The Ultimate Guide to Craft Bakeries in Ireland
Where to find your Daily Loaf
The Artisan and Craft Bakeries of Ireland
Lucky us. We are living in Ireland’s Age of Bakeries.
A dozen years ago, there were scarcely a dozen specialist bakeries in Ireland. In 2024, this comprehensive survey describes more than 100 artisan bakeries throughout the island, a tribe of men and women who bake with skill, integrity, and a focus on health and well-being.
The Age of Bakeries is actually a Second Coming. Ireland used to be crowded with local bakeries: if you lived in West Cork you ate Cotter’s Bread; in Kerry it was Harrington’s, and this identification with local places and local bakeries covered the country.
The network was largely destroyed by the supermarkets and their bread price wars, most especially in 1989 when Ben Dunne of Dunnes Stores slashed the price of a loaf to 35 pence. The number of local bakeries halved almost overnight and, despite anguished discussion in the Dail on the matter, the local bakery scene was shattered. There were a few holdouts – Barron’s in Waterford; Bretzel in Dublin and a scattering of others. But, for the most part, if you ate good bread it was because you baked your own.
But then, echoing the artisan practices of Ireland’s cheesemakers, real bread bakers began to appear here and there, and they brought with them an ancient secret: sourdough fermentation. By 2012 the revolution in bread and baking was under way, and it has been a tumult ever since.
Sourdough bread baking revolutionised the scene, toppling the culinary travesty that is the Chorleywood bread manufacturing system, and introducing us to real bread, made with flour, salt, and water. And, along with the loaves, there is precise attention being paid to expert pastries, and the arcane art of lamination: the jambon and the sausage roll now share counter space with the kouign-amann and the alfajores.
Lucky us. Welcome to the Age of Bakeries.
This is part 1 of a comprehensive look at baking in Ireland. Coming soon, watch out here for our upcoming feature on sweet and speciality bakeries and Irish flour mills.
Read in the App to see the full experience.
Dublin
Artybaker ☕️
Romain Tessier and Suzanne Hodgkinson have been an unstoppable force in Dublin, opening up four branches of Artybaker, followed by a wine bar, Le Petit Renard, in Kimmage. M. Tessier is a formidable baker, uniting skill and high-end experience.
Bacus Beag ☕️
Jonathan Bermingham runs a mighty destination in little Donabate, and Sold Out! is a common occurance come late morning. Superb lamination, fine coffee, and not much of a detour off the M1 motorway, believe it or not.
Blossom Artisan Bakery
If you are searching for Zopf, then Peter and Xenia’s Blossom is your go-to-craft-bakery, and what a boon for Ballymun to have such exceptional baking talent at work in the zone. Top notch breads, top notch everything on the changing monthly menu, and lots of lovely things in Buddy’s Market at the weekend.
Bread 41 ☕️
Eoin Closkey’s Pearse Street bakery opened with a bang in 2018, and has become a vital slice of Dublin’s cultural capital ever since. Second branch now in Greystones, County Wicklow (see below), quickly followed by the third outlet on the Old Bray Road in Cabinteely. The Pearse Street queue is a Dublin rite-of-passage, standards are stellar all the way.
Bread Man Walking Microbakery
Like every other bread lover, we miss not calling to Gerry Godley’s house in Dublin 8 to collect the delicious loaves and sweet things he would concoct. But this most gifted artisan is doing pop-ups and baking classes, so keep an eye on his socials to connect with this most philosophical baker.
Bread Naturally
Simon May retired from accountancy to set up Bread Naturally, and the star of Raheny has fine cacio e pep croissants and lots of other smart fusion ideas, and some nice seasonal riffs with the sweet treats.
Bretzel Bakery
In the old Ireland of the 1980’s , we used to ride our bikes up the canal to buy onion rolls from the Bretzel on Sunday mornings. Like everyone else, we are so grateful that William Despard’s Bretzel is still here, inimitable as ever, staffed by lovely ladies. Bretzel have taken over Cork’s Arbutus Breads, so watch out for exciting developments there.
Brown Bag Bakery
Anthony and his team are bringing the real deal to Clonsilla, Dublin 15, and the Roselawn Shopping Centre. Proper sourdough, good pastries, good coffee, all in D15.
