Willaura Bakery

Willaura Bakery is the kind of country town bakery people turn off the highway for. Folks heading between Ballarat, Ararat and St Arnaud have been known to detour through Willaura just to stop in, and some have come back through on later trips for exactly the same reason.

Pies are the main event. We hear the beef and curry pie is popular, along with pepper, beef and onion, mushroom, and cheese and bacon, and one local says the pastry is golden and the filling full of flavour. One visitor put it simply: pies "so good" that he and his son ate six between them in one sitting. The pasties have a following too, with one regular admitting to being addicted and another saying they taste like something your Nana would make. Everything is baked fresh, and the sausage rolls get high praise from people sent in by friends in Ararat.

Then there's the vanilla slice, which is the one thing people tell you not to skip. The pastry is described as light and crisp, and one visitor said it disappeared before a photo could be taken. If you've got room, the cheesecakes, lemon tarts, slices and cakes are worth a look, and there's lovely bread on the shelves as well.

It's a friendly place, with counter staff people describe as welcoming and warm. One cyclist passing through said it felt like an oasis, and the team even handed out tote bags as souvenirs. You can grab a coffee and a bite for breakfast, or take it all away for the road, and card and mobile payments are accepted. There's free street parking outside and a wheelchair-accessible car park. One visitor arrived around midday to find the shop full and the car spaces taken, so it pays to allow a little extra time when it's busy.

The bakery has family links to the old Sportons pie shop in Ballarat, and that pie-making pedigree shows. It's open most days but closes early on weekends, so check the hours before you head to this bakery in Willaura, Victoria.