A sweet night in Hillcrest / Bankers Hill
2 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.1 mi
5:30 PMDinner
2
7:00 PMDessert
← San DiegoDate night guide · San Diego
Best dessert spots for a date in San Diego
Dinner nearby, then the good part.
42 spots · Jump to the list
Dessert is the best second stop on a date: it's short, it's inexpensive, and it gives you a reason to walk somewhere after dinner. These are places that exist for dessert — gelato, pastry, chocolate, late-night sweets — rather than restaurants with a good dessert menu.
This guide ranks 42 dessert spots in San Diego, from Little Italy / Middletown to La Jolla and Coronado. Editors' picks come first, then the rest by rating, and the plans below build a whole evening around the best of them.
Nights people planned here
Published date nights with a stop on this list.
Make a night of it
Routes around the top spots on the list, with the best-rated places nearby for the rest of the evening.
A sweet night in North Park →
2 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.2 mi
5:30 PMDinner
2
7:00 PMDessert
The list
Editors' picks first, then by rating.
Bread & Cie
4.9(8)Hillcrest / Bankers Hill · $
Nomad Donuts
4.8(16)North Park · $
Moo Time Creamery
4.8(14)Coronado · $
Wayfarer Bread & Pastry
4.7(26)La Jolla · $
Maya Moon Collective
4.7(15)North Park · $
Villa Nueva Bakery
4.6(23)La Jolla Shores / Torrey Pines · $
Bobboi Natural Gelato
4.5(21)La Jolla
Gelato 101
4.5(19)Del Mar / Solana Beach · $
Handel’s Ice Cream
4.5(13)Pacific Beach / Mission Beach · $
Schmackary's
4.5(12)La Jolla Shores / Torrey Pines · $
Calicream Ice Cream
4.5(11)Encinitas / Del Mar · $
Julian Pie Company
4.4(25)$
Mom’s Pie House
4.4(25)
Julian Pie Co.
4.4(24)$
Gelato Vero Caffe
4.4(20)Little Italy / Middletown · $
The Baked Bear
4.4(18)Pacific Beach / Mission Beach · $
Trilogy Sanctuary
4.3(23)La Jolla · $
Clayton’s Bakery & Bistro
4.3(17)Coronado · $$
Izola Bakery
4.3(9)East Village / Barrio Logan · $
Mutual Friend Ice Cream
4.3(4)South Park / Golden Hill · $
Prager Brothers Artisan Breads
4.2(19)Encinitas / Del Mar · $
Michi Michi
4.1(21)Little Italy / Middletown · $
Chocolate Cafe
Little Italy / Middletown · $
Frost Me Cafe and Bakery
Little Italy / Middletown · $$
Showing 1–24 of 42 spots
Good to know
- What's the best dessert spot in San Diego for a date?
- Our top pick is Bread & Cie in Hillcrest / Bankers Hill, rated 4.9 out of 5. Nomad Donuts and Moo Time Creamery round out the top 3.
- Which San Diego neighborhoods have the best dessert spots?
- Little Italy / Middletown (4), La Jolla (3) and Coronado (2) have the most spots in the top 24.
- Are there affordable dessert spots in San Diego?
- Yes — Bread & Cie, Nomad Donuts and Moo Time Creamery are all $$ or under.
- What should we do before or after?
- Make it a sweet night: dinner, then dessert. The plans on this page pair each top spot with the best-rated places within about a 20-minute walk.