Category Archives: city

Biga Artisan Bakery, East Lindfield

bakery, city, nsw, vanilla slice

9 Hughes Pl, East Lindfield

It’s been a long time between vanilla slices, due to a combination of the COVID pandemic, and me being busy with new work. But today I took a short drive with Mrs Snot Block & Roll and Canine Snot Block & Roll for some afternoon tea to a new bakery that we hadn’t visited before.

Biga Artisan Bakery

I was wondering if they would have some vanilla slices, and lo! They did!

Biga Artisan Bakery

It’s an interesting bakery, with a small counter displaying just a few sweet treats, with a view behind to the working area with racks and machinery for baking bread. There didn’t appear to be a lot of bread available, probably because it was getting close to closing time. But they did have an interesting Lego version of the very shop I was standing in on the counter.

Biga Artisan Bakery

The 20-something Italian man behind the counter said that the Lego figures sitting on the benches outside the shop (which you can see for real in the first photo above) were likenesses of actual customers who frequented the bakery! It also appears that this bakery makes pizzas at some time, and they sell chilli oil. It definitely had a bit of an Italian air about it.

But I was here for the vanilla slice. I ordered one and took it out to eat on a bench in the deep shade of a large tree, since the day was over 30°C and very humid. I braved the sun to take a photo.

Vanilla slice, Biga Artisan Bakery

The slice is of a small to middling size, not the smallest I’ve had, but definitely not approaching the most generous. It has a single custard layer sandwiched between pastry layers that contain dozens of paper-thin sheets, the whole dusted with icing sugar. It looks pretty good, though it tapers to a thinner layer of custard at one end, which is apparently the edge of the slab that was sliced up to make the individual slices.

It’s easy to pick up and get a mouth around. However the first bite reveals that the pastry is very soft, not crunchy or crispy at all. I don’t know if it’s always like this, or if it has gone soggy from several hours sitting in the counter waiting to be served. Disappointing.

Vanilla slice, Biga Artisan Bakery

But that’s the only bad thing about it. Despite being soft, the pastry tastes good, with a nice brown caramelisation, and it’s light and separates into layers, rather than being stodgy. The custard is really good. It’s delicious, mouth-coatingly smooth and creamy, and has a decent hit of vanilla flavour, not too sweet. The whole thing is actually really enjoyable, despite the soft pastry.

I’m giving this a good score, and it would have easily made 9/10 if only that pastry had been crispy.

Vanilla slice: 7/10

Cornucopia Bakery, Naremburn

bakery, cafe, city, nsw, sausage roll, vanilla slice,

Shop 2/296-298 Willoughby Rd, Naremburn
facebook.com/CornucopiaBakerySydney

One of the earliest reviews I did on this blog was Delicia in Naremburn. As it’s within a (solid) walking distance from home, it was a bakery that I visited fairly frequently. Unfortunately, when I went there one time a year or two ago, I discovered that it had closed down. This left a fairly big hole in the local area, since the closure of St Malo a bit earlier wiped out the best bakery in the region.

The vacated Delicia premises remained empty for many months, until recently I took a walk that led me past… and I saw that it was now occupied. And by a new bakery!

Cornucopia Bakery, Naremburn

The fitout has changed, with the coffee machine on the left, and a single straight counter instead of the L-shaped one that Delicia had. They have a nicer looking selection of pies (although Delicia’s sausage rolls were good, their pies were average):

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High Street Bakery, Northbridge

bakery, city, nsw, sausage roll, vanilla slice,

142 Sailors Bay Rd, Northbridge, New South Wales

Just a day after making a special expedition to Newtown for Miss Lilly’s, I had an appointment for my first COVID vaccination in the suburb of Northbridge. Since it was at lunch time, I took the opportunity to stroll around the Northbridge shops after my 15-minute safety rest, and found the High Street Bakery.

High Street Bakery

This is a bog standard suburban high street bakery, with the usual array of freshly baked loaves, a selection of small cakes and tarts and other sweets, and a pie warmer counter full of pies and sausage rolls.