Elliot’s Micro Bakery
Lisa Cope of All The Food reckons that Elliott’s Jamon Beurre – fresh baguette; heaps of salted butter; ham – is “A sandwich that could not possibly be improved.” Everyone agrees. But don’t overlook the kimchi brioche, and that Basque cheesecake.
Fable Bakery ☕️
Elyse Clark and Kate O’Sullivan started with a market stall before snuggling up inside the door at Sprout & Co, and the girls have now got their own front door just off the main strip of Dun Laoghaire at Clarinda Park West. Stonking sweet and savoury baking ensures the queue is permanent, and check out the cheeky logo on their wee van. Good coffee from Imbibe Roasters.
Farmhouse Cafe ☕️
The doorstep sandwiches made with house batch loaf are the star of the Long Mile Road, in an essential address for lovers of real food and smart baking. Susan O’Sullivan and her friendly team don’t miss a beat. Great food detour if navigating the M50.
Gaillot et Gray ☕️
Emma and Gilles’ French-style pizza expertise – that’s not a contradiction – also lets them create superb sourdough loaves and excellent sweet pastries. Nothing like coffee and a madeleine whilst sitting at the window watching life unfurl at Leonard’s Corner.
Il Valentino ☕️
We love that Il Valentino describe their house sourdough as “a special, demanding and temperamental bread.” Quintessentially Italian, so. Classy baking, both expert and wholesome, and they have recently taken charge at Pearse Street’s cult Honey Truffle Cafe
McNally Family Farm
The McNally family are the most bad ass organic grower dudes on the east coast, and their splendiferous farm shop is a paradise for food lovers, with excellent sourdoughs and smart bakes fleshing out the cornucopia of organic goodness. One of the great cult destinations, and it is no more than three minutes off the M1 Dublin-Belfast motorway.
No Messin Bakery ☕️
The Cardi B bun set No Messin’ on the pathway to greatness, but then everything Niall Wynn does is simply top class, and the coffee that accompanies the bakes at Proper Order is amongst the best in the city. The slick new room at Smithfield is just ace, the marmalade tart is to-die-for. Cool t-shirts, too.
Noisette Artisan Bakery ☕️
Vaarsha and Jeremy create their sourdoughs over 48 hours, and their lamination and viennoiserie is stunningly fine, with the baking taking home two Blas gold awards in their first year. Imbibe coffee, inspiring craft baking, especially the fun baking for Paddy’s Day. Get there early: on our last visit they were sold out.
Oaksmoke Bakery
Mother-and-son team Daniela and Remus deliver their breads and cakes to delis, cafes and shops in Dublin – you will find them used in Crudo in Sandymount and Tir Deli on Hatch Street amongst others – and also offer an on-line delivery service to your door, with a 2-day advance notice.
Rock Bakery
The fact that Rock Bakery are now supplying 3fe coffee shops is good news for everyone on the east Coast, and saves the trek out to Skerries. Mind you, nowhere else was ever so deserving of worth a detour as Rock. Monthly menus allow the bakers to have lots of fun.
Russell Street Bakery ☕️
Thibaud Peigne was one of the originals of the craft baking movement, opening Tartine Bakery in 2012. Russell Street allows the team to showcase exacting bread baking, using Wildfarmed flour. Smoked chicken Caesar sandwich on lavash, a cup of Imbibe coffee, all is well.
Sourdough Sisters
Mary and Mairead are sourdough siblings, as opposed to genuine siblings, and you can find a Seedy Sister or a Cheesy Sister by ordering and collecting from the bakery at Drumcondra on Thursdays and Fridays. Get in early: sell-outs are the norm.
Tartine
Tartine was one of the first Irish craft bakeries, and today the breads and pastries are sold in more than 200 locations throughout Dublin city and county.
Una Local Bakery ☕️
Una is a collab between John Wyer of Forest Avenue and the Bunsen team, and it’s the reason why there is a permanent queue on the pavement in Ranelagh. The almond croissants and huge custard tart are D6 legends, already, and the design, by Luca architects, is as pleasing as the pastries.
Carlow
Plur Bakery
Seamus Jordan plants the wheat, harvests the wheat, mills the wheat, then bakes the wheat into the amazing Carlow Loaf. Plur is the new bread paradigm, and you will find these precious loaves on Friday mornings at the lovely Joyce’s Pub in Borris, amongst other local outlets.
