The modest name isn’t the only thing that’s sparing in this minimalist NewActon café and bakery – the entire design is a shrine to simplicity. Dark wood floors, fine boned black furniture, striped concrete walls and a gleaming stainless steel kitchen – or you could skip the interiors and claim a seat out the front, in the sunny courtyard.
That simplicity stops with the food. By day bread is central to their cafe menu – but it’s used as a base for intense flavours – a savoury combination of chilli, kale and slow cooked eggs; aggressively tomatoey baked eggs, made even more powerful with a hit of ’nduja.
At night, the menu switches over to short and frequently changing menu of elegant share plates, heavy on fresh produce. When they’re available, order the heirloom carrots – their dressing combination of coffee and speck sounds a little unhinged, but it works.
As much of the menu as possible at A Baker is sourced from around the Canberra region – including the wines. Try the Nick O’Leary White Rocks riesling over a long brunch – it’s dangerously drinkable. If you’re feeling hungry and lazy at dinner time, A Baker offers a ‘Just Feed Me’ option, where for $67 you’ll get to try pretty much everything. The matching ‘Just Wine Me’ for an extra $33, is equally generous.