes is delicious. More

Editor's note: You know Ava McAlpin from her killer ingredient roundups; we're sending her out through New York to explore the best shops for cookware. Take it away, Ava! N.Y. Cake is the baking supply store to end all baking... More

The West Village bakery Milk & Cookies will let couples personalize pints of cookie dough all day Saturday for $25. They'll set you up at a table with parchment paper, give you mix-in options—like chocolate chips, coconut, sprinkles, caramels—to... More