Clare
An Bacus ☕️
Some very interesting sourdough loaves in An Bacus – fermented olive; tahini and activated charcoal; sun-dried tomato – along with more conventional scratch baking and veggie sausage rolls.
Hugo’s ☕️
Hugo Galloway bakes the best pasteis de nata in all of Ireland. Everything else he bakes in Lahinch is every bit as good as those precious pasteis, and the benchmark sourdough is distributed in the locality.
Sourdo’farrell ☕️
Sourdo is a powerhouse destination, perpetually crowded by bread lovers and coffee heads, people who know that Keith O’Farrell fires out only the good stuff. Great coffee from Anam and Carrow, superb rye bread, first division baking. Get there early, however: there wasn’t a sourdough to be had at 11am on a recent visit.
Cork
Arbutus Bread
Declan Ryan created the template of sourdough-to-farmer’s-market with Arbutus Breads, his second star-studded career after a luminous career which saw him become the first Irish chef to be awarded a Michelin star in Ireland. Arbutus was sold to Dublin’s Bretzel Bakery in mid-2024, and plans are to continue as before.
The Ballymaloe Cookery School
Breads baked in the cookery school kitchen are for sale in the shop. It is only fair to issue a Public Warning that you will want to buy everything – everything! – for sale in the shop.
Diva Boutique Bakery
Shannen Keane has been a vital presence on the West Cork food scene for more than twenty years, and her baking is both inspired and inspiring. We once bought Shannen’s signature potato sourdough and ate almost all of it in the car before we even got home: scrummy wasn’t in it.
The Grumpy Bakers ☕️
Sharon Gleeson’s shops in Cork City and Midleton are always jammers, and the sweet and savoury baking matches the skill of the sourdough. Killer sausage rolls have won more awards than you’ve had hot dinners.
Lush Loaves
Michael Drumm’s loaves positively fly off the shelves of local stores and cafes in and around the bakery in Newmarket, and they are a treasure of the North Cork region.
Natural Foods Bakery ☕️
How does Sourdough Beermash Loaf sounds to you? Sounds pretty wild to us, and pretty typical of the wild imaginations which have powered Natural Foods since 2002. The bakery is one of the most significant pioneers in Cork, and the local Sunday market is a gem.
Organico Bakery ☕️
Rachel Dare and her team produce superb breads for the cafe, and to take away, in one of the defining destinations of West Cork and the Wild Atlantic Way. Classy baking, superb shop.
Pike Deli ☕️
Pike is an A-list bakery, and Ryan and Ann-Marie make ace sandwiches with their focaccia, ideal for carting to the beach at Inchydoney. Wildfarm flour sourdough is a don’t-miss!
Ryes and Shine
Angela Nothlings is a dedicated rye sourdough baker, and her freshly milled schwarzbrot is worth the trip to the Coal Quay Market all on its own. Nothing else like these beauties anywhere else in the country.
Seeds Bakery ☕️
Ingrid and Benjamin have a smart, white-painted room just off the square in Kinsale, and they have great bakes, great coffee, and some fine natural wines. Baking monster croissants lets Ben get all funky.
Wildflour ☕️
Chris Fahey is the baking star of Inishannnon, and a sourdough slinger of rare skill. Great sandwiches and coffee, meticulous sourcing of ingredients, and all-too-regular sold outs!
Donegal
Belles Kitchen ☕️
Ronnie’s sourdough is top-class and is the loaf of choice used in lots of other excellent Donegal eateries. 20 years after opening, the baking skills and enthusiasm are as great as ever.
Benny & Co ☕️
Joe and Brenda are best known as a key food destination in Donegal, but visitors should not miss their very fine baking, especially the demon sandwiches made with their own sourdough.
Blistered
Blistered of Letterkenny is Adrian Boyle – the baker – and Mel – the sourdough starter. Adrian learnt his baking chops at Brasserie Bread in Melbourne, and later met Mel, who returned with him to Letterkenny. Isn’t that sweet? Adrian’s sourdough and laminations are used by all the cool cats in Donegal.
Donegal Craft Bakery & Le Petit Marché ☕️
Franck Pasquier has been baking for almost twenty years, and supplies shops and markets in Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo, as well as their own Le Petit Marche Boulangerie in Donegal which opened in 2023. Look out for the fougasse and The Raclette, a savoury tart with roasted potato, smoked pancetta, bechamel and raclette.
