How far will ‘community owned’ The Bakery Dunbar go in
Britain’s Best Bakery TV competition?
Press Release
When a community owned bakery from Dunbar, a rural town in East Lothian,
Scotland, was one of several Scottish independent bakeries to be selected to trial for
ITV’s Britain’s Best Bakery competition, there was excitement and apprehension.
The Bakery Dunbar fresh-faced bakery team had already been working hard to raise
the quality and range of its artisan and classic French breads, cakes and pastries
without sacrificing the idea of good value and traditional Scottish staples – after all
the bakery is community owned and barely a year old.
Yet award-winning head pâtissier and bakery manager, Ross Baxter and his
savouries chef, Pavel Broz, seemed remarkably relaxed and unfazed by the
prospect of the gruelling challenges of a mainstream TV competition.
Would they get through the preliminaries? There was not a glimmer of doubt
between them that they had the ability to make it through, but could they also beat
top bakers from Scotland and then the rest of Britain? You’ll have to watch the show
to find out starting at 4pm daily from the 26th November to the 21st December.
Ross Baxter said: “We’re inspired by traditional and regional specialities but also
love to give them a modern twist, looking for new ways to challenge the senses. We
were certainly taken aback when we found out that we were on the short-list, and we
knew it would be slog, but we were up for it.”
BIO FOR ROSS BAXTER
With the pedigree that Ross Baxter has, it’s no wonder he’s one of the top bakers
and pâtissiers in the UK!
Born in Lanarkshire in 1984, Ross was bound to follow in his grandfather’s floury
footsteps, a traditional Scottish baker in Stonehouse. As a small boy, Ross was often
caught, at the age of about four or five, sneaking handfuls of marzipan from his
grandfather’s dry store; the give away – child-sized handprints in the almond paste.
However, it was fifteen years later that he first started baking, heading west to
Brampton, Canada to work in his uncle’s Scottish bakery. Patisserie has always
been a fascination for Ross. The endless possibilities using butter, flour, sugar and
eggs would occupy his thoughts.
Ross was seduced by the classic pâtisserie of France, “I’m inspired by the likes of
Pierre Herme, Jacques Genin, and Philippe Conticini of La Pâtisserie des Rêves.
These pâtissiers are artists. They take on the classics and create something so
modern and perfectly executed; beautiful pieces of pâtisserie with wonderful flavour
combinations. That is why I’m passionate about what I do.”
His first job as a pâtissier was with his sister (also a pastry chef) at Mal Maison in
Glasgow. Remaining in the Merchant City, he started working for Michelin star chef
Michael Caines at Abode, under the expert guidance of award-winning chef, Craig
Dunn.
His next placement was at Greywalls in Gullane on the east coast of Scotland. His
mentor, this time, was none other than critically acclaimed, Chef Albert Roux. While
at Greywalls, Ross received the accolade of Pâtissier of the Year 2011 from the
Scottish Hotel Awards, which set him on his journey as head pâtissier and bakery
manager at the community run, The Bakery, Dunbar.
BIO FOR PAVEL BROZ
Pavel was born in the Czech Republic in 1982, and baking has been a passion since
early age, inspired by his mum. Working at the Bakery Dunbar is his first full-time
baking position. Prior to that, he was a chef, starting his professional life under Paul
Merrett. “He is one of the most knowledgeable chefs I know. He showed me direction
and influenced me the most. I have the utmost respect for him. But I wanted to learn
about bread making and pastry.”
The chefs that inspire Pavel are Thomas Keller, Raymond Blanc and of course, the
Roux Brothers, some of the most respected chefs in the industry. The three chefs
that had a huge influence on him were Robert Bates, Mike Mathieson and Derek
Johnstone from Greywalls and Chez Roux in Gullane, East Lothian, working with
them and Ross.
Pavel adds, “I love what I do and I am lucky enough to have my job as my hobby.”
For more information, and to arrange interviews, please contact:
Philip Immirzi
Treasurer, Dunbar Community Bakery
Tel: 01368 862835
Email: [email protected]
NOTES for Editors:
The Bakery Dunbar Dunbar Community Bakery Ltd was set up as a co-operative to benefit the people of
Dunbar and rural East Lothian. Shareholders are entitled to a 10% discount on all
goods purchased. The initiative has created a thriving new shop on Dunbar High
Street and is helping to regenerate the High Street. Eight people now have full or
part time employment, including many young from Dunbar who were previously
unemployed.
The business, branded ‘The Bakery Dunbar’, aims to become a regular supplier of
top quality artisan bread and patisserie to hotels and restaurants throughout East
Lothian. The Bakery is owned by over 550 shareholders. The majority are local
residents and regular customers.
WEBSITE: thebakerydunbar.co.uk
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thebakerydunbar/
TWITTER: www.twitter.com/thebakerydunbar/
Britains’s Best Bakery The show, which starts Monday 26th November and is on daily at 4pm until 21st
December is a national search for Britain's best bakery.
More than a food competition this series is a celebration of local bakeries around the
UK, the delicious goods they produce, their regional specialities and their centuries
old baking heritage. Expert judges Mich Turner MBE (TV chef, author and owner of
Little Venice Cake Company) and Peter Sidwell (TV chef, cookery writer and
restaurateur) will be sampling the delicacies of the country’s favourite independent,
family run and community bakeries, tasting and critiquing their way through breads,
cakes, pastries and pies.
The daily episodes of Britain’s Best Bakery will also reveal the heart-warming stories
of the bakeries and the people who lovingly create and bake there. Britain’s Best
Bakery is a Shine TV production for ITV1.