BlackStar Pastry

and back to Sydney we go...

There was a period during my time in Sydney were my Instagram saw at least one photo of a piece of treasure from “BlackStar Pastry” in the city’s suburb of Newtown. I did discuss about another place in Newtown called Brewtown Newtown a few weeks back. In fact, we took a walk to check out the highly anticipated BlackStar right after our brunch at Brewtown Newtown. 

What’s so special about BlackStar? Why is it such a hot shot? And what is THE cake that was raided my instagram feed? So many unanswered questions. The place is tucked away in what you could describe as one of the quieter roads of Newtown. The place is small and in all honestly, it was hard for us to see a sign of the cafe. Actually, we only found the place because we saw that there a mysterious queue just by the cars on the street side. Google Maps led us to the spot and at the time we felt as if it had failed us. We went closer to the line of people, then saw the cake we had only seen before on Instagram. Alright, so this was BlackStar Pastry.

The cafe doesn't have many seatings. As I said it's quite small and from what I saw, it's best that you grab a coffee and a cake and just take away. Otherwise, finding a seat may be a challenge, but it's only because they're busy. I was there on a nice day during the summer, so they had comfy seats and tables just outside. If you want to out smarter your competition, you can tell a friend to guard seats for you - do not just take my words for it since aggression (triggered by hunger) cannot be predicted. 

Since we were quite stuffed from our brunch literally ten minutes earlier, we decided to go straight to the cake. Only a slice between the two of us though, for two reasons. One was that we were full from our feast. The other, was because it was quite expensive. I can’t recall how much we paid exactly but my gut feelings are telling me that it was around $7 to $8 a piece. Wow, for a piece of cake? It better be fit for a king.

I must first explain what the cake is. It’s described by the cafe as a strawberry and watermelon cake, layered with rose scented cream. This is the very cake that took over my Instagram and undoubted the cafe’s signature - and number one seller! If they sell a single serve for $7, you could roughly calculate how much they would make. Nothing short of amazing.

After lining up for about seven just to try a piece of cake, we finally managed find a seat - it was pumping when we arrived and was super hard to find a spot to sit. We couldn't wait to dig in and see what all the hype and talk were all about. But first, we had to take pictures. Notice how I just used the word “had to”. We really had to take pictures of this bad boy so that it would be on the Instagram account of our own, and to continue the domino effect of making other people jealous. Anyhow, we went on to try the cake, very slowly of course since it was tiny. 

I must say that the cake was delicious and full of different textures and flavors. You do get the watermelon and strawberry, as it should be. The cream was nice, and it did have the aroma of roses. I can’t say anything other than it was a cake that was very well executed. But at the end of the day, it’s a piece of cake and nothing more. I believe that nothing special was involved in terms of ingredients, but that’s a good thing. The hard work was behind the scene in coming up with such a smart piece of cake, with simple ingredients. The thinking behind the dessert was the winning factor for me. The flavours and textures combined harmoniously. 

But would I go back? Yes, I would, but not any time soon. Of course I live in Paris now, but I meant that as in the cake was good, but it’s not something I would keep going back for more every so often. I would give it another try every months here and then. It was not that special or so wow-ing for me. I am interested in trying other desserts though. One of the reasons as to why I say this is because of the high price for the strawberry / watermelon cake. A piece of cake in a small cafe could’ve bought a nice lunch elsewhere. But it’s definitely worth a visit though! After all, I’m not a massive fan of desserts but I do have my preferences. 

If you’re in the area and did not already have a meal, I would like to suggest another place. This place is just hanging out on the main road, towards the end of the train station. The exact name of this place is “Milk Bar & Grill.” The exact address if you want to copy and paste it to Google Maps is “261a King Street, Newtown.” The (wise) words out on the street have it this place makes really really killer milkshakes, and that their pancakes are also really good. They always have their menu written out in a huge black chalkboard, attracting the eyes of those walking pass. I was clearly one of them, as I snapped a shot and told myself that I would one day return and sit on one of their many tables. Unfortunately, I never really got up to doing that, but it’s something that you there in Sydney could do if you’re keen! 

Down at the very bottom of this post, you’ll be able to help yourself to links for BlackStar Pastry Newtown and Milk Bar & Grill. I heard that BlackStar has opened up another place in Sydney, so keep your eyes out for more awesome things to come.

http://blackstarpastry.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/MilkBarNewtown