Galway
Bread Heaven ☕️
Francis Devane’s compact bakery in Headford is the place for white country sourdough, excellent croissants, as well as a fine traditional apple tart. Tiny, perfectly formed, and producing stonking loaves.
Coolfinn Gardens Organic Bakery
Jonas and Layla bake in Banagher, but are well-known for their stall at the Saturday St Nicholas Market in the centre of Galway city, where their organic breads are a highlight.
Granum Bakehouse
“Granum means grain in Latin, and the grain is where it’s all at,” says Jaco, the community baker behind Craughwell’s microbakery. Jaco’s sourdoughs enjoy time, and temperature, plus “a pinch of passion and a little bit of skill.” Just what every community baker needs, along with a spoonful of Florian Hoefnagels on the soundtrack. Collections on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Hapi Bakery
The little sister bakery to Galway’s Kai restaurant, Hapi makes lovely cakes, sourdough, and stonking sandwiches, which sell out in minutes after arriving at their destinations. Find the breads in the legendary Ernie’s Shop in the West End.
Joyce Country Bakery ☕️
Mary and Anya have that rye and Borodinski sourdough you have been searching for, as well as the nettle and lemon mascarpone tart of your dreams. A wee charmer.
Magpie ☕️
Cian Mooney baked for Ean Restaurant, and his own nest in the Cornstore Mall reveals a serious talent. We are here for the Marmite twist, and a cup of Calendar coffee.
May’s Place ☕️
May began baking in her Tuam kitchen, and has seamlessly progressed to a bakery and shop packed with signature sourdoughs and much admired sweet bakes. An organic sourdough baguette and a New York pistachio roll will do the job, everytime.
So-Doh!
Laura O’Donovan’s Loaves & Fishes bread cart is one of Connemara’s finest sights, and her skills right across the artisan baking panorama are outstanding. Superlative sourdoughs, and the most moreish cinnamon swirls.
Sullivan’s Country Grocer ☕️
Sullivan’s is one of the best artisan grocer’s shops in Ireland, and draws in all the best foods and crafts from the region. The breads and sweet baking are terrific, but then terrific applies to every single thing they sell, especially the bacon and cabbage croquettes.
WildWest Sourdough
Lucia Hdra’s sourdough cinnamon swirls are a sight to behold, and her sourdough with seaweed is a real rarity. She uses ancient grains such as emmer and khorasan. Pre-orders Wednesday for Friday collection, and the breads are also available at outlets around Galway.
Kerry
Bacus
Bacus has been one of the most important food artisan producers in the history of County Kerry food, and the terrific baking has been a huge boon to the county. All breads now available seven days a week in Garvey’s SuperValu in the town.
Emilie’s
Emilie Mjorndal’s popular pizzeria and cafe also offers a fine selection of freshly baked goods and a 24-hour sourdough, which they use for their Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame.
The Kingdom’s Bakery
Adrian’s bakery and shop is sited in the former home of Larkin’s Bakery, a family firm who were a staple of Kerry baking and eating for more than a century, so it’s just fantastic to see the new wave continue the public service of the old wave. Lovely breads, and available in good retail outlets in the zone.
Maison Gourmet ☕️
Emma and Patrick have one of the vital addresses in Kenmare, and their tumultuously busy business has always been founded on baking good breads and pastries. If you search for a Parisien sandwich, a coffee eclair or a sourdough boule, they have it all.
Rustic Boowa
“Tasty happiness” is Rustic Boowa’s signature slogan, and Zeneta and Ilona and the team deliver on the promise. Great sourdoughs won Gold at Blas in 2023, and all the baking and the Polish specialities can be enjoyed at the RB cafes in Ardfert and Tralee.
Small Batch Sourdough
Bogna’s fine sourdough and excellent bakes can be found at the Tralee Farmer’s Market every Saturday morning. Don’t miss the ricotta ring doughnuts and the nifty macarons.
Builin Beg
Sister business to the popular Pompeii Pizza, who have branches in both Cork city and at the Wave Crest Caravan park in Caherdaniel. You will find the sourdough breads of the little bakery in good stores around the Ring of Kerry.
Kilkenny
Arán ☕️
Arán won the Blas na hEireann Supreme Champion Award for their Spelt Sourdough, and that says everything about the baking standards Bart and Nicole chase every single day they light up the stoves.
