Overview
Croissants can be found in pretty much every cafe, bakery, supermarket and weekend market in the country. So it's a true endorsement of the calibre of Lune's croissants that mammoth queues have been a familiar sight at the bakery's original Elwood outpost and its larger successor in Fitzroy, Melbourne. Sydneysiders have been waiting a long time to form their own line for a Lune croissant and now, after five years (and a few false starts), the first Harbour City outpost of the much-hyped croissanterie is ready to welcome its first punters on December 7.
The date was announced on Lune's Instagram account with the simple message: "Sydney, let the games begin."
Melburnians may have reason to be jealous of Sydney's croissant lovers. The Rosebery branch of Lune will be its largest to date. Located within a renovated warehouse, more than 65 staff will be hustling to produce the more than 5400 golden, buttery scrolls of perfectly puffed pastry sold every day. Better yet, a satellite store in Martin Place is set to open not long after the Rosebery branch, offering Sydneysiders even greater access to Lune's bounty of baked treats.
Lune's founder Kate Reid started the business as a humble wholesale operation 12 years ago. Since then, she has not only grown the brand into a multi-venue success but has also earned global recognition, including Lune's croissants being declared the best in the world by The New York Times and cookbook icon Yotam Ottolenghi insisting they be "the prototype for all others".
However, despite this incandescent praise, Lune's arrival in Sydney has been a hard-won battle, dogged by failed partnerships and stalled developments. A 2019 proposal to bring Lune to Chippendale was scuttled by pandemic shutdowns while a second attempt to open a branch in Darlinghurst was upended by building limitations on a heritage-listed site.
A third potential venue in Martin Place offered an ideal location but was too small to support a commercial bakery on the scale that would be necessary. Meanwhile, as plans to open in Sydney remained in limbo, Lune opened its first Queensland location in Brisbane.
Kate Reid
Determined to make a Sydney bakery a reality, Reid and her brother Cameron began scouting potential locations, finally discovering a venue of the size needed in Rosebery. Indeed, the space is so substantial, that it has created an opportunity for Lune to expand its offering.
While the bakery is a production hub, also baking croissants for sale in Martin Place, it also has space for seated customers. Much like its sister venue in Fitzroy, there is a temperature-controlled glass cube where bakers work in view of hungry punters. Plans for the future include the introduction of the Lune Lab, which will create experimental tasting menus featuring both sweet and savory dishes in collaboration with notable chefs, such as Kylie Kwong.
In addition to its signature croissant, both Sydney outlets will serve coffee from Ona, a rotating seasonal pastry and a selection of Lune favourites including its pain au chocolat, ham and gruyere croissants and morning buns flavoured with cinnamon, brown sugar and orange zest.
Find Lune Croissanterie at 115/151 Dunning Ave, Rosebery, open from December 7. For more details visit the Lune Sydney website.