10 NZ Bakers On The Best Way To Eat Hot Cross Buns This Easter

There’s an argument that says hot cross buns merely exist as a vehicle for butter. Kim Knight spoke to 10 bakers about their favourite way to eat a seasonal treat that now rivals the Bluff oyster in price.

Blue cheese or butter? Crispy top or soft bottom? And what’s the one thing you should never do to a hot cross bun?

Nine Auckland bakers – and one gold medal winner from Wellington – have opinions.

With an artisan hot cross bun routinely costing more than a supermarket Bluff oyster, Viva hit the phones: How can consumers ensure maximum bun for their Easter buck?

We surveyed prices and found a never-to-be-repeated $2.50 bargain. We discovered secret ingredients (pimento, Eau de Vie, et al). Most importantly, we asked the people who get up stupidly early to produce these seasonal treats exactly how they prefer to eat them.

From peanut butter to blue cheese toppings, to the buns that are hung upside down after baking to stop them collapsing, this is the ultimate (and alphabetised) insider’s guide to hot cross buns, from the people who definitively know buns best.

Amano Bakery, Andrew Hanson, executive chef, Amano

“Absolute smack tonne slabs of butter.”

The sell: “We’re doing a traditional hot cross bun, with a milk bread dough. Everything’s hand-moulded. It’s not really light like a supermarket one, but it’s not super heavy either. And then there’s spice and the usual suspects – currants, raisins and some citrus peel – and we use a raisin rum glaze at the end. No secret ingredients, just love! And we have a super decadent chocolate bun that’s only available on Fridays. Chocolate dough, and then we’re adding some Callebaut into that. It’s not traditional, but it’s bloody good.”

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Super fresh, slathered with butter. Otherwise, cut in half, slightly toasted and absolute smack tonne slabs of butter. Just regular butter. Whatever’s on special at the supermarket for home, that’s for sure.”

Top or bottom? “I like the top half for the chew of the cross. The glaze is a bonus.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “I quite like Marmite, but I couldn’t imagine Marmite on a hot cross bun. That’d be pretty terrible, right?”

Find them: 66-68 Tyler St, downtown, Auckland. Savor.co.nz/amano-bakery

Beabea’s Bakery, Sarah Tabak, co-owner

As approved (and cream bunn’ed) by Al Brown.

The sell: “Our buns are made using a three-day panettone process. We even hang them upside down after baking while they cool, so they don’t collapse. They’re packed with plenty of poached raisins and currants, as well as our candied New Zealand orange peel, made in-house. They are finished with a spiced rum and apple glaze.”

Price: $4 each or $22 for six.

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Fresh with plenty of butter. Ben [Eyres, co-owner] likes to toast his and spread crunchy peanut butter over them. Or even blue cheese sometimes. We definitely approve of chef Al Brown’s recent take – fresh buns, split in half and filled with cream and a dot of jam. We’re all about New Zealand bakery nostalgia, so the cream bun/hot cross bun crossover is genius.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun? “Let them go to waste, we put too much effort into making them! We don’t judge how you eat them: toasted, fresh, bread and butter pud, toasted and crumbled over porridge ... ”

Find them: 160 Garnet Rd, Westmere, Auckland. Beabeas.co.nz

Daily Bread, Patrick Welzenbach, co-owner

“I’d take the top. Every time.”

The sell: “Our hot cross buns are always made with sourdough, built over multiple days to allow for full flavour development and a soft, open texture. Everything is made from scratch by our patisserie team – the spice blend, the glaze, everything. We use locally milled flour, whole eggs, real butter and fruit that we soak in rum. They’re finished with an orange glaze made from fresh oranges. It’s a bun that reflects time, care and proper ingredients.”

Price: $23-$25 for six, depending on flavour (traditional, spiced apple or chocolate and sour cherry).

Best way to eat a hot cross bun: “Fresh out of the oven, still warm – that’s the baker’s advantage. But if you’re at home, toast it lightly and cover it with a good layer of butter.”

Non-negotiable: “Using real butter in the dough. It changes everything – the smell in the mixer, the richness in the crumb, the way it carries through after the bite.”

Top or bottom? “I’d take the top. Every time. That’s where the glaze sits and it carries more colour – and colour is flavour.”

Worst thing you could do to a bun: “Not sure you can actually do anything wrong – unless you don’t eat it at all. That’d be the real tragedy.”

Find them: Eleven stores around Auckland. Dailybread.co.nz

Fort Greene, Liam Fox, owner

Freezer, yes. Refrigerator, no, no, no!

The sell: “Our buns are hybrid sourdough, meaning they’re naturally leavened and have added yeast. They’re very high in fruit with lots of candied peel (sorry, not sorry!). We use a traditionally inspired spice blend, and brush them with spiced brown sugar syrup after baking for that extra sticky finger goodness.”

Price: $5.50 each or $30 for six.

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Sliced into three from top to bottom – like slicing a loaf of bread – and then toasted and slathered with so much butter that it starts to soak through.”

