The Tivoli Road Founders Are Opening a New Bakery in Abbotsford

Michael and Pippa James are a baking power couple. In 2013, they opened the wildly popular Tivoli Road Bakery , known for sourdough, sandwiches and sausage rolls – which they sold in 2018. They’ve co-authored three books, including their latest release Sweet Seasons , and started new business Urbanstead last year, through which they host baking classes and run a stand at the Coburg Farmers Market.

On Thursday November 13, they’ll open their first retail space since selling Tivoli Road. The new Urbanstead bakery, on the corner of Langridge and Russell Street in Abbotsford, will open Thursday to Saturday.

The range won’t be as big as it was at Tivoli Road, but you’ll find “a few of the highlights from the old days,” says Michael. That includes cookies, cakes, sourdough, sandwiches, and pork and fennel sausage rolls. There’ll also be comparatively more exploration of wholegrain baked goods. “It’ll be a huge thing for us to be hyper-local,” he adds. Croissants will be made using Lard Ass butter from Geelong, and there’ll be a small pantry section with products such as Melbourne-made Ji Kimchi.

For the Jameses, Urbanstead is about more than baked goods. ”Urbanstead is a play on the word homestead, but recognises the fact that most humans live in cities now, and can’t do that homesteading thing where we milk our own cow and grow everything we need to eat,” says Pippa. “The idea is that we’re creating food communities, or communities around food to support better farming, support small farmers and localised food. It’s a rejection of the big food and corporate food system.”

Urbanstead is expected to open on Friday November 14 at 203 Langridge Street, Abbotsford.

urbanstead.au