How Spotswood’s Candied Bakery became a cult favourite
THIS American-inspired Aussie bakery has found its sweet spot in Melbourne’s inner west. From spiked milkshakes to vanilla slice doughnuts, here’s how it became a local favourite.
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WHEN Orando Artavilla sold his Brunswick East bakery, Sugardough, in 2011, he vowed he would never bake again. In desperate need of a holiday, he and his wife, Toula, packed their suitcases and headed for the US. It was here, among the laid-back milkbars and counters brimming with pastel-painted treats, that Orlando’s baking flame was reignited.
“While we were there, we started to see what everyone else is doing,” he remembers. “We went to as many bakeries as we could in San Francisco and New York and realised bakeries in America were fun. I remember thinking ‘oh my God, I want to get back into it. I saw the fun in it and just wanted to start baking and enjoying it again.”
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So it was with great excitement that he flung open the doors to his Manhattan-inspired venture barely 12 months later.
Candied Bakery, a sweet addition to Spotswood’s burgeoning Hudson’s Road precinct, is an American-inspired bakery with a seriously Aussie slant.
“Being a country boy, I wanted to incorporate the Australian aspect to it,” Orlando says. “We wanted to get back to the basics of what a bakery offers, but do everything with a more contemporary twist.
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TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW CANDIED STARTED
Once we finished up at Sugardough I vowed never to bake ever again. We had been there for eight years and it had been old Italian bakery for like 50 years before we took it over. While I wouldn’t say I lost the passion, I had been [in the industry] for 20 years and just needed some time away.
WHERE DID YOU LEARN YOUR CRAFT?
I grew up in Cobram and baked there for 3.5 years with my apprenticeship, then moved straight to the Grand Hyatt in the city, Back then, the Hyatt was it and I was there at the peak of when it was going crazy. Being there taught me the value of hard work and I got to learn everything from producing volume to the finer touches.
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WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR TOP-SELLERS?
Our sausage rolls for sure. We use Cherry Tree organic beef and a butter pastry that we make here. We would sell at least 60-100 a day, and more on weekends.
WHAT ABOUT COFFEE?
We serve Proud Mary coffee and we like to think that for a bakery we offer really good coffee. That’s a really important part of Melbourne culture so it is one aspect we really wanted to make sure was spot on.
WHAT IS THE NEXT BIG TREND IN BAKING?
My wife was doing vegan cakes way back in 2004-2005, but I think vegan is going to be an even bigger thing; bigger than gluten-free, I think.
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(Laughs). We are still doing the apple pie shake that we have been doing from the beginning. That came about through the America trip as well — we wanted to bring some of touches home with us.
HOW IS IT WORKING WITH YOUR WIFE?
It works really well for us. She’s a chef by trade so I use my baking and she uses her cooking skills and we combine them. She is just as passionate as me so that makes it a lot of fun.
HOW IMPORTANT IS SOCIAL MEDIA?
When we were at Sugardough social media wasn’t as big a thing but, these days, people are so much more knowledgeable. They are much more aware and more concerned about what they are eating. It’s great because it pushes us to stay on top of our game.
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HOW HAS THE BUSINESS CHANGED SINCE YOU STARTED?
From when we opened to now, I see how different it is in terms of our range. These days, we have anywhere between 80 and 100 different products that we make. We always have our staples, but we rotate some of our sweet pies, layer cakes and doughnut flavours. We have tried to keep things pretty consistent and always make quality a focus. People know who we are now and what we’re about so they come in expecting that.
FAVOURITE THING TO MAKE?
One day I decided to make a vanilla slice doughnut. I had always wanted to make a vanilla slice the classic way so I created the doughnut as a one off. Now it’s the most popular thing in the bakery and I still love making it.
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ULTIMATE CROWD PLEASER?
Our key lime pie has been a staple from the word go. We make it from scratch with a
a ginger cookie crust. That is probably the thing that people would come in for most often.
BEST THING ABOUT THE JOB?
Customer satisfaction and seeing people stand in front of that counter overwhelmed by what to choose — I love that. I hope that comes through in the products we make. We just want to make stuff that people want to eat, the they want to enjoy. It’s not just about how it’s presented, but about how it feels in your stomach.
WHY SPOTSWOOD?
The whole point of coming to Spotswood was to have a bit more of a village feel. I wanted to relive my Cobram days and have that community — we love it here.
Candied Bakery is at 81A Hudsons Road, Spotswood.
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