Bandit Bakery

I discovered recently that the baker who used to make the sourdough for Foodstory Café – Pete Leonard – left to open his own bakery – Bandit Bakery.

A few weeks ago I went to check it out. The bakery opened at 10am and I got there at about 11:15am. They were completely sold out of bread. All that was left were these delicious-looking buns. I asked for four but was only allowed to purchase two because of the demand. The kids ate them.

Yesterday I went back again in the hope of better success. There was a huge queue down the street even before the bakery opened. I joined the queue just after opening and had to wait about 20 minutes. This time I managed to get some bread, a focaccia, and another two sticky buns (there are still restrictions on the number you can buy).

This time I ate a whole sticky bun for myself and it was delicious. The focaccia was delicious and so was the sourdough. I can see why people are queueing and why he sells out so quickly. It has been a while since we bought sourdough and I was reminded how yummy it is, especially the stuff Pete makes.

Pete also sells flour, presumably the same stuff he uses in his breads. He sells a particularly good spelt flour which is grown in Aberdeenshire on a family-run farm – Westfield Spelt. He told me he gets the flour straight from the farm; no middleman. The farm sends their spelt to Golspie Mill, the only commercial water-powered mill in mainland Scotland which turns the grain into flour using the traditional mechanical water wheel. That’s very special. I bought a packet of it and made some banana bread which was a big hit with the family.

The bakery opened last month to big queues running all the way down the street. I’m so pleased he’s doing well but he needs a bigger kitchen and more staff to cope with the huge demand. If you want to go and check it out the bakery is on Rose Street, just around the corner from Foodstory Café.