Step into Simone Faure’s soignée bakery, where you can shop for to-go treats and enjoy a leisurely cup of coffee. We favor the classic French macarons, delicate meringue-like sandwich cookies that make a colorful addition to any platter. You’ll find them in a wide selection of holiday flavors, including eggnog and mint chocolate. Plan to spend time checking out each table, case, and display for more of Faure’s delicious offerings. 1626 Tower Grove, 314-932-7935.
Hours: 9 a.m.–2 p.m. Tue–Fri, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat
Holiday Hours: Counter hours 9 a.m.–2 p.m., dine-in hours 9 a.m.–noon on Christmas Eve; closed Christmas Day
Pick up brightly colored Mexican sugar cookies and fanciful watermelon-slice cookies at the Rivera family’s bakery on Cherokee Street. While you're there, buy a few traditional pig-shaped molasses cookies, known as marranitos or puerquitos, to add a touch of whimsy to a cookie tray. And if you haven’t tried Mexican sweet cornbread muffins or sweet dough rolls with sugared tops, then pick up a few for a nice addition to the holiday breakfast table. 2643 Cherokee, 314-664-2212.
Hours: 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m. Mon, closed Tue, 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m. Wed–Sat, 9 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Sun
Holiday Hours: 9 a.m.–1 p.m. Christmas Eve; closed Christmas Day
For authentic German holiday cookies, look no further than Sucrose Bakery in St. Charles, where German-born Agi Groff and her husband, Aaron, crank out hundreds of cookies each year. Notice the beautiful definition on the story-picture cookies known as springerles and the clean star shapes of the cinnamon cookies known as zimtsterne. For pure buttery goodness with hints of almond covering a sweet layer of jam, nothing beats a Linzer cookie; the starry cut out in the center, known as the Linzer eye, makes these cookies especially festive. But the goodness doesn’t stop with German cookies: Sucrose is also known for its tea breads, French financiers (small almond cakes baked in a mold), lush cakes, pies, and more. 700 S. Fifth, St. Charles, 636-410-8505.
Hours: 6:30 a.m.–6 p.m. Tue–Fri; 8 a.m.–4 p.m Sat, closed Sun and Mon
Holiday Hours: Same as regular business hours
Missouri Baking Company
Where better to buy Italian cookies than The Hill? The longtime bakery packs the pastries in white boxes tied with string, a charming old-fashioned touch. The cookie case holds a few modern interlopers, such as chocolate thumbprints with crème de menthe icing and cherry drops, but don't miss the Italian classics, including amaretti meringues, sesame seed crescents, biscotti, anise rings, and cookies sporting the colors of the Italian flag. 2027 Edwards, 314-773-4122.
Hours: 7 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Tue–Fri, 7 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat, 7 a.m.–noon Sun, closed Mon
Holiday Hours: 7 a.m.–noon Christmas Eve, closed Christmas day
Racks of baked cookies, sweet breads, fruit empañadas, and Mexican pastries fill Diana's Bakery. Whatever you do, don’t leave without buñuelos, the traditional Mexican cinnamon and sugar flaky dessert. Diana’s makes dynamite giant meringue swirls in neon pink, aqua, yellow, and white that melt on the tongue or shatter when bitten, often eliciting a grin. 2843 Cherokee, 314-771-6959.
Hours: 6 a.m.–9 p.m. daily
Holiday Hours: 6 a.m.–5 p.m. Christmas Eve, closed Christmas Day
