Laura and Rory Gannon are the dynamic duo behind Kilkenny City's baking sensation, CakeFace.
Having left their respective careers in property and chemical engineering to follow their passion within the food industry, they met at Ballymaloe Cookery School and from there travelled to France to fine tune their craft in Roger Vergé's legendary restaurant Moulin des Mougins in Cannes and then to London, where they worked in high-end pastry kitchens until eventually finding their way back home to Kilkenny.
Although it’s on a quiet street and a little out of the way, what a great destination their delightful patisserie and little café has turned out to be. Definitely more River Café than corner café, the wittily named cakes and pastries (aka “Quirky and Unusual Desserts”), are simply stellar
Inside the décor is minimalistic black and white, with a grounded comfortable feel.Beside the food counter are breads from the terrific Seagull Bakery in Waterford; freshly baked and beautifully displayed on a white cork wall the choice, as the locals say, “is mighty", and the breads are sold out in no time.
The counter is covered in all sorts of alluring pastries made by Rory that morning, while desserts in the fridge unashamedly tempt everyone who enters. These are the jewel in the crown of CakeFace and they look more like works of art than food. Anything but classical, each has its own name and personality, including favourites such as The Passionate Tart, The Zesty Nutcracker and FIGure it out, the latter inspired by a friend of Rory’s who dropped in a few figs for him to play with.
There are some staples but each time you drop in for a visit you are likely to find something new and exciting to tantalise your taste buds and, while simple, the savoury food - including deeply flavoured soups, and sandwiches made with gorgeous breads from carefully selected craft bakeries - is delicious.
Superb coffee too - the best in Kilkenny they claim, and they could be right. Small but mighty, Cakeface is a little treasure.
* CakeFace also have a production kitchen one door up from the Café, where their delectable products are made - and you can watch from the street, making them even more irresistible...
