Nice slice, baby! The vanilla slice is Australia’s favourite bakery treat, and few can resist the golden trifecta of wobbly egg custard, crisp, buttery pastry and drippy passionfruit icing. From inner-city hipster haunts to old-school country bakeries, here’s where you can find the best slices in the state as crowned in the delicious. 100.
A vanilla slice this good has no business being in the city. This Australiana-themed deli in inner Sydney sells all the classics, from lamingtons to Anzac bisctuits, but it’s the vanilla slice you want (just pray they have some left). A thick oblong of wobbly custard is crowned with shattering pastry and passionfruit glaze. The Country Women’s Association will be wanting this recipe. Redfern and Alexandria; goodwaysdeli.com.au.
A favourite in the Southern Highlands, Gumnut Patisserie’s popularity demands three locations. Hungry roadtrippers and locals get in early to secure croissants, eclairs, house-made breads and the famous vanilla slice. Layers of firm but silky crême pâtissière are stacked between sheets of house-made butter puff pastry, topped with white fondant icing flecked with pretty chocolate curlicues. Bowral, Mittagong, Berrima; gumnutpatisserie.com.au.
Founded in 2012 – touting a small range of organic bread and sourdough – Racine Bakery is a clear favourite of Orange’s main street. But it’s the vanilla slice that has garnered the team a following due to its creamy, real egg custard filling and all-butter puff pastry. Properly nostalgic, the organic, local ingredients are brought to life with no shortcuts. 166B Summer St, Orange; racinerestaurant.com.au/sourdough-bakery .
Burnt Honey’s vanilla slice takes inspiration from Slovenian cream cake – rich egg custard is topped with a layer of sweet, airy vanilla whipped cream, sandwiched together with spelt butter puff pastry. If the stars align, the bakers may have made a batch of passionfruit vanilla slice – house-made passionfruit curd replaces the whipped cream for a tropical twist. Long Jetty and Copacabana; burnthoneybakery.com.au .
With two outposts in Byron Bay, on bustling Jonson St and in the Industrial Estate, this modern bakery has earnt cult- like status. Its ode to old-school Australiana, the vanilla slice, is especially good. Creamy vanilla custard neighbours layers of puff pastry in a partnership that’s not sickly sweet. It’s generously portioned, too – think slab over slice. 101 Jonson St, Byron Bay; sundaysustainablebakery.com
