15 Melbourne Chefs Share Their Favourite Bread Spots

When Tarts Anon chef Gareth Whitton wants bread, he doesn’t go to one bakery. He goes to three.

Akimbo for shokupan. To Be Frank for focaccia. Ovens Street for fougasse.

That level of specificity is the backbone of Broadsheet Melbourne’s latest “Where Chefs Eat” guide, published on 3 June and asking 15 of the city’s chefs to name their favourite bread spots. The result is a tightly curated list that cuts through the noise of Melbourne’s booming bakery scene by focusing only on loaves, not croissants or pastries.

Chef Hugh Allen has his favourite sourdough. Food writer Sofia Levin named her “most reliable” loaf. Chef Shannon Martinez has a go-to continental loaf. Each recommendation points to a particular bakery and a specific bread, narrowing the field for anyone who wants to eat what the professionals eat.

“I have three different spots for bread,” Whitton told Broadsheet. “Akimbo for shokupan, To Be Frank for focaccia and Ovens Street for fougasse.”

The guide goes beyond the polished new openings. Among the chef-specific picks are older favourites like Loafer Bread in Fitzroy North, which holds a nostalgic pull for chefs who remember it from before the slick bakery boom. And one recommendation takes you out of town entirely: the banana bread at Cibo Deli in Mount Martha.

That geographic variety is a quiet reminder not to skip suburban bakeries when hunting for exceptional loaves. The same goes for age. While social media tends to push the shiniest new openings, the chefs’ picks show that longstanding bakeries build loyalty for good reason.

Unlike Broadsheet’s earlier broader bakery roundups, this guide draws a hard line around bread. You will not find a laminated pastry here. Instead it is all about the loaf, from Japanese milk bread to classic sourdough and European-style continental loaves.

For anyone who wants to cut straight to the chase, Whitton’s three-venue system is a strong starting point. Akimbo in Collingwood for shokupan is a must-try, as is To Be Frank’s focaccia and Ovens Street’s fougasse. The full guide on Broadsheet is worth a read for the specific loaves each chef named.

Melbourne’s bakery scene has never been louder. Sometimes the best advice comes from the people who cook for a living and know exactly where to go when they need a reliable loaf.