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Miss Lilly’s, Newtown

bakery, cafe, city, nsw, sausage roll

571 King St, Newtown, NSW
misslillys.com.au

I received a recommendation recently via the subreddit /r/sydney saying that I had to try the sausage rolls at Miss Lilly’s in Newtown. I must admit that I haven’t tried any places in Newtown apart from The Pie Tin, because it’s so good there and I am in the area seldom enough that all I ever want to do is go back there. But, if someone is going to go out of their way to specifically recommend an establishment to me, I have to try it!

I made a special expedition over to Newtown just for this. I messed up a bit reading Google Maps and ended up at the wrong end of Newtown, wondering why I couldn’t find it. Consulting my phone, I realised my error, and walked along the entire eclectic university-student-filled shopping strip to the far end. This was fortunate as it helped build an appetite!

Miss Lilly's Bakery Cafe

I found Miss Lilly’s behind a humble shopfront on busy King Street. It bills itself as a “bakery cafe”, but there isn’t much room inside for the two tables, and there are two tables out on the footpath. The unassuming counter contains a small selection of slightly rustic, home-made style cakes, tarts, and slices. This is not a high-end patisserie – it looks like a typical small business cafe that someone just started to make a living. Unfortunately there isn’t a vanilla slice, but then that would have been a bonus since I really came here for the sausage rolls.

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K’pané Artisan Bakery, Coffs Harbour

bakery, city, nsw, sausage roll

Jetty Village Shopping Centre, 361 Harbour Drive, Coffs Harbour NSW 2450
www.facebook.com/kpaneartisanbakery

Continuing my vacation trip, I got as far north as Coffs Harbour, on a day sojourn out of my accommodation in Port Macquarie. So I was here at lunch time, and keen to find something delicious to eat. A local pointed me towards the Jetty district of the city, where I found a small shopping centre, and K’pané Artisan Bakery. I neglected to take a photo of the exterior or interior, but it basically looked like a generic anonymous small shopping centre bakery, with nothing to distinguish it in any way.

Inside, the savoury menu featured some interesting pies, with a Penang pork tickling my fancy, as well as a pork and fennel sausage roll. There was alas no vanilla slice on offer, so I contented myself with the pie and sausage roll choice. I snuck a seat at a table belonging to the adjacent fish & chip shop and regarded my lunch.

Sausage roll: K'pané Artisan Bakery

The sausage roll (here displayed sitting atop the pie, as it was the only guaranteed clean surface elevated above the interior of the cardboard tray they came in) looks promising. It has a richly browned pastry crust, flaking into pieces as I manoeuvre it around for a photo, generously topped with poppy seeds. The pastry looks fairly thick, moist, and buttery. The end bits of the meat filling are crusty from baking, and display similarly generous amounts of shredded carrot. It looks enticing.

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San Antonio Sourdough, Balmain

bakery, city, nsw, sausage roll

349 Darling St, Balmain, New South Wales

On a fine spring day Mrs Snot Block & Roll suggested we go on an expedition across the water to the Sydney suburb of Balmain. A convenient way to get there is to catch a ferry, so we made our way over the cool green waters of Sydney Harbour to the relevant wharf and walked up the steep hill to the main street, where an array of shops and food outlets awaited. Here, in search of sustenance we found San Antonio Sourdough.

San Antonio Sourdough, Balmain

Taking a look at the counter displays inside, the sweet treats looked extremely tempting, and they also had some pies and sausage rolls. I got a sausage roll and, because they had no vanilla slices, I opted for a pecan tart for afterwards.

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Golden Bakehouse, South Turramurra

bakery, city, nsw, sausage roll, vanilla slice,

219C Kissing Point Road, South Turramurra, New South Wales
golden-bakehouse.business.site

It’s a warm late winter Sunday – the perfect opportunity to take Mrs and Canine Snot Block & Roll for a drive! Of course, I had to do some research to make sure there was a nice bakery awaiting at our destination. And for this trip I chose something that has been tantalising me for some time now. Whenever I do a Google search of Sydney for bakeries, popping up like a gleaming apparition with an astonishing 4.9 star average rating, is Golden Bakehouse at South Turramurra.

