Short Sweet Bakery, Parramatta

Short Sweet Bakery has opened up in Parramatta's busy Church Street Mall.

Short Sweet Bakery occupies the old Delifrance site (up near Hungry Jacks - you know where I mean, right?)...but I have to say that the baked goods offered up are in a league WAY beyond any cafe or bakery that has ever called this place home before.

The bakery has been slowly opening up since December and things should be in full swing come February. In the meantime I drop by every couple of days to see what's new. By "drop by" I mean walk slowly by whilst craning my neck to see what cakes are in the vast display cabinet!  I try not to look too conspicuous as what I'm really doing is stalking.

On my first visit I'm with VegeTARAian who purchases a few sweet treats to take home. I'm told EVERYTHING was amazing and the Chocolate Brownie ($5.00) in particular was an Oh My God moment.

I really like that a number of the sweet treats are quite petite.  I don't feel so guilt ridden indulging in something sweet as it's little. That said there are a number of BIG cakes on offer if you have a sweeter tooth, or less guilty conscious, than me. After a weekend brunch The Boy + I shared a Berry Tart ($3.00) and a Lemon Meringue Tart ($3.00) - both a wonderful little sweet morsel to finish brunch with.  The pastry shell is quite difficult to cut through so these little morsels are best NOT shared.

I also took home a huge bag of homemade Honeycomb ($5.00) which was spectacular - it tasted of REAL honey which might sound like an odd thing to say, but if you think about it a Violet Crumble doesn't really taste like honey, does it?  There are also lots of pre-packaged take home treats like cookies, shortbreads and cocoa powder.  The take-home items are constantly changing depending on what Leanne has whipped up that day.

 

The Boy is quite (very) partial to Meringue ($2.50) and could not resist taking home a beautiful sugary cloud of French Meringue for later on. This thing was HUGE!  At least as big as my outstretched hand (fingers included).

A number of savoury items are slowly being added to the menu - pies, sausage rolls, quiches and crusty bread rolls with fillings like eggs + baby spinach.  On the weekends tasty morsels such a baked eggs, granola and toasted banana bread are also offered up. Things seem to change on a regular basis so it's fun to turn up and see what brunch options are on. 

During my never-ending, lazy summer holiday I stop in for a big, hearty Lean Beef Sausage Roll ($5.00).  The pastry is thick, crusty and flaky and the lean beef filling has a lovely savoury flavour though not as fatty (it's a bit dry) as I'm used to in a sausage roll. It's simple, but it's filling and fairly tasty.

I also sample a savoury beef pie ($5.00) - on a different visit mind you - which was excellent. I normally favour sausage rolls over pies but I have to say both are vying for first place in my heart. The crust was lovely and thick on the bottom, no soggy bottoms here, and the filling of chunky beef, carrots and gravy was so flavoursome. This is a pie best described as "hearty" and totally delicious.

On my next visit I notice that the coffee machine is up + running and there are plenty of people sitting around the big industrial style tables enjoying a cuppa. I passed on the coffee this time as I'd ridden my bike up to the bakery and was nearly dying from heat exhaustion. They'll be offering iced-coffee as soon as they get their freezer in - yay!  In the meantime it's fun to do a bit of a cafe crawl, iced-coffee at Three Ropes and snacks at Short Sweet.

I just love Short Sweet Bakery.  Their location in Church Street Mall, with big open windows, is perfect for some interesting people watching. The cafe is quite roomy so it's going to be the perfect place to brunch with friends on weekends.

Short Sweet Bakery is at Shop 17, 162-172 Church Street (in the mall), Parramatta. They plan on opening 7 days a week for breakfast + lunch.