Maldon Bakery
Date: 6 June 2024
We visited Maldon Bakery last week and spoke with owner Rebecca Barnett to find out more about this much loved business.
Can you tell us a little about the history of the bakery and how you became involved?
Built in 1864, The Maldon Bakery is 170 years old this year and is the oldest continuously running bakery in Australia. It was built at the start of the gold rush in Maldon and the Scotch oven was the first brick structure in Maldon. It is vast inside and was designed to bake masses of loaves in each bake. The Scotch oven was the heart of the burgeoning town and it would have been fired constantly to feed the thousands of miners pouring into the goldfields to try their luck at finding their fortune. The thermal mass is huge and once the oven is hot it retains the heat for a surprisingly long time. I became involved because I could see it had good potential to build something fabulous. I come from a background in hospitality business and have five generations of bakers in my family.
How has the bakery changed in the time that you have been there?
I have invested a lot of time, money and effort into increasing efficiencies and capacity while also restoring the bakery’s inherent charm. I have restored the Scotch oven and use it during the colder months to bake our sourdough bread. The original bakery shop is once again open; this tiny and charming original shop had been closed for nearly 20 years. It is now utilised as popular little coffee window. This has been great as customers love seeing the bakers at work in the bakehouse as they order their coffee.
How has the bakery impacted the Maldon community?
The Maldon Bakery has a high sentimental value for generations of people long before I took it on. I often have visitors who will joyfully recollect memories they have of the bakery when they were young, or relatives who have worked there.
What advice would you give to someone looking to start a similar business?
Find your point of difference and celebrate it.
What’s your favourite item from the bakery and why?
The fancy vanilla slice is really popular and made with slightly candied croissant pastry and filled with a delicious crème pat custard. The fruit tarts are lovely, especially when I can top them with fruit from the ancient pomegranate tree in the bakery garden. I am very proud of our bread. It is 100% slow leavened sourdough made with excellent flour from wholegrain milling. There is no rubbish in our bread, only four ingredients – flour, water, salt and leaven. The way bread should be!