Key takeaways:
- Santa Nata’s 10 millionth sale reflects the rapid global growth of the pastel de nata category beyond Portugal.
- Retailers, cafés and frozen bakery suppliers are increasingly embracing the tart as a premium yet accessible bakery product.
- Asia is emerging as a major expansion market thanks to existing consumer familiarity with egg tart formats.
A decade ago, most British consumers had never heard of a pastel de nata. Today, the caramelised Portuguese custard tart is everywhere – from artisan coffee shops and supermarket bakery aisles to airport kiosks and frozen bake-off ranges.
London bakery chain Santa Nata has become one of the clearest signs of that shift. The business has sold its 10 millionth pastel de nata since launching in 2019, growing from a single London store into six sites across the capital, one in Oxford and, next month, its first international location in Hong Kong.
But the story is much bigger than one bakery chain.
The pastel de nata itself dates back more than 300 years to Lisbon’s Jerónimos Monastery, where monks are believed to have used leftover egg yolks to make pastries after starching garments with egg whites. Following the closure of Portuguese monasteries in the 19th century, the recipe was sold to a nearby sugar refinery, eventually leading to the opening of the famous Pastéis de Belém bakery in 1837 – still regarded as the spiritual home of the tart today.
For Santa Nata founder Francisco Oliveira, authenticity remains central to the category’s appeal.
“Reaching our 10 millionth pastel de nata sale is an important milestone for us and something I’m very grateful for, especially considering Santa Nata started with one small shop and a simple idea – to bring an authentic taste of Lisbon to London,” he says.
“We’re proud of what we’ve done so far, but we stay focused on getting better every day and continuing to grow the brand the right way.”
From Lisbon speciality to global bakery staple
What makes the pastel de nata remarkable is how quickly it has travelled from traditional Portuguese bakery counters into the global mainstream.
In the UK, retailers like Lidl have helped introduce the product to mass consumers through instore bakery programmes, where the tart now sits alongside croissants, cookies and doughnuts as an everyday bakery option. Variants have also appeared across food halls, café chains, frozen bakery suppliers and premium supermarket ranges.
The same shift is playing out internationally. In the US, the category has expanded well beyond Portuguese-American communities into mainstream café culture and grocery retail, with bake-off suppliers increasingly targeting foodservice operators. Australia has also emerged as a strong growth market, with Portuguese tart manufacturer Nata Pura recently securing supermarket distribution through Foodland.
Asia, however, could prove to be the category’s biggest long-term prize. Markets such as Hong Kong and Macau already have deep-rooted familiarity with egg tart products through Cantonese dan tat and Portuguese-inspired Macanese tarts, giving pastel de nata brands a rare advantage when entering the region. Consumers understand the format, café culture is booming and premium bakery products continue to gain traction across major cities.
That opportunity has triggered a wave of international expansion from Portuguese bakery operators. Specialist chains including Manteigaria, Nata Lisboa and Fábrica da Nata have all increased their global footprint in recent years, while newer players such as Santa Nata are now pushing into Asia as competition around the category intensifies.
Why bakery businesses are betting on nata
The tart’s commercial appeal lies in its balance of premium positioning and operational simplicity.
The ingredients are relatively inexpensive – flour, eggs, sugar, butter and milk – yet the finished product comfortably commands premium pricing. In London, artisan pastéis de nata often retail for around £3 each, placing them firmly within the ‘affordable luxury’ category consumers continue to prioritise despite wider economic pressure.
The format is also highly scalable. Unlike traditional bakery cafés with broad menus and operational complexity, specialist nata concepts revolve around one hero product. That reduces waste, simplifies training and creates a clear brand identity.
Freshness adds another layer. At Santa Nata, batches are baked throughout the day and announced with the ringing of a bell as trays emerge from the oven. The process turns production into part of the customer experience while reinforcing authenticity.
Social media has amplified the trend further. The tart’s blistered top, laminated pastry layers and creamy filling have made it a highly photogenic café product, while Portugal’s tourism boom introduced millions of travellers to the category long before they encountered it back home.
There’s no standalone global valuation specifically for the pastel de nata market, but the wider figures surrounding bakery help explain why retailers and operators are paying attention. Mordor Intelligence forecasts the global pastries market will grow from $43.76bn in 2026 to $52.97bn by 2031, while Grand View Research values the wider bakery products market at more than $495bn globally. Meanwhile, Fortune Business Insights expects the frozen bakery products market to exceed $36bn by 2034.
That matters because the pastel de nata works across almost every modern bakery channel – fresh bakery retail, frozen bake-off, foodservice, travel retail and premium grab-and-go.
The challenge now is maintaining authenticity as the category scales globally. Much of the tart’s appeal lies in its heritage and craftsmanship, qualities that can easily become diluted once products move into industrial production.
For now, though, the pastel de nata appears to occupy a rare sweet spot for bakery businesses: nostalgic but modern, premium but accessible and distinctive enough to stand out in an increasingly crowded market.
Not bad for a pastry first baked by monks three centuries ago.
