KEY POINTS:
It's pouring with rain as I slosh through Matakana, the pot-holed road and slippy pavement overflowing with puddles.
Okay, so you can't necessarily predict the weather but I've been promised that the village bakery, Matakana Patisserie, is the best around. Plus you can take a dry seat inside
and savour the freshly baked aromas.
The patisserie is certainly a popular spot. Cars swoop in and out of the parking bays and throngs of people, considering tempting bites from one of the many display cabinets, congregate inside.
By the door, there's a basket of "ducky bread", stale offcuts for the lucky local ducks. You can imagine them splashing around the pond on a day like this.
Owners Delwyn and Tyrone Vincent met in a flour company. It wasn't love at first sight over a sack of rye, though _ "he thought me far too loud and he was far too quiet for me", says Delwyn - but here they are now with two children and a thriving business between them. In 2001 they opened their first venture, the tiny Pop-in Patisserie, also in Matakana, which was such a success that, five years later, they expanded to a larger site up the road and the business took off faster than they'd ever imagined.
"We wanted to be a destination; for people to wake up and immediately think, "Oh, we must go to the patisserie". We wanted to be part of their daily routine." An ambitious dream, but for most Matakana locals, it's become a reality. Today, regulars even detour off the main highway from Wellsford to Albany just to buy a sandwich for lunch.
Everything you'll find in the shop is created in the bakery's small factory, a two-minute walk down the road.
Run by Tyrone and fellow baker Adam Pullum, between them they develop up to three new products a week; Adam's passion and innovation compliments Tyrone's 20-plus years of experience. Shifts start at midnight and the team of bakers works through the night. I watch as Tyrone ices a Mississippi mud pie - his clean, practised swipes with the knife result in a smooth finish for the glossy ganache to be poured over. Where does a baker gets his inspiration? "Tyrone? He reads and reads. and reads," says Delwyn. Not surprisingly, the patisserie has won several awards with the Baking Industry Association, last year securing Golds and Silvers across the board, from stollen to slices.
Back in the shop, Delwyn looks after everything else, from staffing to marketing. She presses a famous "jam-all-the-way-through" doughnut into my hand. It disappears in a few satisfied mouthfuls. Pieces of ginger pistachio slice are passed round for tasting. There's an impressive range of gluten-free cakes and beautiful loaves - five-grains and sour-doughs - piled high in baskets.
As well as the shop and bakery, the Vincents also run a catering business which creates canapes for parties and corporate events. There are plans to franchise in the near future but without compromising the quality and craftsmanship of what they do. Pot-holed roads aside, it's certainly worth the trip to Matakana.
Need to know
Matakana Patisserie
70 Matakana Valley Rd
(09) 422 9896
www.matakanapatisserie.co.nz
Open 7 days, 7am-4pm.
- Detours, HoS