Bay Bakery product reviews

As we wandered around the delightful Whitianga township, my tummy alerted me to the need for lunch, so we popped into this bakery to source some food. I ordered my usual staple 'benchmark' product, a Steak and Cheese pie plus a 600ml bottle of coke and an interesting little something called a Salami Hotshot... which turned out to be a roll of croissant bread stuffed with spicy salami and cheese, and a bottle of flavoured milk for my son. When the lovely lady behind the counter then asked me for $14.00, I was floored! Though I was assured by an acquaintance who lives here that this was about normal, I was still stunned by the sheer cost of food here.

The pie was reasonable, but lacking any chunks of meat at all, and any noticeable cheese inside the pie, instead being filled with an amorphous, but tasty meaty paste. The pastry was reasonable, but a little dry and flakey, and the cheese on top was cooked to a crispy coating which I found a little unpleasant. The Salami Hotshot was another mater, it was spicy, tasty and quite appealing. The croissant bread was buttery and not too flakey, and the filling was heavy on cheese. Yummo!

Overall, there was a lot more range in the bakery than I tried, simply because to sample more would have near bankrupted me, but if you are in the region of holiday, you probably aren't too worried about prices, and will find this to be a nice little bakery. With outdoor seating in good weather, and friendly staff, it certainly does have a lot going for it. There are other bakeries in the town, but this is reputed to be one of the less expensive ones.