There are few better examples of why I continue the food journey I started fifteen years ago than Smidge Bakery, now settled in its Leederville forever-home after a year in the wilderness. Originally opening as a Maylands hole-in-the-wall in 2023, owners Gen Walters and Liz Younger built a friendly cafe with a reputation for great coffee and arguably the best cinnamon scrolls in Perth (and no, this isn’t the time or place for that argument).
Smidge Bakery was born a year after Gen and Liz first became friends, with Gen starting the business on her own and Liz joining three months later. Forced to leave their Maylands premises with barely a moment’s notice – through no fault of their own – the pair refused to give up and survived for over a year through pop-ups and their growing wholesale business. The support they received from the community and hospitality industry was testament to their attitude and reputation.
“It was very much…we can’t go backwards, we have nothing to lose but also everything to lose,” says Liz. “We worked in so many unsatisfying hospo jobs and couldn’t go back to that. We’d tasted the good life and we liked it,” adds Gen.
Their new Leederville cafe is finally open, with Gen in the kitchen, Liz front of house and hospo veteran Rachael Barrett somewhere inbetween to help keep things moving.
Gen and Liz are a formidable team that clearly know each other very well.
“I think my actual key job-role is the Gen-decipherer. The stuff that comes out of her mouth when she’s flustered is so disjointed and I’m the only one that can translate that,” jokes Liz. “We’ve been doing this for two years, we’ve learnt a lot,” agrees Gen.
The Smidge food menu is a continual work in progress, with the now-legendary in-demand cinnamon and Vegemite scrolls at the core. There’s a constant rotation of items from star-baker Gen, including cookies as big as your head, focaccia toasties, toast with DIY toppings, granola and so on. A small al a carte menu is currently being planned.
Smidge’s wholesale program current supplies ten customers and is expected to grow. Coffee is from Bayswater roaster Timely.
Ask Liz how she is, and she’ll tell you that she’s living the dream. She’s not being sarcastic but hints at imposter syndrome, finding it hard to believe they’re now hiring staff and being approached by influencers and media. She recounts her four years working as a manager for Dome, an often dismissed Perth institution that has provided a training ground for some of our top coffee professionals.
I’ve followed Smidge’s journey from the beginning, and saw how tirelessly the pair (honourable mention to Liz’s partner James) worked 18-hour days resurrecting an abandoned restaurant, from demolition to painting, plumbing and building the furniture that now fills this bustling, family-friendly venue. All while servicing their demanding wholesale business.
With comfortable booths, couches and high tables, Smidge is the perfect spot to work, catch up with friends or just people-watch. It’s already one of our best and friendliest cafes, and they’re just getting started. A full house and a line of customers out the door at 9am Sunday says it all.
If you want to show your kids what hard work, persistence and passion can do, bring them to Smidge Bakery.
Smidge Bakery
1/106 Oxford St, Leederville WA 6007 (between Bunn Mee & Phat Lon)
Wed-Fri 6am-1pm, Sat-Sun 7am-1pm
Follow them on Instagram
(all photos : Martin Eade)
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