Staple Bakery in Manly is the third Staple bakery for owner James Partington. He began his bread making journey following heart surgery back in 2012 and has since dreamt of owning a hole-in-the-wall by the beach. The Manly location is just that. Located next to Barrel One Coffee Roasters,  this little corner of Manly is a thriving hub for those seeking out great food and coffee.

People regularly queue up to snag Staple’s fresh baked goods. The current selection at Manly is similar to that of the Seaforth store – sourdough loaves, baguettes, rye and pastries including croissants, cinnamon scrolls and vanilla slices – all made with rye and wholewheat puff. Staple’s breads are made with long fermentations, natural yeast and grain hand grinded with Parington’s American stone mill in-house.

Staple Bakery has also collaborated with Aboriginal author and advocate Bruce Pascoe to create a loaf of bread using native Australian grains, which you’ll find from time to time. Pascoe gifted Partington 500 grams of kangaroo grass wheat, which grows abundantly in Australia and was used by the Indigenous population 60,000 years ago. After combining the wheat with a rye, he produced a successful loaf with a distinct but tasty “grassy” flavour to it.

The secret to Staple’s success is, according to Partington, an awful lot of love that goes into everything they do. He thinks it’s a privilege to bake for the community and to serve them.

This sense of community can be followed like a trail of breadcrumbs through every aspect of the business. Partington treats each person who walks through his door like a friend. During the soft opening, members of the Bold & Beautiful swim club (who Partington has swum with) came in for discounts, and drivers stopping at the lights outside were offered free loaves of bread. The thing that most excited him about getting his own mill was how it strengthened his relationship with local farmers, who now ask him what grains he’d like them to grow.

If you’d like to try baking your own goods, Staple Bread & Necessities’ hand-ground flour is available for wholesale purchase online and at the Manly store.

Source: Broadsheet