The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry | A Sydney Food Blog

Menu changes at Bourke Street Bakery, Alexandria

August 4th, 2009  |  Published in Uncategorized  |  6 Comments

Potato Pizza, Bourke St

Like tragic fashion choices – if you wait long enough, some things come back again.

So, I was keyed up by the Potato Pizza Revival at Bourke Street Bakery. The topping made a blink-long appearance earlier this year as a special, but luckily, the other week, it got properly added to the new menu. I was hugely excited because the pizza is one of my favourites: the crispy potato, salt and rosemary sprigs square off perfectly with the sweet spread of ricotta and Spanish onion.

I ordered it, repeatedly.

Sadly, that didn’t stop it from falling out of menu favour. It got taken off the board after a week or so. Apparently it is just too high-maintenance to make, the potato has to get pre-cooked, etc etc. No wonder they reinstated the fuss-free Tomato & Basil Pizza ($6) instead.

As consolation, you can get your potato fix through the various soups that get ladled out during the week at Bourke Street Bakery. I haven’t yet had the Potato & Leek ($9) (which is so chunky, the bowl seems to house starchy icebergs) but I did enjoy a variation with fennel recently (which says a lot, given that I don’t entirely love fennel! It can be such a recipe-hog, frequently outscreaming any other ingredients it has to share billing with).

While some of the soups are great (I’m a fan of the Zucchini & Parmesan), others can be homey and plain, reminding me of comedian Daniel Kitson’s take on the dish. Whereas he loves yum cha and tapas, soup is entirely the opposite of those flavour lotteries: you only need four spoons-full and the point is made. The surprise element is pretty much dead. (I’m just paraphrasing: imagine that being said in a more endearingly cheeky fashion, complete with loveable British-accented swearing, and the physical presence of specs and a prominent, good-natured beard.)

I wonder what Daniel Kitson would think about potato pizza menu-grief. (Small consolation: you could probably make a similar version at home, including potato prep shortcuts where necessary. Or just wait until the dish eventually comes back into fashion again, when everyone’s too memory-fogged to remember its original shortfalls.)

Bourke Street Bakery, 474 Gardeners Road, Alexandria NSW (02) 8339 1001.

This is the main bakery but there are other branches: 633 Bourke St, Surry Hills NSW (02) 9699 1011;
2 Mitchell St, Marrickville NSW (02) 9569 3225.

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6 Comments

  1. Bring back focaccia with chicken, sundried tomatoes and cheese. MMMMM.

  2. Marianne says:

    It’s probably more a dinner-sized meal that the elusive Bourke St Bakery pizza, but if you’re a fan of potato pizzas you MUST try the Potate at Gigi on King St in Newtown.

    http://www.thesydneytraveler.com/gigi-delivers-again/

    Truffle oil makes all the difference!

  3. ii-ne-kore says:

    i LOVE your description and paraphrasing of daniel kitson:) he is one of my all-time favourite people!
    (and if you come down to melb sometime, i hope you get to squeeze in a visit to i carusi pipzza place in brunswick sometime – they do a great potato pizza!)

  4. Still Ill says:

    I think the same bloke that owns BSB also runs ‘Central Baking Depot’ on Erskine St in the city. The pumpkin pizza there rocks.

  5. catherine says:

    This month’s Time Out mag(the Food Awards issue)mentions and has a photo of a potato, sea salt and rosemary pizza from Pizza Mario at Surry Hills. I noticed because it’s one of my faves too and hard to come by! I plan on trying it soon.

  6. leetranlam says:

    Thank you for all your great recommends … I have meaning to get a potato fix from Mario after a friend getting an awesome takeaway box many years ago …
    Can’t wait to try Gigi especially!

    And Bree, so glad my Daniel Kitson description passed the test. It’s very hard to imitate someone who is that funny and particular …

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Hi, I'm Lee Tran Lam. When not blogging with my mouth full, I'm usually writing, presenting Local Fidelity on FBi radio, making zines, producing podcasts or continually breaking promises about how I really am gonna get through my book pile one day.

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