Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe is a wonderful little spot that is way too easy to miss. This Hilo bakery and cafe is a great choice when you’re looking for something sweet in the morning, or a rich bread to keep you going all day.
You will find Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe tucked within a small storefront in the Hilo Shopping Center. Most of the space in their shop is used for baking and food preparation and so you’ll find a very small open dining area with just a couple of tables and chairs. Every inch of wall space and the spare open floor is used to display their products with large bins full of their fresh bread, chilled coolers full of beverages, and counter displays showcasing specialty dessert items. This dessert showcases change regularly, often partly due to what’s in season, for example, their Roasted Pineapple Bread Pudding is incredibly delicious (and thus rightly popular), but is only available when they can source fresh pineapple.
Hilo has over a dozen bakeries and cafes in town, including some pretty big outfits. And yet, Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe has been able to make quite the name for itself for its commitment to quality. The ingredients used at this cafe and bakery are thoughtfully chosen and sourced for quality and local impacts, such as with getting those pineapples at their best season. The baked goods, especially their cookies, and similar desserts, are then expertly crafted with an end result that can be called baked goods artistry. They even make premier wedding cakes and other event cakes (just be aware that that same artistry that makes them so highly rated also means that prices are going to be a bit higher than average).
Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe also has a sizable made-to-order menu that offers fresh breakfast and lunch items. Some great examples of these cafe foods include:
Herb Roasted Chicken Breast Panini
First off, one of the best parts of this and the rest of the paninis made at Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe is that they are all served on freshly made focaccia bread that was baked the very morning of your order. Delicious! The Herb Roasted Chicken Breast Panini features premium chicken breast pressed with mozzarella cheese, roasted bell peppers, basil pesto, and a mix of local greens.
Eggs Benedict
This menu item is often only served during the weekends and busy seasons as it features the cafe’s own in-house baked English muffins. But if you see it, we strongly recommend ordering it! Their homemade English muffins are thick enough to fully hold up the runny yolk associated with Eggs Benedict, but still light with a perfect crisp along the bottom. This breakfast and brunch menu item comes with hollandaise sauce, seasoned breakfast potatoes, and often a side of fresh fruit, papaya, or something similar.
Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe also has plenty of beverages to complement their baked goods and overall breakfast menu. They have an espresso machine for coffee items like cappuccinos and lattes, as well as a good selection of hot and cold teas, sodas, and lemonade.
Insider Tips:
-If you have a vacationing party that’s split between those who like to linger in bed and those ready to get up and go, then we recommend doing a pick-up order at Short N Sweet. You can easily order their sweet breakfast treats online and then have the early birder grab them (and some fresh, caffeine-heavy espresso drinks) and bring them back to the vacation lodgings. Orders are generally ready for pick-up within 30 minutes of ordering.
-The bakers behind Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe love celebrating holidays with specialty treats. For example, on Halloween, they often have pumpkin cookies and desserts with frosting with Trick or Treat and similar decorations.