Lekker
Julien and Ashika offer a fusion of South African and French cuisine in the bakery and cafe, and together they have skills to beat the band. Lovely seasonal breads, sensational sandwiches and echt SA street food, along with smart artisan jars on the shelves. Don’t miss the milktart.
Spelt Bakers
Josephine Plettenberg began her spelt baking journey back in 2010 in Gowran, and today she and her team of bakers deliver to Waterford, Kilkenny and Carlow, as well as supplying local shops and markets as far afield as Portlaiose. Bread making courses are also part of the comprehensive offering.
Laois
Mueller & O’Connell ☕️
If you live far from a bakery, Mueller & O’Connell can actually solve your sourdough cravings thanks to an amazing delivery service that sends great loaves to every corner of the country. The shop in Abbeyleix is perpetually jammers with customers, and boxes of bread waiting for the man from DPD.
Limerick
Sunflower Bakery
Vi established Sunflower Bakery more than twenty years ago, so Sunflower is one of the most important pioneering craft bakeries. They began in the farmer’s markets before opening the doors in Ballycummin Village, and you will find the baking in various destinations in Clare and Limerick. Demon sausage rolls are made with Inagh free-range pork.
Leitrim
Carraig Rua Bakery
Part of the local Drumanilra Farm group started by Liam and Justina Gavin, Carraig Rua uses only organic ingredients and supplies the Honestly Kitchen and Shops, in addition to several independent shops and supermarkets.
Jinny’s Bakery ☕️
Pascal and Sinead never stop experimenting, developing, improving, qualities which have made Jinny’s into one of Leitrim’s true stars. Their latest innovation is a spelt sourdough using a rye starter and a mix of white and wholemeal spelt. Lovely things to eat in the tearooms, and nice foods on the shelves include their own salad leaves.
Louth
Coyle’s Bakehouse ☕️
Oisin Coyle made his name baking vegan pizzas, and in the Bakehouse the vegan sausage rolls are beyond good. Don’t know how he does it, just glad he does it. House sourdoughs and focaccias make for terrific sandwiches and toasties.
Mayo
Clare Island Oven
Alice and Niall started their food adventure in 2021, fusing her culinary background and his musical background into a mellifluous tone poem of deliciousness, right across the savoury-to-sweet stave. Every visitor to the island needs to be there for the weekend pizzas, and that coffee and raspberry and white chocolate scone starts the day the perfect way.
Cornrue ☕️
Patrick O’Reilly’s sourdough loaves offer a veritable definition of contemporary Irish craft baking: exacting, precise, deeply considered, and stonkingly delicious. Cornrue is producing some of the most exciting loaves in Ireland.
Happy Tummy
Karen O’Donoghue’s IBS-friendly breads may be the most internationally-known loaves from Ireland. The Happy Tummy Loaf is a fermented wholegrain chia teff loaf that costs €25 and takes 2-3 days to make, before the loaves are posted all over the country and to the UK.
Meath
Baska Bakery
John and Sarah’s organically certified loaves are available in Supervalu stores in Meath – they were part of the Supervalu Food Academy – as well as other good shops. Look for the bright red and yellow labels that signal the organic goodness of natural fermentation.
Ruby’s Bakery
Ruby Prickett sells at Sheridan’s Saturday market at their cheese headquarters, where the hungry head to the little pink shed to get their fix of fine sourdough loaves and lots of good sweet treats. Ruby also teaches sourdough classes, and you can order cakes and breads through the website.
Monaghan
Matilda’s Bakery ☕️
A 72-hour ferment is the secret of Anne-Marie’s sourdough, used alongside Brehon Brewhouse beer to make funky beer breads. The cafe and deli also sells yeasted breads and patisserie, and look out for their ace pizzas, made with a sourdough starter. The breads are also stocked by some local shops and delis in the zone.
Offaly
Ardu Artisan Bakery
Paul Hurst bakes a mighty sourdough in his Rofco, with a patient 40-hour process that yields terrific results. Ardu loaves are sold in the best Midlands shops.
Little Sister Bakes
Raeoni is an Aussie by birth, so there are Anzac biscuits alongside the sourdough and the jalapeno and cheese loaf. Order from the menu during the week to collect at weekends.
Sligo
Lyon’s Bakeshop ☕️
Gary Stafford and his crew are perfectionists all the way, and everything they make in the cafe and bake in the Bakeshop is top notch. Demon sandwiches for the lunchtime hour, fab 2kg sourdough loaves.