Non-negotiable: “The bun MUST have adequate fruit and especially peel. You can’t replace the chewy citrus hit that comes from candied peel. While we’re not totally anti the modern bun, we are pretty adherent to tradition and don’t ever do non-spiced or fruitless or chocolate buns.”

Top or bottom? “I’d mostly choose the top. You don’t want to miss the sticky, glazed crust.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Refrigerate it for prolonged periods of time. By all means freeze fresh bread or pastry, but refrigeration will just dry it out quickly.”

Find them: 327 Karangahape Rd, Auckland central. Fortgreene.co.nz

Ima Cuisine, Yael Shochat, owner

Is it even Easter in Auckland without that custardy cross?

The sell: Large buns, made from a rich, buttery, honey-sweetened dough, flavoured with freshly ground spices and fruit (currants and mixed peel) finished with a decadent vanilla custard cross.

Price: $6.50 each. “Same as last year – even though butter’s gone up, honey’s gone up, vanilla’s gone up, I just can’t bring myself to raise the price.”

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Split in half and toasted (cut side up) under the grill, then eat with butter and a good coffee (if you want to be really indulgent, drizzle a little honey). Or with a good blue or mature cheese like Comte or aged cheddar, and a glass of good sticky dessert wine or port.”

Non-negotiable: “Butter.”

Top or bottom? “Ours have the custard cross so obviously the half with the custard ... ”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Let it go stale. Freshness is important with all food.”

Find them: 53 Fort St, Auckland central. Imacuisine.co.nz

Knead on Benson, James Bryant, founder

Blue cheese, tea-infused butter and the all-important cross-sectional cut.

The sell: “We offer three flavours – traditional, Valrhona chocolate and citrus and sticky date and butterscotch. What’s immediately noticeable is the plush, fluffy texture. As the days go on, all the flavours meld together and intensify. If stored in an airtight container, they can be savoured throughout the week – they won’t turn into bricks. The secret to achieving a fluffy texture is the use of lievito madre, a type of sourdough starter that originates in Italy. We combine this method with the very best New Zealand ingredients, like stone-ground flour, free-range eggs and butter. We’re really happy with the texture we’ve managed to achieve, with the inside of the bun pulling apart like candy floss.”

Price: $6.50 per bun or $36 for six. “The price reflects the ingredients and time it takes to make each bun. They are each shaped and glazed by hand, rather than industrially made, and it takes 48 hours, from sourdough starter to finish.”

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “On its own or with good-quality butter. At our cafe, we serve them with whipped 10 Star Butter (from Lewis Road Creamery) that has been infused with Earl Grey tea. For those with adventurous taste buds, our traditional bun pairs surprisingly well with cheese – especially a mild, creamy blue.”

Non-negotiable: “We’re so invested in achieving a featherlight texture that we prefer to eat our hot cross buns as is, without heating or toasting. Everyone has their preference, but we’d suggest giving ours a go straight out of the packet first.”

Top or bottom? “We’d cut the bun vertically to appreciate the entire cross-section. Not only will you get the glossy glaze, you’ll have the satisfaction of shredding apart the bun from top to bottom.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Flatten it in a sandwich press – which we have seen done!”

Find them: 76 Benson Rd, Remuera, Auckland. Kneadonbenson.co.nz

Nada Bakery, Michael Gray, co-owner

Winner of Baking New Zealand’s 2025 Great New Zealand Hot Cross Bun Competition.

The sell: “We’re a family business, based in Wellington and we’re actually celebrating our 50th year, so it was pretty cool to strike gold in our golden year. We do a spiced chocolate bun for people who think fruit is evil, but traditional is our most popular by far, and that’s what we won gold with. It’s a meaty bun – 850g for a six-pack. You’re like ‘yeah, that was a good solid breakfast’. We’ve got a really wide variety of spices, not just a bit of cinnamon. The one that surprises people the most is probably pimento.”

Price: $17 for six.

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “With your mouth! I always like it a little bit warmed. Some people might say this is sacrilegious, but I’d just put it in the microwave, so it stays nice and soft. And butter. New Zealand butter. I’m a purist in that regard. I might even add a little bit of salt, just to bounce the flavours a little bit more.”

Top or bottom? “I eat the whole thing. The bottom half is nice and soft, and with the top, you’ve got that crust and we’re also glazing ours with a variety of citrus and things. It adds another dimension.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Let it go mouldy. At least if it goes stale, you can turn it into a bread and butter pudding.”

Find them: 64 Johnsonville Rd, Johnsonville and 4/72 Main Rd, Tawa. Stocked by Farro in Auckland. Nadabakery.co.nz

The Pantry, Callum Liddicoat, executive pastry chef, Park Hyatt Auckland

Give the kids the half with the cross.

The sell: “Using a similar dough to our famous doughnuts, these buns are packed with rum-soaked raisins, currants, sultanas, and citrus peel mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, coriander, tonka bean, black pepper, cardamom and clove. Finished off with the traditional cross, once baked, these buns are brushed with a citrus spiced rum sticky glaze.”

Price: $23 for six; $42 for 12.