Golden Bakehouse, South Turramurra

It’s a strange thing. Despite the amazing Google rating, photos of the bakery look distinctly bland and average. This looks like your run-of-the-mill suburban bakery, dishing out good hot bread and banh mi rolls, but distinctly average patisserie goods. Something seems rotten in the State of Denmark here…

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Stoneground Bakery, Hunters Hill

bakery, cafe, city, nsw, sausage roll

Shop 7/52-56 Gladesville Rd, Hunters Hill, New South Wales
stonegroundbakery.com.au

On a grey and rainy Saturday Mrs Snot Block & Roll decided we could use a nice warming lunch at a bakery-cafe somewhere. I checked Google Maps to see if I could find somewhere promising and new within a short drive, and located Stoneground Bakery in a suburb acceptably far from home. Online reviews seemed positive, and the website offered various pies and other goodies.

Stoneground Bakery

So we drove over through the gentle drizzle and were fortunate to find a vacant table on the footpath outside, but under cover of the awning, where we could sit with Canine Snot Block & Roll while we inspected the wares and then ordered some lunch.

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Paul’s Famous Hamburgers, Sylvania

city, nsw, special

12 Princes Highway, Sylvania, New South Wales
paulsfamoushamburgers.com.au

With COVID-19 lockdown still in the easing off stages here, I haven’t been making as many trips as usual. But today, on a fine and mild, sunny winter Sunday, I ventured to Sydney’s deep south – The Shire. Not for a sausage roll, but to sample another legendary Sydney food item: one of Paul’s famous hamburgers, from the Princes Highway-side shop known simply as Paul’s Famous Hamburgers, in the Sutherland Shire suburb of Sylvania.

Having negotiated the tricky turnoff directly after crossing Tom Ugly’s Bridge, I arrived at Pauls’ Famous Hamburgers a few minutes before 11:30, figuring I’d get an early lunch to avoid the crowds. They only open at 11:30, but even before there were signs of stirring within the shop, a queue was forming outside. It got up to about a dozen people before 11:30 passed and the shop opened – at which point I jumped on the back of the queue to avoid even more people getting in front of me.

Paul's Famous Hamburgers of Sylvania

While standing in the approved COVID-19 socially distanced queue, marked by taped crosses 1.5 metres apart on the footpath, a woman came out and moved along the queue with an order book, taking people’s orders. I ordered a special with cheese (which comes with beef patty, lettuce, tomato, raw onion, bacon, fried egg, and cheese), plus beetroot and Paul’s special sauce (home made aioli mixed with chili sauce), a large chips with regular salt (as opposed to chicken salt), and a peanut butter crunch milkshake. Having declared my Aussie colours in the previous hamburger review on this site, the additional beetroot was a complete no-brainer. In fact, no matter how famous these burgers may be, I’m a bit put out that beetroot is only presented as an option and not part of the standard package.

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Drummoyne Bakehouse Cafe, Drummoyne, pt. 3

bakery, cafe, city, nsw, vanilla slice

150 Lyons Rd, Drummoyne, New South Wales
drummoynesbakehousecafe.com.au

We’ve reviewed the Drummoyne Bakehouse twice before, once for the sausage roll and vanilla icing topped vanilla slice, and once for the vanilla slice topped with icing sugar. But on this cloudy, drizzly late autumn day, when I’d ventured here mostly for a comforting hot pie for lunch, I casually added “and a vanilla slice” to my order, remembering how good they were. The woman serving me asked if I wanted icing sugar, or passionfruit icing… and indeed the slices visible in the display had clearly visible passionfruit seeds. Well!

Vanilla slice, Drummoyne Bakehouse

I took my pies and slice to nearby Drummoyne Park, where Canine Snot Block & Roll could run around on the grass while I indulged. The pies were great, but then I turned my attention to this unexpected boon.

As in previous reviews, the slice is a visual marvel, three layers of very crisp looking pastry, two of mid-yellow creamy custard. This one is topped with a thick layer of rich yellow icing, with a couple of black passionfruit seeds visible. there is some hand-made roughness around the edges, but the whole thing looks scrumptious.

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