Le Fournil ☕️
Clo and Tomasz have fine breads, complemented by excellent patisserie and very nifty chocolates. Bean West coffee and a slice of pear and almond tart sitting outside on Tobergal Lane will do just nicely.
Pudding Row ☕️
Dervla and Johny’s cafe and grocery are one of the culinary stars of the North West, with every detail blessed by the creative attention of two great artists of the kitchen and bakehouse. Pudding Row is as good as good gets.
Shells
Jane and Myles have always done everything right in the uber-cool Shells, the star of Strandhill. Great breakfast bakes start the day the right way, and good breads and cakes underpin the precise excellence of everything on offer. Surf’s up!
Waterford
Beatha ☕️
Grainne will be at Arch Coffee selling Darren’s baked goods from 9am on Saturday morning, and you only have an hour to get there: by 10am all the Beatha beauties will have found a good home. Fab sausage rolls with pistachios and caramelised onions.
Dún Artisan Bakery ☕️
Cat, Fergal and the crew had to get their act together fast in Dun, such was the clamorous reception from Waterford locals when they opened in 2021. The clamour has not abated: last time we could hardly get in the shop such was the ruck of people. No-one minds the queue, thanks to the brilliant baking.
Seagull Bakery ☕️
Sarah Richardson could – and should – write the book on how to grow a bakery from a weekly market stall to a powerhouse production with three outlets in Waterford city and county. A croissant and coffee on the street at Seagull Tramore is some bliss, or make that a glass of wine in their weekend winebar.
Sunny South Yeast
David and Sylvia started in 2020 and quickly progressed from delivery-only to farmers markets to food truck and on to their own gaff on Barrack Street which opened in May 2024. David handles the breads whilst Sylvia takes care of the sweet stuff. And get this: their starter is nicknamed Clint Yeastwood! Of course it is.
Vinilo ☕️
Lucy and Pablo bake many wonderful things, from sourdough to pizza. Above all, they bake a croissant which is almost too good for mere mortals. Lamination Heaven in Lismore.
Westmeath
BreaDelicious
Renata began baking back in 2013 and her fine loaves from their organically certified bakery are now found in the best shops in the Midlands and the East, from Birr to Balbriggan, and the six varieties of sourdough can be ordered direct from the bakery.
Wexford
Kelly’s ☕️
The Kelly’s Cafe in Rosslare and the Kelly’s Deli outpost near Wexford, part of the storied Kelly’s Resort Hotel, bake fine sourdoughs and croissants.
Yola Sourdough Bakery
Jamie and Nadia found a new home for Yola late in 2023, and their devoted fans were straight away at the doors at the Whitemill Industrial Estate to get their sourdough hit.
Wicklow
Bread 41
The Dublin baking superstars finally got the doors open on Eden Road, in the old Davis Motors building, in Greystones after lengthy delays, and the style and layout is every bit as classy and singular as the baking that has made Eoin Cluskey a modern Irish food icon.
Firehouse Bakery
Patrick Ryan’s book Bread Revolution is one of the Ur-texts of modern artisan baking. More than a decade later, Firehouse burns ever brightly, ever onwards. The third branch, in Gorey, Co Wexford, opened its doors in July 2024, doubtless adding extra moolah to local property prices.
Gra Aran
Grainne sells her sourdough and spelt loaves to local shops and you will find her behind the trestle tables at local markets. The fine sourdough is used by Mags Roche of the classy Little Acorn Restaurant as the basis for the cafe’s stonking BLT.
Grangecon
Laura and Stephanie have all the skills in the magical Grangecon Kitchen, and their sourdough breads and their stylish pizzas shine above all their benchmark work.
Sceal
Shane and Charlotte brought their San Francisco wholegrain sourdough style to the waterfront at Greystones, and the reaction has been insane, total bread madness. Join the queue.
Northern Ireland
Bakari
Bakari is the bread of choice for many of the leading shops and delis in and around Belfast and North County Down, and their success led to the opening of the Donegall Street shop in late 2023, where you should not miss the superb sandwiches and baps – potato dauphinoise and microgreens on rye bread; foccacia with fresh fig, St Tola goat’s cheese and prosciutto.
