One of Australia’s oldest cafés has turned tradition on its head this Easter by reinventing the hot cross bun.

Shingle Inn, the heritage café much loved for its 80+ year traditions, will defy convention with the release of the “hot cross bar”.

This sticky deliciousness being marketed as a modern take on the traditional favourite has been created by the experts in Shingle Inn’s bakery from superior gluten-free ingredients and is available in both traditional and salted caramel flavours.

Shingle Inn’s Brand Manager, Louise Bellchambers, explains why the company is willing to break with convention and put a new twist on a beloved Easter favourite.

“We trialled the gluten-free Hot Cross Bar last year and the feedback was so great we’ve decided it deserves a permanent place in our Easter range. We call it a bar due to its shape but I tell people it’s more cake-y than bread-y to help them understand the difference between this product and the Hot Cross Bun we all know and love. After all, Shingle Inn was made famous by our handcrafted cakes and this one is particularly delicious served slightly warmed with cream or ice cream, accompanied by an expertly made cup of leaf tea or a barista-made coffee.”

“Of course being a business with a proud 82-year tradition of serving delicious treats, we’re still making our traditional Hot Cross Buns for the die-hard fans – and they are better than ever this year – hand rolled and hand iced by our bakery team.”

For the youngest members of the family Shingle Inn have also created a cute ‘Lil Chick’ biscuit available individually or in a giftpack of 5. There’s also a competition on for the most inventive place Lil Chick can be found on Instagram.

Shingle Inn background

Born in 1936, in the midst of the Great Depression, Shingle Inn is more than just a cafe; it is a fascinating part of Australia’s, and more specifically Brisbane’s, local history.

This iconic café holds a special place in the heart of people of all ages.

Their range of delicious and decadent baked goods helped establish the Shingle Inn’s popularity. The bakery products continue to be produced as they have always been – lovingly crafted by hand by the team of Shingle Inn bakers using traditional methods and ingredients. Shingle Inn’s bakers still use real butter and real eggs, which sets them apart from many other products available in today’s modern cafés.

In 2018, the Shingle Inn celebrates 82 years, with 53 locations right across Australia in Queensland, Victoria, WA and NSW.

@shingleinn #shingleinn #lilchick

ENDS

SHINGLE INN MEDIA CONTACT:

Shout Communications – Liz Miers 0447 223 021 / liz@shoutcommunications.com.au

SHINGLE INN’S TOP BARISTAS COMPETE TO TAKE OUT NATIONAL TITLE OF THE BEST BARISTA IN THE COUNTRY

Shingle Inn’s top five baristas from all over Australia have been selected to make their four best espressos, four best flat whites and four Signature Drinks for a panel of judges at the 2017 Barista of the Year championships on Wednesday 14 June 2017.

Amy Telfer from Shingle Inn Brisbane City Hall, Nataliah Emmily from Bulimba, Brisbane, JK (Jungkyu) Lee from North Lakes, Ellen Taylor: Belmont Forum, WA and Hank Heng Wang from Knox, Victoria will compete at the finals at Grinders in Woolongabba in Brisbane to win a variety of prizes and the title of 2017 Shingle Inn Barista of the Year.

ABOUT THE FINALISTS:

Amy Telfer is the Barista at Shingle Inn’s oldest café – Brisbane City Hall. Amy’s tip for coffee lovers is: “My favourite coffee and one I recommend everyone tries is a double ristretto honey flat white, the honey not only sweetens the coffee but brings out the natural flavours the barista is trying to extract.”

Nataliah Emmily is from Shingle Inn Bulimba, and Nataliah’s secret to creating the perfect coffee is: “texturing the milk perfectly will help create a beautiful pour in your coffee, and I also like to put a touch of art on each one”.

Ellen Taylor is Shingle Inn Belmont, WA’s Supervisor/Barista is very passionate about being a barista, saying “making good coffee is like creating art. If you put your all into every cup to and love doing it, that will show through in each aspect of your creation.”

JK (Jungkyu) Lee from Shingle Inn North Lakes says he is very proud to be representing the North Lakes team.

Hank Heng Wang is from Shingle Inn Knox and is delighted to be representing his state in the National Barista of the Year Championships, nominating a latte as his coffee of choice.

The people of Brisbane have officially embraced Bulimba’s newest burger offering with the venue exceeding all expectations during their first quarter of operation. ‘St Burger’ is the first Queensland location for the new concept devised by Brisbane’s iconic cafe chain, Shingle Inn.

The delicious new burger range from St Burger, served within Shingle Inn Bulimba – the cafe famous for its coffee and cakes – has opened a totally new market for the popular spot. Once closing daily at 4pm, the cafe is now open until 5.30pm daily and until late on Friday and Saturday nights with locals looking to dine on the delectable burger range. Under new management since October last year, the new franchisees, April and Tony Carnie, are proud to be the first Shingle Inn in Queensland to try the new concept and are excited at their success.

“We really feel that the burger concept has helped us reach a wider cross section of the community,” says April. “As a result, more locals have seen how extensive our breakfast menu is, recognised our level of coffee expertise and realised we are more than a cake shop.”

April and Tony were amongst Shingle Inn’s original franchisees when the proudly family-owned company first started franchising around seven years ago. They opened their first Shingle Inn cafe at Mt Ommaney in December 2009 with their business partners Nicki Nesbitt and Wiesiek Lewandowski who continue to operate the Mt Ommaney store for the high-achieving foursome April and Tony, together with Nicki and Wiesiek, have been regular award winners including the FCA (Franchise Council of Australia) Franchisee of the Year in 2014 when Shingle Inn also won ‘Emerging Franchisor of the Year’ as well as Qld Franchisee of the Year in 2013.

The St Burger mascot, Moo-Moo the cow, is taking over social media with locals stopping to snap selfies daily while Shingle Inn celebrates it’s 81st year as Brisbane’s oldest & most loved café.

The St Burger range of hand-crafted artisan burgers, is only available at Shingle Inn Bulimba.