Berwick’s new Blanc Bakery grows following for bagels, croissants
Sourdough is popular, bagels sell like hotcakes and the coffee is great. Berwick has a new bakery, but get in early before things sell out.
Food
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Making sourdough from scratch is so 2020.
During the at-home baking fad, it’s no wonder husband and wife duo James McMurray and Rachel Goldstein only realised last year that Berwick was missing a bakery.
So they opened Blanc Bakery four days before Christmas, selling daily-baked sourdough, pastries and Mornington-roasted Commonfolk coffee.
“We always had this dream of opening a pizza and wine bar, but when a friend came over asking where we bought good bread in Berwick we had our light-bulb moment,” Goldstein said.
The couple has a background in baking, earning a crust at Bakers Delight before McMurray joined celebrity chef Shannon Bennett’s Burnham Beeches as head baker for six years.
Last year he spent six months at Oakleigh’s Oasis before opening his own business.
Blanc Bakery sells white and multigrain sourdough, focaccia, bagels, baguettes, fruit loaves and a selection of pastries including croissants, pana chocolate, escargot, and doughnuts.
“It’s not just about the bread. People will see James hand-rolling croissants and laminating the pastry. There’s a lot of theatre that goes into it. We want to educate people on making bread,” she said.
On Christmas Eve, the bakery sold out of everything before 11.30am.
The bagels, namely the jalapeño and cheese, and doughnuts have been the biggest sellers.
Sandwiches and a hot food selection including sausage rolls will soon join the menu.
“We don’t want to bite off more than we can chew. We are doing it in baby steps,” she said.
Blanc Bakery, 14 Adams Ln, Berwick. Open daily from 7.30am until sold out.
GREENER PASTURES
A Melbourne chef who fed Hollywood stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Hugh Jackman at her New York restaurant has taken on a healthier career in Melbourne.
Frankie Cox, who at 26 was the Big Apple’s youngest executive chef while working at Two Hands restaurant, has recently opened zero-waste salad bar Green On in Cremorne.
After working 100-hour weeks and cooking wholesome meals for A-list stars such as Rebel Wilson and Kourtney Kardashian, Cox knew her fast-paced lifestyle wasn’t sustainable.
“I was completely burnt out. I had lost my passion for cooking,” she said.
“It wasn’t sustainable for me to work 100-hour weeks and it shouldn’t be the norm in our industry. We need to move away from that, especially now that (the industry) has lost so many people since the pandemic.”
Not only is Green On health-conscious by selling plant-based bowls using produce sourced within 100km of Melbourne, it also forces a healthy work-life balance by closing on weekends.
Green On is also eco-conscious and refuses to use plastic bowls, with customers instead paying a flat $6 fee to rent a reusable Returnr bowl for repeat visits.
Cox has rallied an all-star female team for Green On’s first store, which includes Kate Barr (formerly of Byron Bay’s Bayleaf Cafe) and Audrey Shaw (of Red Hill’s Tedesca Osteria and London’s River Cafe), with her dad helping out as dishwasher.
“We wanted to do salads and not take ourselves too seriously. It’s no fine diner and completely different to what I’ve done before,” she said.
Cox hopes to open more Green On stores in the future.
Green On, 658 Church St, Richmond greenonco.com.au
EXPENSIVE TASTE
Some people spend almost half a million on a new home, but one cashed up man-about-Melbourne dropped $400,000 at Dan Murphys on Penfold’s Grange.
The “established entrepreneur” and wine collector picked up his new 66-bottle set from the Malvern East store last week.
The expensive haul included the first-ever 1951 vintage of Australian’s flagship wine, which sold for almost $165,000 a pop last December. While the lucky buyer remains a mystery, it’s said not a single drop of the wine be sipped from this purchase.
PRETTY BIG CHANGE
Balaclava’s tiny fine diner Pretty Little is planning some big changes in 2022.
Don’t worry, the restaurant’s dinner party concept and long-stretching communal table are sticking around.
Mike Harrison (of Langton’s, Church St Enoteca) has taken the reins as head chef and will host a series of collaborative tasting dinners throughout the year, starting with Comma Food and Wine’s Matt Woodhouse with ‘Little Inverted Comma’ for two weeks from February 2. Bookings essential.
HABA GOODTIME
It’s no wonder the Mornington Peninsula property market is booming – there’s a bunch of new venues cropping up this summer.
Before Scott Pickett and Craig Shearer open The Conti next month and while George Calombaris’ influence takes hold at Hotel Sorrento, Rye has welcomed newcomer Haba, a Mexican eatery and live music venue.
Think fish and chips, tempura fish tacos and bucatini vongole to eat, plus local wines and Carlton Draught on tap.
Open daily from noon. habarye.com.au
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