2023 🥧 Tour
Review no 52
Crust Bakery
(Cotton Tree Sunshine Coast )
As mentioned last week we are back in QLD for a little while and that means visiting as many bakeries as possible before the next tour begins. I have reviewed over 40 odd bakeries on the Sunshine Coast but there’s still a few I’ve missed and one of those is Crust Bakery.
Crust Bakery has six locations scattered around the Sunshine Coast and is owned and operated by Gary and his wife Julie. Gary has been in the baking game most of his life and started his apprenticeship over in the UK. After leaving the UK, Gary spent time working on cruise ships then more time in the Caymen Islands before making Sunshine Coast his home.
Gary’s first Sunshine Coast bakery was opened up 15 years ago and was named Riverside Bakery, it was located on Duporth Ave around 15 years ago. After a short time Gary and his then busineses partner Lachan re branded and that was the start of Crust Bakery.
I decided to visit one of there busiest locations and that was the Cotton Tree store located on King Street. Unfortunately Gary was away the day of my visit but i was well looked after by his manager Samantha.
The Cotton Tree store while only tiny packs a huge punch. The variety of bread, pastries, cakes and 🥧’s available here is extensive. The bakery was super busy the day of my visit so we got straight into this review and headed to the 🥧 warmer to make a decision.
With over 15 different varieties of 🥧’s to choose from, making a decision on what 🥧 to review was going to be difficult. I was getting nowhere making a decision until Samantha stepped in and pulled out a “Lamb & Red Wine” 🥧. In the end this turned out to be a epic choice !!!!
🥧 THE REVIEW 🥧
1. Value for Money – $7.50 is up there, but this 🥧 was a decent square shaped size and as previously stated lamb is ridiculously expensive at present. Overall yes $7.50 is a little pricey but nothing over the top and this 🥧 was reasonably priced. 8.5/10
2. Meat Ratio – Totally full !!! Yes the depth wasn’t huge, but I can only score what’s in front of me and this was choc a block full 10/10
3. Flavour – Really good !!! The red wine sauce was my favourite by far. The lamb was cooked beautifuly and the added rosemary on top was a real bonus. I’ve never had a red wine/lamb combo before and this flavour was an absolute ripper !!! 9/10
4. Pastry – The shape, color and shrinkage were all pretty good. The top was incredibly flakey and the flavour of the pastry was great. On the negative side the top and bottom bakes were too thick and under baked. Overall the pastry wasn’t that, but the thickness and bake has let the overall score down. 6/10
5. Serving Temperature – Zero issues !!! The serving temp was perfect 10/10
Overall Rating
🥧🥧 43.5/50 🥧🥧
Apart from the pastry bake and thickness this was a really good product. The flavour of this 🥧 was stunning and the red wine sauce really added to the overall flavour. The meat ratio and serving temperature were also spot on. Yeah at $7.50 the price is up there but nothing over the top. Would I have another one of these 🥧’s ? Simple answer is Yes !!! No hesitation recommending the bakery and this flavoured 🥧 to you guys.
Add Crust Bakery to your little black 🥧 book, this bakery is a little cracker. A massive thanks to Gary for reaching out and Samantha for taking the time out of her busy day to show me around. As mentioned earlier Crust has six locations across the Sunny Coast and each one will take care of your 🥧 needs. Thanks for having me in guys !!!
