On the ground floor of the vast shopping centre at Joondalup outside Myers there is a quaint French inspired coffee and cake stall. I guess that is what you would call it. I believe they refer to it as a boulangarie, where ready made sandwiches and quiches, etc are also available apart from traditional patisserie items.
Attached to the boulangarie is a reserved dining area decked out with some of the most comfortable cafe furniture I’ve ever sat in. My Beloved first found the Sugar & Spice Patisserie some years ago and has wanted to share it with me ever since; which is how I came to visit recently for a mid afternoon cuppa and cake.
When I’m exploring new places, I don’t want to sample anything that is made third party or that I can simply buy or taste elsewhere, so I queried whether Sugar & Spice baked their goods themselves. Considering the huge food preparation area and massive ovens on site, I was surprised to hear that they did (yay!), but elsewhere (oh?!).
I learned that this is a local business that haS been operating for some decades. A day or so later on a wander through the CBD I believe I found their baking headquarters / home base on Lakeside Drive… and it smelled heavenly…
And so, back to the arvo cuppa at the boulangarie, I just had to sample the Bavarian Apple Cake along with a small skinny flat white coffee.
We took a table in the resplendent dining area and didn’t wait for long for the coffee to arrive. Subtle, delicate and simply plain. It was delightful, not a robust coffee, but neither was it overly milky or creamy. It was probably the perfect accompaniment for the cake which shortly followed.
I’m not a fan of re-warmed cakes and was glad when the Bavarian Apple Cake was served slightly chilled.
This was a regular slice, but what a huge portion! If it tasted as good as it looked, it would have to be a winner… And it did!
Somewhere between resembling an apple tea cake and an apple cobbler, the cake itself was delightful, subtle and still springy, despite probably being at least 8 hours on display. The slices of apple probably made up 2/3 to 3/4 of a whole fruit, and were wonderfully moist without being reduced to mush from over baking.
There was a lovely dough/batter effect around the fruit which didn’t detract in the slightest. The top of the slice was firm and dusted in icing sugar and the bottom had been slightly overcooked to act as a firm base. Any less cooked and it may have been soggy. A pot of cream on the side and it would have been perfect!
But the cake didn’t need the moisture from the cream as it was as moist and lovely as if it had been freshly baked not too long before. Perhaps it had?
The staff were warm and friendly and the prices most reasonable. All up, great value, a great range of sweet treats, and a great experience. I am so glad that my Beloved chose to share this with me.
Darwin Food Reviews 