The Bake Shop’s pastries are constantly changing flavours to keep customers coming back.
A Cambridgeshire bakery has been named the best in the county at the National Bakery Awards. Ruth Reyes, general manager of the Bake Shop in Ely, said it is ‘amazing’ to have been recognised for another award.
Earlier this year, the café and bakery was named in the Good Food Guide as one of the best bakeries in Britain. Miss Reyes said: “It’s one of those things where even though we have been recognised before, it doesn’t stop being amazing. There’s tough competition out there. You’ve got some amazing bakeries in Cambridgeshire and to be recognised nationally by this institution is really great.
“Especially for the bakers. I think, for them, it’s a real honour because it’s something that’s specifically for the products and not just the shop as a whole. So I think they’re very pleased.”
Miss Reyes believes the Bake Shop continues to win awards thanks to the ‘passion’ shown by the staff and the bakers, which can be seen in how the products are made. She said the bakery is always trying “to be the best”.
In terms of some of the products that new visitors of the Bake Shop should try, Miss Reyes had a few suggestions to suit anyone’s tastes. She said: “My personal favourite is the kanelbullar. That’s a cardamom cinnamon bun. I would definitely recommend it but you do have to like cardamom. That is a key factor.
“I always like the Danishes because they’re always changing. The flavours are changing and I think that’s where they can get really innovative and really fun. There’s a ginger and quince Danish that I’ve really been obsessed with. A couple of weeks ago, we had a pistachio and quince one that was really good. They’re always seasonal and different.”
Miss Reyes also mentioned the bombolone as being one of the Bake Shop’s bestsellers thanks to the crème pâtissière that is constantly changing. Some recent flavours include vanilla, hazelnut, and chocolate orange.
Miss Reyes added: “The Pain Suisse is another favourite of our customers. It’s a layer of custard and chocolate chips that melt together into the dough. The dough is crispy and layered so that’s one people always come back for.”
The Bake Shop has a lot of regular customers that the staff have gotten to know very well. Miss Reyes says it’s “really great” working in Ely thanks to the “community focus” of the city.
She continued: “Ely seems to be growing. There’s a lot of people coming through the doors at the moment and a lot of people in town so that keeps it nice and vibrant. Everyone is really nice and we’re very lucky that we have such a loyal and lovely customer base. I always like to think of them as another member of the team.”
The Bake Shop can be found at 30 St Mary’s Street in Ely.
