The best cannoli in Boston’s North End come from a handful of family bakeries and cafes clustered on Hanover and Salem streets, some of them open since the 1920s. This guide to North End cannoli covers Mike’s Pastry, Modern Pastry, Bova’s Bakery and Caffè Vittoria, with addresses, posted hours and the history each business publishes about itself, so you can plan a pastry stop this fall without guesswork.
The North End is Boston’s oldest residential neighborhood and its best-known Italian American enclave. Pastry is a big part of that identity. On a busy weekend, the sidewalk in front of the bakeries on Hanover Street fills with lines, and the white boxes tied with string are a familiar sight around the neighborhood. If you are pairing dessert with dinner, our recent reviews of Mamma Maria and Regina Pizzeria cover two other North End institutions a few minutes’ walk away.
Mike’s Pastry: The Blue-and-White Box on Hanover Street
Mike’s Pastry sits at 300 Hanover St. According to the company, it was founded in 1946 by Michael Mercogliano and has stayed family-run ever since. The bakery’s website says it is known for its cannoli and lobster tails and for its white box with blue lettering, tied with string, that customers carry around the city.
The North End shop lists hours of 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mike’s has also grown beyond the neighborhood. It now has locations in Harvard Square in Cambridge, at Assembly Row in Somerville and inside TD Garden, which lists its own hours of 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays). The company also sells pastries online through its website. If you only have time for one stop and want the best-known name, this is the one most visitors seek out first, so expect a crowd at peak times.
Modern Pastry: Cannoli Filled to Order Since 1930
A short walk down the street, Modern Pastry operates at 257 and 263 Hanover St. The shop says it was established in 1930 by the Picariello family, who came from Italy with family recipes, and that it still practices old-world methods alongside newer recipes. Its website says its cannoli are made to order, and it invites customers to ask for more dough, more cream or extra powdered sugar.
Modern Pastry keeps some of the latest hours on the street: 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday, according to its website. Below the shop, a separate dining room called Underground lists its own evening hours, opening at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and at 10 a.m. on weekends. The family also runs a second bakery at 20 Salem St. in Medford.
Bova’s Bakery: Cannoli Around the Clock
Bova’s Bakery, at 134 Salem St., is the choice for a late-night craving. The bakery says it is open 24 hours a day. According to the family’s published history, Antonio Bova, born in Reggio Calabria in 1890, emigrated to Boston, apprenticed at a local bakery and opened A. Bova & Sons Bakery on Prince Street in the North End in 1926. The history says he built the business by carrying baskets of hot bread door to door and asking neighbors to try it.
Bova’s describes itself as a third-generation family business. Because it is on Salem Street rather than Hanover, it is also a useful option when the lines on the main drag are long. Salem Street is also home to Neptune Oyster, so the two pair well for a seafood dinner followed by dessert.
Caffè Vittoria: Sit Down With an Espresso
If you would rather sit than eat on the sidewalk, Caffè Vittoria at 290-296 Hanover St. is a cafe first and a pastry counter second. It says it was established in 1929 and calls itself the first Italian cafe in Boston. The cafe lists daily hours of 8 a.m. to midnight.
Vittoria’s menu includes a classic cannoli with sweet ricotta cream and a chocolate cannoli with a dark-chocolate-dipped shell, offered with chocolate chips or pistachio. It also lists tiramisu, sfogliatella, ricotta pie and lobster tails, along with espresso drinks made with Lavazza coffee and liqueur-spiked options such as caffè corretto.
Tips for a North End Cannoli Crawl
- Go early or late. Weekend afternoons are the busiest. Modern Pastry and Caffè Vittoria are open until at least 11 p.m., and Bova’s never closes.
- Split and compare. The shops are within a few blocks of one another, so sharing one cannoli at each stop is an easy way to compare shells and fillings.
- Check hours before you go. The hours above come from each business’s website as of Oct. 12, 2026, and can change for holidays and events.
- Take the T. Haymarket station on the Orange and Green lines is a short walk from Hanover Street, and parking in the neighborhood is limited.
No single shop owns the title of best cannoli in Boston, and regulars argue about it constantly. The four places above have the longest histories and the clearest track records, and all are within a 10-minute walk of each other.