ONE Mile Bakery Hale does why it says on the bread tin. This recently-launched micro-bakery – based in a domestic kitchen in a busy family home – delivers handmade bread, soups and preserves by bike to customers within just a mile of its base. Teacher turned baker Matt Townley loves that he gets to deliver with as little environmental impact as possible.
Matt tells us: “I really enjoy meeting subscribers in my local community each week, and chatting to them about what I’ve made. The deliveries are a surprise each week, and different every week, and the idea is that it’s a treat brought to your door at teatime. And the service has proved so successful there is now a waiting list.
“Everything is pre-ordered and delivered by bike in 100 per cent plastic-free, compostable packaging, and I use homegrown produce from our allotment, plus seasonal produce from local suppliers. Prices start from £14 a month for four loaves of bread delivered to your door.
Going one step further (we can’t say the ‘extra mile’), Matt also teaches a range of baking classes to small groups in his kitchen at home. “I used to just bake at weekends, often with my daughter, and I love teaching people this fantastic skill. Complete beginners leave the classes with bags full of bread and the confidence to bake at home - that’s such a satisfying day’s work for me.”
Classes include Introduction to Baking, Sourdough Baking, French and Italian Baking, Festive Baking and Bread & Beer, which unites Matt’s passion for great bread and homemade craft beer. The workshops, for a maximum of five people, are full-day hands-on classes, including a two-course lunch and a glass of wine.
The acclaimed One Mile Bakery concept was created by Guardian journalist turned baker Elisabeth Mahoney in Cardiff in 2012. One Mile Bakery Hale is the first OMB in the north-west.
Images by Lucas Smith.