A Hot Cross Bun Manifesto, and Last Minute MFWF Picks
On Melbourne's best buns, and our last minute festival picks.
You may recall in the Bureau mince pie rankings in December, we went into frankly unnecessary detail about the merits of Melbourne’s most meticulous mincies. I have a similar relationship to the next seasonal sensation up on the bakery schedule, hot cross buns; I like them, but my partner loves them. They are an obsession for her, and through her fevered, insatiable lens, I have learnt to appreciate the artform.
There are a few standout proponents around town, and while I can’t profess to be an expert, I’m certainly attaining a level of exposure (x-posure, if you will) that warrants a newsletter post.
Got a suggestion for Melbourne’s best HCB? Drop me a line in the comments, and I’ll check it out. So, without further ado, we present our pick of Melbourne’s best Hot Cross Buns.
North Melbourne’s Bread Club leans into HCB season with the vigour of an unruly beagle launching itself into the air (see photo above).
The scale of this operation is impressive; always sleek, steady and spotless, Bread Club is a bakery at the top of their game. On our last visit, Bread Club was offering three variations of the HCB. The first, a standard fruit bun, is pillowy and fresh, absolutely packed with rich bittersweet dried fruit. I’d recommend getting in early and eating one of these straight from the rack, unadorned, with a cup of BC’s excellent filter coffee. Their second option, a deeply savoury chocolate version made with Melbourne’s own Hunted & Gathered, is an absolute triumph, the rich bitterness of the fruit only heightened by the chocolate. The third, Frankenstein’s bun, is a twice cooked concoction combining fruit bun and almond croissant. Not for me, but an ingenious way to ensure unsold buns find their purpose.
I could extol the virtues of Baker Bleu all day, but we’ve heard it all before. From Melbourne’s best kept secret out of a Caulfield shop front window to the nationally recognised, cook book spawning multi-city behemoth it is today, Baker Bleu is probably Australia’s best bakery. The truest testament to Bleu’s quality is that you can make a statement as grandiose as that, and in most instances, face very little opposition.
Their entry is, in true Bleu fashion, nontraditional. A dense, crusty bun is rife with saliva-squeezing sour cherries and darkly decadent chocolate, and foregos tacky flavourless white crosses in favour of an elegant slash. To me, this is the height of the artform, but there's enough conjecture over whether or not these are truly HCB’s to propel the conversation further.
I’m rather partial to Loafer’s dextrous, gnarly little square buns. They’re pleasingly chewy, with enough spring to keep you coming back for more, maturely spiced and not oversweet. Frankly, any excuse to visit this idyllic Fitzroy North bakery is fit for purpose.
Whilst I’m yet to partake in the 2024 iteration, I am reliably informed that Wild Life bakery is putting Gospel Distillery rye whisky into their buns. This creates all sorts of intrigue for me, and I feel there is very little recourse for me other than to imbibe with a toasted HCB, washed down with a generous dram of the good stuff. In fact, I’m reminded that Annie Smithers recently remarked that toasted panettone is a superlative cheese accompaniment, and I imagine a ripe nutty alpine or something French and gooey would go particularly well in this scenario.
Some Last Minute MFWF Recommendations
The Melbourne Food & Wine Festival kicked off this past Friday. We wrote about it for Broadsheet, and while some of the festival’s marquee events were held over the weekend (and many more are sold out), here’s our pick of the rest of the fest.
The Sweet Life: Lauren Eldridge x Di Stasio Carlton
Sweet savant Lauren Eldridge heads to Melbourne for a dolce demonstration not to be missed. A few tickets left for this one, don’t miss the opportunity to sample the work of one of Australia’s most exciting young talents in one of the city’s most stunning locations.
A Werribee Wander
As a proud Westie, I’m morally obliged to fly the flag for this event, in oft-neglected Werribee. Yes, it’s more than a zoo and a mansion. Teddy Picker is a local fave, and recently opened Casa Cantina holds its own in the Melbourne Mexican melee.
A Taste of East Brunswick Village
We recently spoke about the impressive EBV precinct, and our love for The Rocket Society. Kill as many as four birds with one great value stone by taking in this event, which not only showcases Bridge Road Brewers and Rumi, but features a screening of one of the great food films of modern times, The Trip to Italy, at the beautiful new FOMO cinema.
Two Bistros, One Vision: La Cachette x Chancery Lane
If you’ve been unable to get down to Geelong to sample Matt Podbury’s refined bistronomy at La Cachette, buddy, do I have a deal with you. The revered chef brings his Michlein-star honed cuisine to Normanby Chambers for an event at Scott Pickett’s Chancery Lane. Gallic gastronomes, this is the event for you.
Tom Sarafian x Lee Ho Fook
Melbourne’s hummus heart throb Tom Sarafian teams up with Victor Liong to deliver a taste of the silk road. For my money, these are two of the most interesting young culinary talents in Australia, and at a reasonable price for a 6 course feast. Limited tickets remaining.
Whisky Ice-Cream Social
This one is basically here for me, partly to call back to the whisky hot cross buns mentioned above, partly because the idea of a whisky and ice cream tasting sounds almost too good to be true.
Hatcher Baker. HCBs delivered to your door without too much fuss.
Back Alley Bakes in Coburg. Epic HXB’s!