It's the kind of old-school bakery with fresh cream in its butterfly cupcakes, beetroot in its salad sandwiches and a smile in its service.
After the bakers fire up the ovens at four in the morning, the regulars start trickling in from six - rowers and dragon boaters from nearby Lake Burley Griffin, in need of a coffee. And the regulars keep coming throughout the day, whether for a pie, a loaf of bread or a natter.
But after 33 years of trade the Yarralumla Bakery is set to close down, in just over a week, on February 18, the owners citing "unrealistic" rent demands from its landlord.
The landlord, through their lawyers, declined to comment.
The bakery is owned by Greg Hoitink whose father Leo had it before him. Mr Hoitink will continue to operate his other bakery, Pastries on Perry, in Chapman.
Bakery manager Scott Gorham said 10 staff would be without a job, a mix of full-time, casual and part-time employees.
Mr Gorham said the business could not afford the rent being asked by the owner of the bakery building in Novar Street.
"Every year it's been going up 3 per cent and it's got to the stage we are paying well above what we should be paying," he said.
"For the last three years, we've been negotiating to try to hold or reduce the rent so we can spend money on the fixtures and building, but to no avail."
Barbara Booker has been working at the bakery for nearly 20 years.
"I was surprised. I certainly didn't see it coming," she said, of the closure. "It's very sad.
"People come in here and they know what to expect. I know some people travel from Tuggeranong for our Dutch doughnuts."
Mrs Booker, like Mr Gorham, now has to look for another job.
"The customers have been so nice about it," she said. "One lady said this morning, 'If you want me to write a reference, let me know."
The closure of the business also means the end of little traditions.
Lyn McKillop, of Nicholls, always takes her grandchildren there for a treat after school.
"I've been coming here for a lot of years and my grandchildren think it has the best brownies in Canberra," she said.
"The food is nice and the service is good and I've never had a bad coffee.
"It's a shock. I'll be devastated if it closes down."
Rower Robin Poke said the closure of the bakery was "such a shame".
"For so many people among Canberra's sporting community the Yarralumla Bakery has been THE place to be, especially, in my case, after rowing on Saturday," he said.
The bakery was also a place where young people could get a part-time job.
One of the part-time employees, who did not wish to be named, is only 19 and working to support himself through law degree at the Australian National University.
He said people had been upset about the loss of a Yarralumla institution.
"That's how most people have been describing it as," he said.
6 comments
New User? Sign up