TWO Bobs Bakery's range of sourdough bread and pastries has earned a faithful following since opening in Nelson Bay four-and-a-half years ago.
Now, the bakery has landed in Newcastle.
Two Bobs owners Nicky Bowden and Rob Daniels officially opened their Hunter Street bakery and pantry a fortnight ago, offering fresh-baked bread, pastries and pantry items.
A second store was not a part of the plan when the couple decided to make the move from Sydney to Nelson Bay and open a sourdough bakery.
However, Newcastle customers who visited the shop kept asking: "Where can I buy Two Bobs in Newcastle?"
"Officially, no, it wasn't part of the plan, but at the start of this year we decided to make the move down there," Bowden tells Weekender.
"We had so many requests for our product down in Newcastle, so it was a nice option for us to be able to spread further afield even though we never really planned to."
Like the Nelson Bay shop, the bakery is stocked with sourdough loaves of all shapes, sizes and varieties.
There are staple items and daily specials, including their popular cheddar and jalapeno bread.
"There are our staple items that we have available every day and then each day we have a special breads," she says.
Specials on rotation include rye and caraway sourdough, and dark rye, beer and maple sourdough.
"That is a real European style of rye, it's nice and dense, and super tasty," she said.
"On Thursdays, we are known for our cheddar and jalapeno cornbread, and Friday is the caramelised onion, feta pizzette.
"That one is the most popular bread of the week."
There are also baguettes and bagels, croissants and danishes, all created using sourdough. Pastries specials are available on weekends.
"Everything is 100 per cent sourdough," Bowden said. "With the pastries, the taste has a really nice sweet and sour taste, obviously it is made with sugar so it is a little bit sweeter, but then it has got that sourness from the sourdough.
"That makes them a little bit unique."
Two Bobs Bakery uses heritage organic flour, which adds another element to its offering.
Heritage flour is organic and is typically made from older wheat varieties, and it is considered to offer a unique flavour with excellent baking properties.
"That makes what we do different from other products," she says.
"Something I have been working on as well to make that point of difference is to make a 100 per cent sourdough pastry that is crispy, buttery and delicious."
Like the Nelson Bay store, Newcastle's Two Bobs Bakery has an extensive pantry section stocked with quality food items such as Italian-made fresh pasta and sauces as well as its house-made range of chutneys, jams and seasoning.
Heat-and-eat meals made by the Two Bobs team are also available.
"We make a lot of sauces, jams and we do take-home meals as well such as lasagna, cottage pies," she says.
"We also have soup on the menu."
Coffee is also available to pair perfectly with a fresh pastry.
Two Bobs Bakery and Pantry is the creation of Bowden and Daniels, who met almost 20 years ago when they were both working at restaurants in London.
After living in the UK, the pair moved to Australia and eventually landed in Sydney, which is where they fell in love with the art of sourdough baking.
It was during a stint working at the long-running sourdough bakery, Iggy's, that the seed was planted.
"It was something I had always wanted to do, and once I started working at Iggy's I realised how much I was into it and how it was a totally different skill I could acquire by working there," she says.
"I learned so much by working there. That's why I really love sourdough."
- Two Bobs Bakery and Pantry is at 277 Hunter Street, Newcastle. The bakery is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 7.30am to 2pm.
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