Shutishuti is the delicious York patisserie by Estzer Takacs, who has opened her first shop this year at Fairfax Corner. Having gained a great reputation for her tasty bakes at Food Circle York Market, The Pig and Pastry and Kiosk, Estzer tells us all about taking the next step at her gorgeous new micro-bakery.
Fairfax Corner is a sitting room size operation. The building has historically always been a shop; in the eighties, it was a grocers, in recent history it was an eco store and community kitchen. In Victorian times, the corner building should be a public space, and the landlords are keen that this corner is used for the original intended purpose, as a community shop. That’s what Shutishuti Patisserie is.
I’m from Hungary and I grew up with the idea of the cake shop; for most people there, a normal activity on a weekend a would be to go and get a lovely selection of cakes to take home for the family to enjoy. That’s very much part of the culture, and I’d like to bring some of that here.
The local people have been really supportive. They saw me coming here and were waiting patiently during the renovation, crossing their fingers for me and saying “you can do it”! And once I opened, they showed up, and they continue to show up – people gathering on the street enjoying cakes, coffee and conversations. It’s important to have a good relationship with the local community.
I started out this baking journey just from true interest. I didn’t train at Catering College, so I’m pretty much self taught. I did a degree in fine art so it’s all just kind of fun! I’ve been baking for about eight years; I had my business at home, based on markets, store trading and whole cakes for special occasions.
Primarily I’m a cake maker and pastry chef. The ideas behind the cakes are always in the ingredients. Whilst I’m not currently at Food Circle’s market at Community Centre in Tang Hall, I still get my produce from them. The whole inspiration is the produce, and I try to always use local – for example, damsons that I foraged were used to make the jam for cakes recently.
At Shutishuti everything is made in the kitchen, and I’m the only person who bakes here. I have a barista who makes very nice coffee (from Harmony Roasters in York) and my sister Kata helps me. Independent businesses have been supportive too, particularly Steve and Julia at The Pig & Pastry. I supplied their cafe with cakes and they’ve helped me with advice on opening, even lent me equipment, which is a huge help.
Everyone says I will outgrow this place, that I will be successful and need a bigger shop. I don’t know. I’m not really looking so far ahead. My short term objective is to make sure I can keep going. Do it week by week, gradually, gradually. For now, it’s for people to enjoy some well baked cake with a nice drink.
