Hudson Road in Spotswood is a burgeoning urban strip. There’s the cafe, Duchess of Spotswood, at No. 87, while the recent opening of Candied Bakery at 81A has added further culinary clout to the area.
The owners of Candied Bakery, Orlando Artavilla and Toula Ploumidis, owned and operated Sugardough bakery in Brunswick from 2004 until late last year, so they know a thing or two about their craft.
For this new venture, they were inspired by a recent trip to the US, especially New York. Seeking an area “that needed a good bakery”, they settled on Spotswood. The large room is finished with polished concrete flooring, a communal table on one side of the room and bench seating with small tables on the other. The focus as soon as you enter is the large counter filled with the products from baker Artavilla.
Most of the bread is sourdough. There are large round loaves of olive bread, white sourdough ($5.50) or wholemeal, barley and oat ($6).
Take your time to choose from the selection of smaller goods on the counter — the staff are happy to talk you through everything.
American-inspired jelly doughnuts ($4) sit alongside brownie pie ($6) and croissants, plain or filled with Nutella ($5).
A pizza slice ($5.50) topped with tomato and fresh goat’s cheese is warmed for us. It has an even, well-cooked dough and the croque monsieur ($11) is a decadent slab of brioche filled with egg, ham and mustardy béchamel.
On the day we visit, the ciabatta rolls are filled with roast beef and salad ($9.50) or asparagus frittata ($9.50), and the pies, all made on the premises, are plump with fillings of beef, egg and bacon, or lentils and goat’s cheese. This isn’t your average bakery. Rather, it’s a testament to good quality and a couple evolving and taking their next business step.
