- Published:
Kathryn Lewis roadtests cinnamon buns by post from Cornwall’s Da Bara Bakery
What is it?
Hands down the best cinnamon buns in the UK (don’t @ me), baked in Truro and then couriered overnight to your door.
Why?
Everyone remembers their first Da Bara Bakery cinnamon bun (mine was snaffled outside The Arc Food Store in Wadebridge the morning after the 2016 Trencherman’s Awards).
Following that first introduction, many converts have rerouted journeys and travelled cross-county (even country) to get their hands on the Cornish delicacy. Sure, there are other good versions which don’t require additional miles, but none come close to Da Bara’s delightfully doughy cinnamon-laced knots.
And finally (FINALLY!) the indie bakery has launched a UK-wide delivery service.
The low-down
The team at Da Bara have been making their cult cinnamon buns for just short of a decade, and those years of practice have resulted in a killer recipe which turns out the perfect dough every time.
Slathered with a rich cinnamon-infused butter, rolled into its signature rose shape, baked until golden and then showered with cinnamon-spiked sugar, the bun-croissant hybrid is a triumph of science and creativity.
Of course, like all baked goods, they taste best on the day they are created (warm from the oven at the bakery cafe near Truro for optimum first-bite crunch) but that shouldn’t put you off the home delivery route.
The Da Bara bakers recommend reviving the delivered buns in the oven for five minutes – if you can stop yourself from gobbling one as soon as you’ve ripped the package from the delivery driver’s hands. The quick blast rejuvenates the spring in the dough and the crisp it the crust – and confirms that eating them warm is definitely the way to go.
Cost
If £12.50 for five buns seems steep, just think of the petrol you’re saving by ordering to your door. And if the thought persists, you’re clearly not getting the message about just how good these buns are.
Packaging
The carby goods are packaged in an easily recyclable cardboard box and brown paper. They’re also wrapped in (not so fish-friendly) plastic, however the stretchy film can be dropped off at supermarket carrier-bag recycling points and is essential to keeping the buns fresh as they wing their way to you.
Recommend to a friend?
Introducing a friend to Da Bara’s cinnamon buns is a bit like introducing your parents to your first serious partner: equal measures of excitement and trepidation – you want them to love them as much as you do, but worry you’ve been overselling them for months.
Your parents may have got away with a half-hearted performance of being enthusiastic about your first spotty teenage love object, but there’s no faking it when it comes to these buns.
The friend takes a first bite and a smile cracks across their sugar-crusted lips. Relief washes over you. Of course they love them: you wouldn’t be friends with a heathen.
So, in short, yes – if you can hack the nerves.
