In March 2020, just days before the world shut down, the owners of Hobart Cantonese institution Me Wah, the Tso family, snapped up the old Wing & Co grocery store on Russell Crescent in Sandy Bay as the site of their next venue. Then, for almost four years, not much happened.

Well, not nothing. The Tso family also managed to snap up Kobi Ruzicka, owner of Hobart fine diner Dier Makr and its adjacent wine bar, Lucinda, to spearhead the new venture. Ruzicka says the family’s persistence paid off.

“The intention was always to create another venue that ideally becomes part of the fabric of Hobart, in the same way Me Wah has,” Ruzicka tells Broadsheet. “They approached me, I said no the first four times. The fifth time, I thought, ‘Why not?’”

The brief was initially “cafe”, but Ruzicka was keen to get his bake on after selling loaves from his restaurants during Hobart’s brief lockdown. The result is Six Russell, a bakery and soon-to-be bistro that’s Hobart’s answer to other Australian fine-dining-inspired bakeries such as Melbourne’s Antara and Sydney’s AP Bakery.

Here, Ruzicka is joined by head chef Jye Ferguson (Dier Makr, Lucinda), pastry chef Julie Kettyle (ex-Peppina) and head baker Nick Harris (ex-Jean-Pascal Patisserie), whose menu spans three categories: Bread (of course), In Bread and Not Bread.

Highlights from the team’s takeaway-ready menu include sandwiches using Six Russell’s 36-hour-fermented “slow sourdough” and the same small-batch produce Ruzicka sources for his restaurants. Already gaining a loyal following is Six Russell's take on a McMuffin, with fennel-accented pork sausage, a silky square omelette, melted cheese, and dill and caper sauce.

On the pastry front? Expect classic croissants, crullers and – the most popular item so far – the pan suisse, a chocolate croissant with a layer of crème patisserie.

But the bakery is just phase one for the site. Next month, the team will open phase two: a 40-seat bistro that’s “more than a cafe but less than restaurant service,” says Ruzicka.

When evening bistro services kick off, expect natural wines, three signature Martinis (dry, inverse, dirty) and a mod-Oz menu featuring vol-au-vents, a riff on oysters Rockefeller featuring abalone, and a full PDT (pomme de terre) section. “Being in Tasmania, I think we can warrant a full section of potato sides,” says Ruzicka.

Six Russell
6 Russell Crescent, Sandy Bay
No phone

Hours:
Mon to Fri 6.30am–2pm
Sat to Sun 7am–1pm

@six_russell_bakes
sixrussell.com.au