Member Article

Newcastle’s Crosbys supports rise of new Gosforth bakery

Newcastle-based Crosbys Catering Equipment has been appointed as the supplier for Olivia’s Artisan Bakery and Café, now open in the Trinity Centre in Gosforth.

‘Olivia’s Artisan Bakery and Café at Trinity’ marks the latest in a range of projects that Crosbys has handled for Olivia’s.

The team has helped with the fit out and equipment for the central bakery in Darlington, and has also helped to equip the cafés in Darlingon, Hurworth, Northallerton, Stokesley and Thirsk.

Crosbys was tasked with supplying the Newcastle site after the Trinity Centre approached Olivia’s with a brief to re-launch its Trinity café with a fresh, new identity.

The revamped café, now open from Mondays to Saturdays from 8am – 4pm, serves freshly baked artisan breads crafted by a team of artisan bakers at a central bakery in Darlington using only organic flour, salt, yeast and water, with no artificial ingredients.

Olivia’s operates as a social enterprise and works in partnership with young people’s charity The Clervaux Trust to offer vulnerable young adults work experience at its cafés, with the aim of developing their self-confidence, independence and interaction with their local communities.

This programme, which is well established in the existing branches of Olivia’s, provides young people with the chance to learn baking, food preparation and front of house skills, and will be introduced to the new Gosforth site in the coming weeks.

The café will also work with the Trinity Centre to support a range of charitable projects, such as providing subsidised lunches for Age Concern, serving a weekly community lunch for elderly members of the local community, and offering volunteering opportunities.

Additionally, Olivia’s has appointed Adrian Watson as director of food and operations. Adrian, who has worked as an executive chef at Terry Laybourne’s Café 21, and at the Sir John Fitzgerald Group, is working to enhance the café’s product range and presentation, and will be introducing Olivia’s to further local suppliers.

Crosbys director Ben Crosby said: “We’re delighted to see Olivia’s continue to grow and thrive, and we’ve enjoyed working with the team to prepare for the opening of the first Newcastle site.

“The existing Olivia’s bakeries elsewhere in the region are famous in their local communities – not only for the quality of the freshly baked artisan bread, but also for the brilliant work they carry out with young people, and we’re sure that the Gosforth café will be just as successful.”

Rick McCordall, managing director of Olivia’s Artisan Bakery and Café, said: “We’d like to thank Crosbys for their support in bringing our first Tyneside café to life. We’ve worked with the staff there for several years now and they have a very good understanding of what we need and how we operate.

“We now have a prominent location in the heart of Gosforth and we’re very much looking forward to getting involved with the local community.

“The location couldn’t be better as it’s a hugely popular meeting place in the centre of the high street. We’re also very pleased to have Adrian on board – he brings a wealth of expertise, creativity and contacts with him, so it’s a very exciting time for the business.

“We’re planning to open a unit in York next month, and may also look to open a second Newcastle café if we locate a suitable site, so we look forward to continuing our relationship with Crosbys on future projects.”

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