Boston cream pie is two layers of sponge cake filled with thick pastry cream and topped with chocolate ganache. Massachusetts's official state dessert since 1996, invented at the Parker House Hotel in 1856.
The Boston cream pie was created in 1856 by French chef M. Sanzian at the Parker House Hotel on School Street, three years after the hotel opened. The original recipe layered yellow sponge cake with custard cream and finished the top with a chocolate fondant, not a ganache. Massachusetts named it the official state dessert in 1996 over the Toll House cookie and the Indian pudding. The Omni Parker House still serves the original recipe in its Parker's Restaurant dining room. The dish is technically a cake, not a pie; the historic name dates to a period when American kitchens used pie pans for both shapes.
4 editor picks for Boston cream pie in Boston, ranked by editorial score. All Boston signature dishes · Boston cream pie across every city.
Modern Pastry ★ 4.6
north-end · 257 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113
Modern Pastry on Hanover Street has filled cannoli to order in Boston's North End since 1930. Chocolate-dipped shells, lighter ricotta cream, the local pick over Mike's.
Flour Bakery ★ 4.6
south-end · 1595 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118
Joanne Chang opened Flour on Washington Street in Boston's South End in 2000; the city's pastry empire grew to 10 locations across Boston and Cambridge. Sticky buns the headline bake.
Mike's Pastry ★ 4.5
north-end · 300 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113
Mike's Pastry on Hanover Street has filled cannoli to order in Boston's North End since 1946. 19 cannoli flavours, cash and card, white string-tied box the giveaway.
Tatte Bakery & Cafe ★ 4.4
back-bay · 70 Charles St, Boston, MA 02114
Tzurit Or's Tatte runs an Israeli-style bakery-cafe across Boston and Cambridge since 2007. Shakshuka, pistachio croissants and the green-shakshuka brunch list; multiple locations citywide.