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Cut the buns in half, throw them on a chopping board and push those halves down and flatten them out, pop them in the toaster and crisp those buns up. The darker the better. Then have soft sea-salt butter and slap on a slab – don’t let it melt too much, you need to taste that slab of butter.”

Non-negotiable: “Crispy, slathered with sea-salt butter and then just gobble it down! Who has time to wrap buns in foil and pop them in the oven like Mum used to when we were kids? (Besides, they never get crispy that way!).”

Top or bottom? “Bottom, bottom, bottom. Easier to toast. The cross is overrated, pass that half to the kids.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun? Biscoff, Nutella, chocolate or anything that strays too far from the traditional fruity goodness. It’s like still sipping espresso martinis in 2025 – I thought we left those back in 2009! And let’s hold off on the hot cross buns until it’s actually time for them. Seeing them just days after Christmas is a bit much, don’t you think? If you’re craving that spiced fruity goodness, why not go for a fruit loaf instead?”

Find them: The Pantry, Park Hyatt Auckland 99 Halsey St, Auckland. Hyattpantry.co.nz

Vaniye Patisserie, Sonia Haumonte, co-owner

The recipe was developed to suit Kiwi palates (but the French fruit brandy was non-negotiable).

The sell: “As I was a French-trained baker, I did not have as much experience or understanding of what is a true, good, hot cross bun. We spent a good three to four years talking to our customers and writing and trialling recipes. People asked us to do the more old-fashioned, rustic version. Less fluffy and light, and more soaked fruits, as they’d found that many bakeries sold a very light, soft version, similar to brioche textures. We did so many trials! Although we like to experiment and are more adventurous with ingredients for our desserts, for certain things we really are traditionalists. We use an orange and lemon confit, currants, sultanas and cranberries, and of course we soak them in good French fruit-based Eau de Vie. And we add rye flour, to make the buns a little more earthy.”

Price: $24 for a pack of four; $35 for six.

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “Toasted or oven-heated of course, but with the best-quality butter you can find. Better yet, add some brandy to your butter and whip it up.”

Non-negotiable: “Good-quality alcohol to soak the fruit. Proper, correctly aged and not cheap. Luckily, Laurent [co-owner] comes from the east of France where they grow all these wonderful stonefruits and are the world leader in Eau-De-Vie.”

Top or bottom? “Bottom half. I’m not a fan of the texture of the cross, but I do understand the tradition and that people would expect that. We like to cut ours vertically, so that when we share them with our family on a big plate, we all get the top and bottom.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Skip the long process and don’t do a long fermentation. This is where the flavour comes from.”

Find them: 1/7 Windsor St, Parnell or 2/15 Fleming St, Onehunga, Auckland. Vaniye.com

Wild Wheat, Andrew Fearnside, owner

Hot-priced hot cross buns.

The sell: “This is one of the first years I haven’t tried to tinker with the recipe too much. We’ve moved away from a singular bun, into a more traditional pull-apart. I’ve spent a lot of time working on a fruit soak combination, with vanilla, orange juice and different spices – mixed spice, cinnamon, ground coriander ... We mix the fruit in big batches, and we’ll soak it for five or six days. And we do a lot with the glaze. Cinnamon sticks, orange, vanilla and brown sugar. It adds that little bit of extra taste.”

Price: $15 for six. “We decided a few months ago to charge the same as last year and I kind of shot myself in the foot once I realised how expensive they’d become. We have completely undercut ourselves. I don’t think that price will be repeated again.”

Best way to eat a hot cross bun? “I’m fortunate enough to be able to say ‘straight out of the oven’. And I always used to say that a good hot cross bun should just be able to be eaten on its own – but I’ve become a fan of either a little bit of toasting and butter, or fresh with some extra butter. I mean, we put a lot of butter into our recipe anyway, but to put some more on top – yeah, I get what the butter on a hot cross bun is all about nowadays. It does make a difference. Occasionally, I’ll just tuck in a couple of pieces of chocolate, and then I’ll give it a toast or even just heat it up in the microwave. That would be my extravagant, guilty pleasure.”

Top or bottom? “Straight away it’s the top, because it’s got all the glaze on it. Sticky fingers are all part of eating a hot cross bun.”

Worst thing you could do to a hot cross bun: “Get a bit too carried away with the extra ingredients. If you start putting too much stuff in it, you’re losing the basic ethos of what the bun is supposed to be about. Apples and cranberries and chocolate and stuff – that sounds like a nice bun, but maybe it’s not a hot cross bun?”

Find them: Six stores throughout Auckland. Wildwheat.co.nz

Kim Knight joined the New Zealand Herald in 2016 and is a senior journalist on the lifestyle desk. She has a Masters in Gastronomy and would never, ever toast a bakery fresh hot cross bun.

More Easter treats

It’s time for seasonal sweets.

Hot Cross Buns From Ima Cuisine. How to make THAT custard cross at home.

The Best Hot Cross Buns in Auckland For Easter 2024. Last year’s list (you can never have too many hot cross buns).

Recipes For Celebrating Easter. Buns not included.