The title of Best Croissant in Florida, and Best Baguette in Florida along with it, will be settled on Sunday, Oct. 25, on Collins Avenue. Bakeries from around the state bring their entries to the National Hotel in Miami Beach for Florida's Best Baguette and Best Croissant Competition 2026, a ticketed evening where a panel of professional chefs names the official winners and the guests in the room pick one of their own.

The event runs from 7 to 10 p.m. at the National Hotel, 1677 Collins Ave., and it is open to adults 21 and older.

Who is behind it

The competition is organized by the Florida chapter of the French American Association of Crafts and Trades, known as FAACT, in partnership with French Morning. FAACT's Florida chapter is based in North Miami Beach, and it also runs a monthly French market at South Pointe Park. The chapter's own site lists an earlier edition of this contest, held in Miami Beach on a Sunday in late October 2024, which makes Sunday's competition a return of a contest the chapter has staged here before.

The sponsors named on the event listing include Moulins Bourgeois French flour through KDIMPORTUS, Elle & Vire Pro USA, Louis François, Pavailler and PapilleMiami.

How the judging works

There are two sets of winners. A panel of professional chefs judges the baguettes and the croissants and awards the Grand Prix titles, Best Baguette in Florida and Best Croissant in Florida. Separately, everyone holding a ticket tastes the finalists and votes for a People's Choice Award.

The finalists and the judges had not been announced on the organizer's pages as of Tuesday, so the bakeries in the running will be revealed closer to the night.

What a ticket includes

The ticket covers one free drink, tastings of the competing baguettes and croissants, pastries from every finalist bakery, and artisan cheeses and charcuterie from PapilleMiami.

Tickets are sold through the organizer's Eventbrite page. The listing shows ticket prices in a range of about $36 to $49, and it states that tickets are not refundable.

A tasting across the state in one room

The format puts bakeries from different parts of Florida on the same table, so the people voting taste each finalist's baguette and croissant one after another rather than shop by shop. The judges' Grand Prix and the guests' People's Choice are separate awards, which means a bakery can win one without the other.

Getting there

The National Hotel sits on the ocean side of Collins Avenue between 16th and 17th streets, a short walk from Lincoln Road. The event listing notes that valet parking is available at the hotel. Public garages along Collins Avenue and around 17th Street are within a few blocks.

If you go

  • What: Florida's Best Baguette and Best Croissant Competition 2026
  • When: Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, 7 to 10 p.m.
  • Where: National Hotel, 1677 Collins Ave., Miami Beach
  • Who can go: Adults 21 and older
  • Tickets: Through the FAACT Florida chapter's Eventbrite page; listed at roughly $36 to $49, no refunds
  • Included: One drink, tastings of the competing baguettes and croissants, pastries from each finalist, cheeses and charcuterie

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