| Where: | St Albans Cathedral at the Abbots Kitchen |
| When: | Ash Wednesday to Easter Monday (or near dates) |
| Time: | 10am - 4 pm daily |
Hot Cross Buns are readily available throughout the country in the approach to Easter (and indeed it seems that they’re readily available all year!) and it’s traditional to eat them particularly on Good Friday. St Albans is apparently the historic home of the Bun and they’ve been baking the spicy snacks since the fourteenth century, when they were given out in a charitable dole to the poor. Visitors may now purchase them from the Abbots’ Kitchen from Ash Wednesday or thereabouts onwards. Todays buns are baked to a secret special recipe and instead of having a white cross piped on top, they have one cut into the surface as a symbol of the resurrection; they have a distinctive cardamom flavour.
Helpful Hints
The Abbots Kitchen is located in the Chapter House of the Cathedral and is usually open daily from 10 am to 4 pm.
In 2025 the buns should be on sale from around 5th March to around Monday April 21st (check the dates with the Abbots Kitchen to avoid potential disappointment!). While the buns are often on sale for the whole of Lent, it’s worth checking the dates directly in case of any changes or supply problems. Bags of 4 buns can be pre-ordered by emailing stalbansevents@elior.co.uk (see Facebook page below for more info).
Click here for the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StAlbansCathedralOfficial
Click here for the website link and for contact details : https://www.stalbanscathedral.org/visit/abbots-kitchen/
Please note that the Albans Buns are on sale from Thursday 7th March- Not ash Wednesday
The timings of the café are also wrong- The café closes at 4:00pm not 4:30pm
Hi Amy,
Thank you for the update regarding the date the Alban Buns are on sale, and the cafe timings – the article is now tweaked to reflect the info you’ve given me, and a note added to check direct for confirmation of the starting date as it may vary a little year-on-year. Thanks again,
Averil
The cafe now opens at 10 – bought today, just under £6 for 4. Indeed, they are distinctly cardamom-y and delicious. If you arrive early, the aroma of their baking lingers.
Thanks Jo, that’s helpful!
Averil
Can you freeze these buns?
Hi Sharon- ours didn’t last long enough to need freezing so I’m not sure-if you send a message to the link under Helpful Hints the bakers should be able to advise, but most similar buns are good to freeze in my experience. Hope you enjoy them!
Averil
Hi
Can you post the buns if I pay for them (and the postage) in advance or are they only available for collection?
Hi Ray,
A few years ago I bought some and had them posted to me, so I expect they still do that. You’ll need to contact the Abbots Kitchen directly- contact details are at https://www.stalbanscathedral.org/cafe and I just rang up- they were really helpful and the buns arrived safe and sound very quickly once I’d ordered them.Enjoy!
Best wishes,
Averil
Hi Averil
Thanks for the prompt reply. Really appreciated
Ray
Hi Ray,
No problem – hope you get some!
Averil