S Haslam
Being a baker in a modern town like Bangalow these days involves a lot more than getting up super early in the morning and banging out a range of white bread wonders – if owners (since 2019) Tyson and Jess Phillips are the first to see a spectacular sunrise over the historic town, they’re just as likely to take a minute, take a photo, and put it on Instagram.
But don’t look at the Bangalow Bread Co Instagram feed! I made the mistake and… well, everything looks so good. While they do produce what they call ‘traditional bakery items’, like bread, they see themselves as bringing the age-old trade of baking into the modern world. So their gut-loving sourdough breads, which look fantastic by the way, are made daily by a traditional process and slowly fermented for a minimum of 24 hours so they have just the right amount of taste and chew.
They take the making of children’s birthday cakes really seriously too (if you want them to) – I spotted a rainbow unicorn cake destined for a 6-year-old’s party that was fantasy worlds above my best efforts – my wife still laughs about the horror realm of deformed frog-people I created for my own daughter’s cake. They’ll also make up some great sandwich (or artisanal baguette!) plates if you need them to cater for an event, or help with organising something for your picnic, when they have time! They combine well with local producers, but they are really good at baking.
Get ready to be taken all the way back to your childhood with nostalgic memories of reimagined chocolate fudge slice, wonder at their Mars Bar-topped cupcakes, or their Portuguese tarts. They’ve got a pretty strong following for their carrot cake, and their chunky olive oil cookies. The regulars say that you can’t go past their vanilla slice made with butter puff pastry and passionfruit icing, but we will leave that up to you. Now that lockdown is lifted, it’s even more enjoyable to go in and choose from the array of delectables – the wooden-floored building is an old and stylish one with great high ceilings.
The offerings don’t stop at sweet treats. As I was watching their Insta feed (yes, I told you not to open it, you’ll end up obsessively checking it) some spectacular savoury danishes appeared, made with rosemary infused potato dauphinoise. Their ‘meat’ pies are housemade, but not just the pastry – they are filled with slow cooked locally-sourced beef cooked on site; their sandwiches are also made using fresh sourdough including a variety of fillings. One of the most popular, and again their Insta feed makes it look incredibly good, is the ‘Reuben sandwich’
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