Blood's Bakery

Blood's Bakery first started during the 2021 lockdown. This chef-led Instagram based bakery by Alex Lynn sells buttery pastries, sourdough loaves, choux pastries and tarts all made in his inner-city apartment. There is the staple range but every week he focuses on a different country and creates a range based on its flavours. These delectably buttery pastries are available to pick up on the weekend or they can also be delivered but you have to get in fast as they sell out quickly!

Former Ms G and Mr Wong Chef Alex Lynn first started focusing on breads and pastries at the beginning of the 2020 lockdown. "I’ve been practicing my craft for a long time but was only given an opportunity to spread my wings during the first lockdown. I’ve always had a love for bread and pastries ever since I was five years old and smelt bread coming out of a woodfire oven in my Mum’s hometown in Malta," says Alex.

In July 2021 he started Blood's Bakery. "In certain parts of England, the word "Blood" or "blud" is a term for greeting friends - a bit like bro, bruv, mate. I would use the word a lot with co-workers when working at Ms Gs and the Head Chef Pat, christened me with the nickname 'Blood' and it has stuck ever since. So to us, the word 'Bloods' means you're our mate/bro and we're going to do everything possible to try give you a great experience," explains Alex.

Ordering from Blood's Bakery is done entirely via Instagram DM. On Tuesdays Alex releases the menu, you DM him your selection and then payment secures the order. You can pick them up on either Saturday or Sunday from 3pm-6pm. Oh and you pick it up from their apartment where all of the bread and pastries are made. Every week or so, to keep things interesting, he has started a world series focusing on flavours from a different cuisine. I had just missed out on the Chinese menu but when the Japanese menu was released I jumped straight in and ordered.

It was a grey Sunday when Mr NQN and I headed towards Ultimo (perfect pastry weather really). It isn't raining so Mr NQN drops me off and I text the number given and wait outside. Alex's wife Kylie brings down the bags of pastries and they very instant she hands me the paper bags full of incredible smelling pastries the sky opens up and heavy sheets of rain start to fall. She offers to let me and another customer wait inside and we gratefully accept the offer but when she sees I'm still waiting inside 5 minutes later she kindly offers to walk me to my car with an umbrella. My stomach is growling and I'm being driven slightly crazy by the smell of the pastries so I take her up on it and I'm glad to report that the pastries made it safe into the car thanks to her.

They're still warm when I unwrap them and it takes all my will to not eat them. Even Mr NQN is milling around with Teddy hoping for some. "Can we eat?" he says when I've snapped my last picture. They use a single origin flour from Tamworth NSW via the supplier Providence and Malt. As for the butter, Alex says, "I’m still playing with different butters to find my favourite but for your batch, it was Pepe Saya butter."

The unagi tart is from the Japanese series and is made with teriyaki glazed fillets of barbecued eel, Kewpie mayonnaise, sesame seeds, kombu powder, shallots, katsuoboshi and nori. "The main inspiration was from the Japanese dish Okonomiyaki," explains Alex. And goodness me it's amazing. Mr NQN and I fight over the last bite of this. This along with the Chinese world series Prawn and Pork ‘Siu Mai’ sausage rolls have been the best received items from the world series. Alex has plans to move the world series to Europe next and he encourages people to DM him on the @bloodsbakery instagram account to suggest a country.

The smoked tart tart has a puff pastry base baked dark with a topping of Stephen Hodges smoked trout, trout roe and taramasalata style sauce. It normally looks a bit neater like a flower on top but the trout got a bit knocked off during transportation. Still it's divine with a range of textures especially when you get some of the trout, roe and taramasalata.

The potato, trout roe and seaweed is a very cute idea. It has a whole hasselback potato baked into the puff pastry, trout roe, kombu cream and pieces of nori. Alex describes it as, "A play on fish and chips and I love double carbs! It’s all my favourite things on a puff pastry base."

In terms of sweets, the brown butter yuzu tart with a sablé pastry base is part of the Japanese series. The aroma of the nutty brown butter is intoxicating and the candied yuzu gives it a marmaladey quality but with an rich sweetness thanks to the Lyle's Golden Syrup. It comes with a separate dab of cream and yuzu should you want to heat up your tart although even chilled it is spectacular. "It's a play on treacle tart, but with tons-load more butter," says Alex.

The Thai Milk Tea croissant pudding is made with layered croissant pastry baked in a cup shape with a thick Thai milk tea custard in the centre. In a separate cup is a pourable custard that goes over it after heating it up in the oven. This pastry is sweet and buttery with a generous amount of pouring custard and best for sharing among two people. Or two people that want to fight over every last crumb.

Will the bakery continue this year once COVID numbers starts to subside? "Our motto is “No bread, no life”, so fuck yeah, we’ll be continuing the bakery! And hopefully in the future we’ll find a permanent site to operate from," says Alex.

So tell me Dear Reader, which country would you like to see them do? Which pastry did you like the look of? Have you tried any of them?

These pastries were independently paid for.

Blood's Bakery

https://www.instagram.com/bloodsbakery/