bake - October 2018 - 58

foodservice

a taste of AUSTRALIA
The Banksia is an Australian wildﬂower with an unusual shape

or Greek lamb. Banksia also specializes in authentic Australian

and color. Much like its namesake, Banksia Bakehouse in Kansas

sausage rolls comprised of a ﬂuffy, ﬂaky puff pastry wrap with

City, Missouri, is an atypical bakery for a Midwestern United

lamb, pork, or kangaroo ﬁlling. That's right - kangaroo meat is

States setting.

shipped in to the bakery on a regular basis for its unique rolls.
It is a lean meat that is often compared to venison for being

The Australian eatery comes courtesy of Rob and Kate Joseph,

gamey, yet ﬂavorful.

as well as their business partner Erika Vikor. All three are natives
from Down Under who moved to Kansas City in 2012 to build out

Other popular Australian items are the Lamington, a sponge cake

their successful veterinary pharmaceutical company. After Rob

dipped in chocolate syrup and coated in coconut; Pavlova, a

retired from the company, he set out to ﬁnd a new challenge.

meringue dessert topped with chantilly cream and fresh berries;
and Iced VoVo, a shortbread cookie striped with strawberry

"I did the full corporate deal and then retired at the end of last

marshmallow, raspberry jam, and coconut. Many of these items

year. After three weeks of retirement, my wife said, 'You need

have great backstories - and great textures and ﬂavors to match.

to get a hobby.' I've been cooking my whole life and traveled
the world, so I did it (opened Banksia) with the idea that if I

The team has also developed a fantastic lunch menu.

don't do it now, I'm never going to do it," Rob Joseph says.

Sandwiches served on fresh baked bread and salads packed
with a variety of ingredients satisfy the business lunch crowd in

They decided that they wanted to bring a little piece of

the heart of the city. The Lulu Salad, a chicken salad on greens

Australia to the Midwest. After buying local favorite Sasha's

with poppy seeds and cranberries, is a holdover from the

Baking Company in 2017, they slowly transitioned it into an

Sasha's menu that is especially noteworthy.

Australia-style bakery while maintaining the elements that
made the former bakery so beloved in the area.

Banksia has garnered plenty of praise in just a short amount of
time. This has caused long lines at the business, necessitating

"We didn't want to scare the regulars and the locals by coming in

the discussion of expansion. They're currently looking at spaces

and changing everything up, so we did it very gradually. We do

for new locations. They're also keeping the bakery open until

still offer many of the same bakery items [from Sasha's], we still

dinner, as they received their liquor license and are looking to

have the same baker, line cook, pastry chef. We have a lot of new

showcase smaller share plates. 

stuff as well, but we balance that with the old," Erika Vikor says.
trends have shown, consumers are looking for more diverse

it's the recently-introduced Australian-style baked goods that

food experiences. Gen Z consumers in particular are driving

have made the business stand out in an already stellar baking

consumption of more emerging international food and drink.

community. Authentic Australian bakeries are not very common

Bakeries that can provide these experiences will ﬁnd plenty

in America, but their offerings are well worth experiencing.

of success in the coming years. The Banksia team is bringing
a new baking perspective to the Midwest, and the people are

Meat pies are a huge draw. They are the quintessential

responding well to it.

Australian pastry, often being ﬁlled with beef brisket, chicken,

B R IA N A MICK

58 < OCT 2018 | bakemag.com

BANKSIA BAKEHOUSE

It's an exciting time at this Australian bakery. As recent
While the old favorites bring in their fair share of customers,
http://www.bakemag.com
bake - October 2018

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