pasticceria papa

I have been hearing about Haberfield for what seems like the longest of times. "It is" Rocket would exclaim "the Eden of Sydney. The premiere suburb. Why would you want to live anywhere else?" He would continue, accompanied by constant riling from myself and the Bean. "What do you think of Haberfield Rocket?" we would ask "Decent place do you think?" And it would start all over again. So there was not so much as a single question asked when we realised that I wanted cake, and would be in Haberfield. "I'll show you the best place!" said he. And off we went.

Pasticceria Papa sits on the main corner of Haberfield (being that of Ramsay Street and Dalhousie Street, for the uninitiated). And the first thing I notice, as we wander down the road and towards the high ceilinged, large windowed building is the queue. People. Everywhere.

the cabinet crush

It does not help that we are visiting in the middle of Easter, and it seems all and sunder have flocked here to grab a cake, a couple of slices and some other nice treats for imminent guests. The queue spills out the door and onto the street, where a couple of dads stand with prams, not daring to try get inside.

goodies for sale

And we soon see why. The counter is long and heavy laden. Cakes of all description and purpose sit stacked in, along and behind it. A hand will fly up "Who's next!" and, without any pushing or shoving, the next one will rattle out their order. When it comes to our turn, we are utterly stumped. There are precious few signs telling us what each item is, much less its price, but no matter. Rocket is here for a birthday cake, and I am drawn to a collection of flavoured profiteroles.

coffee profiterole cake

There are two profiterole cakes on offer today. One caramel and the other coffee. "Which one would you like?" we are asked. "Caramel" says Rocket, then looks at our faces. "No. Coffee." The cake is packed up in a box and droped off at the counter, where he is asked "What did you order?" before doing the dollar for delicious swap. And whilst the Bean & I weren't around to try it, I am told that his family was rather happy with the cake.

selection of profiteroles

I hav bypassed slices of all description (a full menu can be downloaded here) and have stopped in front of the profiteroles. "What flavours are these?" I ask. "Pistachio" I am told, a finger pointing at the green-topped puff. "Hazelnut. Chocolate. Vanilla" Three of us. Four flavours. "I'll have one of each, except the chocolate." And after shifting $4.20 into the waiting hands of the cashier (at least I think it was $4.20, it may have been $5.40. Forgive me for inaccuracies, for I was a touch overwhelmed) I am presented with my goodies.

pistachio, vanilla, hazelnut

We divide and conquer. The vanilla first. And it is creamy and eggy with a not-too-crispy and not-too-soggy pastry shell. Lovely. The hazelnut is wonderfully nutty atop and the filling is remeniscent of a lighter version of custard made from nutella. But the pistachio! OH! I was all about the pistachio. It was clean and nutty without the slightly alcoholic and bitter flavour that pistachio flavoured items can have. And, when items were being divvied up, it was the one that I swiped an extra serving of.

cannoli: chocolate & vanilla

Somehow, in the melee, Rocket had snagged a couple of cannoli for us to try. They were crunchy and sweet. Shattering before giving way to a smooshy interior (and I can only describe it as smooshy, because that's how it felt). Love!

"Why so little food?" you may ask. Well, I'd been bakery hopping that morning and already had enough cake and pastry to last me the rest of the weekend... But I'll be back to Pasticceria Papa soon I think. For the pistachio profiteroles if nothing else anyway.

Pasticceria Papa
145 Ramsay Street
Haberfield NSW 2045
ph: 02 9798 6894 or 9799 9676

Open Monday-Friday: 8am-6pm, Saturday: 7:30am-5pm, Sunday: 7:30am-1pm