Have you ever been to Emmerdale Farm Shop? Nothing to do with the telly show...it’s a brilliant food emporium at Darsham, just off a turning near Yoxford.
I remember the first time I went. I was overwhelmed. It really is a Tardis of a store – a huge butchery, fresh produce, freezers filled with homemade pies, homemade sausages, desserts, local produce.
When I last visited, however, the café (during lockdown) was looking a bit sorry for itself, which is why it’s fantastic news that it’s re-opened with a new face at the counter.
Mark Mills, a talented pastry chef and beekeeper (of Black Dog Apiaries) has turned the space around within a matter of weeks, transforming it into a 30-seater spot to enjoy a bevy of cakes, savouries and coffee. The Bakehouse.
Being bang in the middle of the Suffolk Heritage Coast, it’s sure to entice daytrippers, walkers and cyclists, who can sit in, eat outside, or take away boxes brimming with handmade, artisan treats.
Talking about the beginnings of The Bakehouse, Mark says: “The location where we were previously, the landlord wanted to take things in a different direction, and we really wanted to grow. So we focussed on the wholesale side of our business, but the opportunity came up to take on the café at Emmerdale Farm Shop. Jeremy of Bramfield Meats [who owns the shop] is very supportive of us. He wants us to grow and be here long term. It’s great.”
Mark says The Bakehouse isn’t a café in the traditional sense. He points out it’s not the kind of place where you’re going to find jacket potatoes or pie and chips.
“We’re more of a patisserie/bakery with seats. We don’t have a formal café menu. We just bake every day and fill the counter. We will change it up all the time, pretty much every day. It’s whatever I feel like making. We won’t be doing things like full cooked breakfasts.”
Typical savoury fare ranges from sausage rolls and Scotch eggs made with meat from the farm shop, to frittatas, stuffed focaccia sandwiches, quiches and cheese scones.”
In addition to meat from the farm shop, eggs are local, and Mark uses as much other local produce as he can.
Moving on to talk about the rather delectable-sounding sweet additions to The Bakehouse counter, Mark lists off apricot and Amaretto tart, raspberry and rose teacakes, Biscoff caramel gateau, date and walnut loaf cake, and hazelnut praline chocolate brownies.
On the bakery’s Instagram account (visit for drool-worthy pictures) I also note triple chocolate cookies and torched marzipan and rhubarb cake. Mark’s honey will weave its way into a few items too now and then, and the honey itself, and honey-based products, are available to buy and take home.
Does he have any specialities?
“It’s got to be the sausage rolls and Scotch eggs. I change the flavours and even the way I make them up all the time. It’s great to have that freedom. And people love to come in and find we don’t have the same thing every time.”
Food is complemented by a selection of soft drinks, tea, hot chocolate and Freshpak signature premium coffee.
And afternoon tea and cream teas are available daily. Bookings are being taken for Mother’s Day – priced at £15 per person and including a selection of sandwiches – from smoked salmon, cream cheese and English wasabi, to roast beef, watercress and onion marmalade – warmed scone with clotted cream and jam, a sausage roll soft poached Scotch egg, goats’ cheese and red onion tart, and a selection of petite bakes and cakes.
“We’ve been so busy,” says Mark. “It’s very good. People seem to be thrilled with what we’re doing. Even the people who’ve come in expecting a full English breakfast have been overwhelmed by the choice. We’re winning them over, one cup of tea and slice of cake at a time.”
The Bakehouse is open daily from 9.30am to 4pm. Mark also hopes to take over the café at Three Willows Garden Centre in Flixton this summer. Watch this space.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here