TRAFFIC is a little busier than you’d expect on a winding dirt road in the Huon Valley, but as you follow the cars and turn off to park, you spot what all the fuss is about: A little black fridge under a shady tree.

Open its door and you’ll find dozens of little packaged treats, from cakes to slices, biscuits and brownies lovingly baked by Geeveston’s April Matusik.

When the 27-year-old sold her Small-Fry cafe in Hobart at the beginning of the year after she separated with her partner, she took the opportunity for a Huon Valley treechange and new life chapter.

“I moved down here, took some time off and was feeling good and then COVID happened,” Ms Matusik said.

“There were no jobs in hospitality so I wanted something to do in my field to give me a creative outlet.”

Inspired by a similar set-up by The Bruny Baker, who sells sourdough loaves on the island in a tiny roadside fridge stall, Ms Matusik began the ‘Little Black Fridge’ on Britcliffes Road.

The busy entrepreneur spends about 20 hours a week baking her treats to sell via her fridge stall, as well as popping up across the region at various markets.

She sells close to 500 packs of goodies each month, with dozens of customers driving up to her roadside stall each week.

So popular has her stall become, she’s now part of Huon Valley Council visitor information guides and has Tassie’s Instagram influencers happy to take snaps alongside the fridge door.

“I thought maybe I’d sell a few things but it’s really taken off,” Ms Matusik said.

AirBnBs and local accommodation providers like Huon Valley Glamping also purchase her goodies as a surprise treat for guests — and it’s this support that’s the bright spark in an otherwise dark year for many local businesses.

“We’re very lucky in Tasmania there’s a huge support for the tourist industry, when shit hits the fan we all rally around each other which is why I think most businesses have survived COVID,” Ms Matusik said.

The Little Black Fridge is just one of literally dozens of roadside stalls that dot highways, dirt roads and thoroughfares of Tasmania.

The stalls are run by a myriad of characters, selling a variety of fares from homemade jams to baked goods, fresh sourdough, flowers and fresh produce through to soaps and honey.

Some are run by the children of farmers — a nice little way to earn some pocket money while supporting the family business.

Other roadside stallholders are run by successful entrepreneurs — like the Willie Smith apple stall or the Bruny Island Baker.

And a few are the labours of long-time Tasmanians and market veterans like Heidi and Herbert Bauer, who run the Whispering Spirit farmgate stall in Geeveston.

Heidi, 69, and Herbert, 71, moved from the south of Germany to Australia’s Apple Isle more than four decades ago — for a “bit of adventure”, Mrs Bauer laughed.

“We wanted to have our own business and farm … we’re not used to working in an office so we wanted to fulfil our own destiny,” she said.

And their destiny is definitely full, with the couple running holiday cottages, a miniature pony stud, as well as farming produce and baking treats for their farmgate stall.

The Bauers were regulars at Salamanca Market for 27 years and the Farm Gate Market for seven, before retiring from market life and moving their attention back to their Franklin farm.

“The heavier farm work Herbert does, but he’s also helping me bake things as well, watching the oven and does packaging so we share the load,” Mrs Bauer explained.

“You have to work together as a team and you have to be a team, otherwise you won’t get it done.”

And their teamwork pays off, with customers coming from all over Tasmania and interstate to pick up their specialty — farm fresh summer berries.

“We grow blueberries, raspberries, cherries and strawberries all fresh in summer and in the new year we will have tomatoes as well,” Mrs Bauer said.

“We also do jams and cakes and breads, cheesecakes, biscuits and German specialities.”

The Bauers are preparing themselves for “a very busy summer”, already noticing a spike in visitors to their farmgate which stays open seven days a week “8am until dark”.

TASSIE’S ROADSIDE STALLS TRAIL

Do you have a roadside stall you want added to the map / list below? Leave a comment below with details of your stall, including full address.

South

• Little Black Fridge | Home-made baked sweets, slices and cakes | 9 Britcliffes Rd, Geeveston
• Whispering Spirit Farm Stall | Farm-baked treats, berries, German-specialty dishes and fresh produce | 253 Swamp Rd, Franklin
• Campo De Flori | Boutique farm growing saffron, lavender and olives + pottery studio | 184 Lanes Road, Glen Huon

• Kymmik Cottage | Farm fresh eggs, flowers, garden produce, home made soap, jams, plants and more | 141 Fourfoot Rd, Geeveston

• Provenance Growers | Beautiful produce, classic and unusual edible plants | Betts Rd, Neika
• Scott Brothers apple stall | 322 Scotts Rd, Cairns Bay
• Huon Valley juice stall near Duggans in Cradoc
• The Basil Girl | Woodbridge Hill Rd, Gardners Bay
• Forage Flowers | Cilwen Rd, Cambridge
• Sally’s flower stall | Clifton Beach Road
• The Vegie Man, Otago Bay
• The Bruny Baker | Home-baked sourdough bread sold from a roadside fridge stall
• Bruny Island Market Garden near Dennes Point
• Daniel’s Fruit & Veg | 11yo Daniel sells fresh lemons, cherries, tomatoes, beef, broad beans, pink eyes, apples, pears, plums + more | 248 Boyer Rd, Bridgewater
• Picket Fence Produce | Veggie plants and in-season vegetables and flowers | 4 Summer Court, Mt Nelson
• Soyoyoy Foods | Fresh tofu, plant-based cheeses and decadent mousse | Ferry Rd Kettering
• Lucaston Park Orchards | Apples and other in-season fruit, apple juice, jams | 26 Lucaston Rd
• Ashcraig Farm | Fresh seasonal fresh fruit, vegetables and healthy seedlings | 1648 Nicholls Rivulet Rd, Nicholls Rivulet
• Valleyfield farm stall | Raspberries and blackcurrant juice | 708 Glen Huon Rd, Glen Huon
• Unnamed hidden gem: Berries and honey sold from a little stall behind Cascade Brewery, top of Old Farm Road

Midlands/East Coast

• Tasmanian Kitchen Pantry | Sweet and savoury preserves, fresh veggies | 505 Colebrook Rd, Campania
• Coal River Produce | Tomato plants and honey | Campania
• Bream Creek Community Market Garden | Fridge full of milk, cucumbers, cauliflowers, broccoli, broccolini, salad, cooking greens, baby chard bags, broadbeans, eggs, spring onions, honey herbs | 245 Burnt Hill Rd, Bream Creek
• Roadside stall run by the farm’s kids selling potatoes, pine cones, gum bark and free range eggs, Dysart Drive, Dysart
• Veronica Foale Essentials soapery | Highland Lakes Rd, Melton Mowbray
• Reeza’s Preserves and Chutneys | East Shelley Beach, Orford
• Little roadside stall selling jams, fruit/veg, firewood, sheep poo, gift cards, eggs | Little Swanport/ Mayfield
• Daisy Chain Home and Gifts | Small mobile boutique selling gifts and fresh flowers | 699 Arthur Highway, Forcett

cas.garvey@news.com.au