Benchmark Bread
Michael Hendron used to run the kitchen at Belfasts’s iconic Established Coffee, before setting out his stall in 2020, and quickly collecting many excellent restaurant and retail clients. Mike’s microbakery and hatch is open at weekends in Whiteabbey and his progress from Rofco to Rack Master has been a delicious blast.
Bread and Banjo Bakery
B&B is a major fixture of the excellent Ormeau Road food community, and there are fine coffees and lots of sweet thing alongside the breads.
Counter Culture
Sean Kelly’s baking is a mainstay of many local markets in and around Bangor and County Down, and we just love an artisan bakery that promises “Peace, Love and Real Bread”
Cultured Bakehouse
Zilka Gerritsen and the crew specialise in gluten-free baking, and have regular deliveries to Belfast and other destinations throughout the North from their base in Garvagh.
Daily Apron
New ideas fizz and ferment in the Daily Apron, so who’s for a Guinness and Gruyere sourdough, or maybe a lavender and lemon croissant? It’s this sort of exuberant, imaginative creativity that helped Cathy and Katrina bag a Gold Medal at the World Bread Awards for their sourdough loaf, and they also won Gold in 2023 at the Blas Awards, no more than just desserts for serious bakers who are real players in the Real Bread Campaign.
Fera
Stephen Chisholm’s starter culture began life in 2012 and was nicknamed Beastie, and Fera have remained faithful to the wild yeast ethos ever since. Top class sourdough and Viennoiserie are the menu mainstays, with a selection of traybakes.
Folk Espresso and Boulangerie ☕️
Just look at that croissant, man alive! You would travel to Folk in Enniskillen just to enjoy the team’s ability to conjure exquisite and extraordinary lamination. Great coffee, lovely loaves.
Glume Boulangerie
Tiarnan Cassidy’s wee shop in pretty Moira is the place to find fine sonnenblumenbrot and a host of scrummy viennoiserie, much of it made with unhomogenised milk from the local Brook Vale Farm. Look for the cute little dangling croissant sign.
Joe the Baker
Joe Kelly’s breads are a mainstay of the region, sold in many local shops and used by many restaurants and coffee houses. Joe also somehow finds the time to run sourdough breadmaking courses when not feeding the entire community of Enniskillen and farther afield.
Bara Bakehouse
Joe is a baker from Cornwall, and bara means bread in Cornish. Bara has been a mainstay of Comber’s High Street for several years, and Joe’s breads are used by leading restaurants.
Kin & Folk
Maija and David have all the breads, bakes and brews your heart could desire, and with shops in Hillsborough and Saintfield, and Castlewellan on Saturday, there are good things in good rooms awaiting you.
Round House Bakery
Hannah and Shane rewrote the book of expectations with Round House, taking European hearth loaves into new realms. The queues on Saturdays are vast, the Xmas and Easter panettones are quite simply the finest you can buy.
Scarpello
Kemal Scarpello handles a piece of dough like a conjurer: teasing, caressing, finessing, until the flavours of his breads and pizzas float like a kiss. The breads are still made in the original bakery in Donegal, whilst Kemal has shot to superstar status with his pizza baking in Derry, where the loaves are available in Scarpello from Thursday to Saturday.
Ursa Minor
Dara and Ciara have shops in Ballycastle and Ballintoy, have Economusee status, have won the Slow Food Bakery Award three years on the trot, and they do everything right, everything. Peerless baking, and Ciara’s Substack, Gorse, is a wee smasher. Worth the pilgrimage all the way north to Ballycastle.
Zac’s
Ricky was a chef before being bitten by the breadmaking bug, and has been a pioneer sourdough producer in Northern Ireland, with the bakehouse sited near to Ballymena. Zac’s loaves are used in some of the leading food destinations in the North.
Pete’s Bread
Peter Hathaway bakes in the poetically-named Ballybogey, where he re-established the bakery he had originally run near to Oxford. Pete’s signature Peatlands Loaf won Gold at the 2022 World Bread Awards. If you want to taste it in situ, then book the cute shepherd’s huts which Pete rents out to guests on the farm.
thank you so so much :) we are absolutely trilled to be named here :) hard work always pays back :) huge thank you from RusticBoowa team, Zaneta, Ilona, Piotr and Pawel :)
Hi,
With regard to your recent guide to bakeries, The Pink Tent Cafe/Choquera Bakery & Bistro in Newport, Tipperary also bakes organic sourdough, pastries and speciality Spanish bakes.
Worth a visit :)