‘It’s going to be mayhem’: Heaving bakery brings cult pastries and queues to new Northcote store
After losing several bakeries, High Street in Northcote has welcomed Calle, which has brought its famed croissant wheels and other queue-worthy creations from Carlton North.
“Viral” isn’t the most appetising food descriptor. But there’s no denying the power of a dish that’s creating buzz both online and in the real world. Such is the pull of Calle bakery’s custard-filled croissant wheels and its Parisian hot chocolate served with whipped cream on the side.
The Carlton North business has been mobbed by ever-longer queues for its riffs on globally trending pastries since it opened on Rathdowne Street in 2022. And the lines look set to continue at its new location in Northcote.
Last Friday, Calle opened a second shopfront on High Street to a queue of more than 200 customers, many of whom were rewarded with a free cinnamon scroll.
The expansion was all about scaling up. “We wanted to make more innovative products, but we just didn’t have the space in Carlton,” says Ellena Ly, who owns the bakery with her sister, Vivian Ly. “Here [in Northcote] we can do double the output.”
For Northcote, it’s a (coincidentally timed) blessing of baked goods. Last month, locally loved bakery All Are Welcome – which had a store near the new Calle site, and another further up High Street in Thornbury –closed after going into liquidation. Nearby sweet spot Holy Sugar is shutting its shopfront this month.
Calle has taken over the site of longstanding bakery Kolya, which has been lightened and brightened, with room for 20 diners.
“We obviously had no idea about All Are Welcome or Holy Sugar closing [when we signed the lease] ... We were really shocked,” says Ellena, who’s been able to employ a handful of out-of-work pastry chefs and baristas from All Are Welcome.
Heading up production is Vivian’s husband, Huey Phung, a pastry chef of 25-plus years.
The signature croissant wheels – inspired by those that attract crowds to New York bakery Lafayette – have come to Northcote, but are available only Friday to Sunday (as in Carlton North). Two different flavours are on the roster every month.
In July, there’s sticky date, the wheels piped with brown sugar and date custard, drizzled with butterscotch and topped with sticky-date cake; and lemon meringue, with a zingy lemon-curd-spiked custard inside.
Also popular is a croissant version of the internet-famous Dubai chocolate bar, with a filling of creamy pistachio spread and crispy kataifi pastry threads, and a topping of melted dark chocolate. Ooey-gooey cinnamon scrolls are a Northcote exclusive.
As for Calle’s most crowd-pulling limited-edition creation – the Parisian hot chocolate poured into a croissant wheel – there’s a “high chance” it will appear at Northcote.
“People are still asking for it every weekend,” says Vivian. “When we do relaunch it, it’s going to be mayhem, so we thought we would give the locals some time to enjoy [the bakery] first.”
But it’s not all OTT sweets. Calle also deals in daily bread, from slabs of focaccia (a new addition) to sourdough loaves. You’ll also find sandwiches and other savoury items, including quiche and gougeres (cheese puffs).
Breakfast and lunch Tue-Sat
229 High Street, Northcote, calle.com.au
Tomas Telegramma is a food, drinks and culture writer.