Halstead Bakery

Halstead Bakery A Tiny Backyard Bakery Making Honest and Humble Sourdough and Pastries

Over the past few weeks, Old Kent Red has found its way into many of our bakes — from our wholemeal sponge cake to straw...
22/05/2026

Over the past few weeks, Old Kent Red has found its way into many of our bakes — from our wholemeal sponge cake to strawberry and almond buns ♥️

Grown locally in Pembury, our Old Kent Red flour is grown, farmed and supplied by Leon, a third-generation farmer focused on diversifying the future of farming. Two years ago his attention shifted to older heritage grains, curious to explore the potential of organic production. In a world geared towards high-input, high-output farming, these older varieties are centred around locality, provenance and diversification.

This particular grain is called Old Kent Red (a Kentish version of the once highly regarded Red Lammas which slowly fell out of production). Last summer, Leon discovered that a retiring farmer in Canterbury was still growing the grain and that, without additional support, production would likely cease altogether. By purchasing seed from him, Leon helped ensure the survival of this historic grain and established his place as an advocate for farming organically.

Unlike modern monocultures, these older grains are described as ‘populations’ and carry greater genetic diversity, gradually adapting to their local growing conditions. For Leon, this shift is about far more than yield. By growing organically, he balances efficiency with soil health, locality and sustainability - working with the land, not against it.
Milled at and , Old Kent Red carries notes of rich, nutty marzipan. It’s not just the flavour that excites us about this cake, but the many moving parts it represents. It brings together all those who value a diverse and sustainable future of farming. We feel incredibly proud to play a small part in this journey. A real celebration cake!

If you’d like to learn more about Leon’s work, his Substack is @ FellinPitsFarm - including a recent essay titled ‘A Dissident’s Guide to Agricultural Economics’ 🌾

Our mid-May round up! 🌼
17/05/2026

Our mid-May round up! 🌼

Choc Almonds ⭐Our Pain au Chocolat and Almond Croissants combined into one indulgent pastry. Filled with dark chocolate ...
15/05/2026

Choc Almonds ⭐

Our Pain au Chocolat and Almond Croissants combined into one indulgent pastry. Filled with dark chocolate and topped with almond cream.

Available every Friday, Saturday and Sunday ♥️

Butter -
Chocolate -
Flour -
Almonds -

Introducing .lane ‘s delicious piccalilli. This classic picnic preserve includes cauliflower, cucumber and carrot pieces...
02/05/2026

Introducing .lane ‘s delicious piccalilli. This classic picnic preserve includes cauliflower, cucumber and carrot pieces, pickled in a spiced mustard and turmeric sauce. A wonderful accompaniment to summer platters of cured meats and hard cheeses. This is just one of the many Water Lane preserves we stock at Halstead — so many to try!

Water Lane is a beautiful Victorian walled garden in Hawkhurst. This weekend they’re hosting their annual Spring Fair, where our bread and bakes will be available to purchase as you wander from stall to stall. A true celebration of so many local makers & creatives 🌟

We’ve refreshed, reset and are ready to welcome you all back 😊 Here’s what we’ve been up to so far this April!🤍
25/04/2026

We’ve refreshed, reset and are ready to welcome you all back 😊 Here’s what we’ve been up to so far this April!🤍

Just an update from us at Halstead! We’ll be open as usual but offer no bread between 10th-12th April and close for thre...
28/03/2026

Just an update from us at Halstead!

We’ll be open as usual but offer no bread between 10th-12th April and close for three days from the 15th-17th.

Fear not — we’ll continue to serve plenty of pastries, sweet treats and coffee!

Normal service will resume from 18th April.

Thank you for your continued support and understanding! 😊

While citrus fruits are often associated with summer — bespeckling Hawaiian shirts and gaudy swimming shorts from June t...
03/02/2026

While citrus fruits are often associated with summer — bespeckling Hawaiian shirts and gaudy swimming shorts from June through September — they’re really a product of the cooler months.
🍋‍🟩
Here in Kent, you’d be hard pressed to convince a lemon tree to produce a bountiful harvest in a soggy orchard. Thankfully, closer to the equator in sunny Palermo, the Todolí Citrus Foundation is making the most of a warmer climate to catalogue and preserve nearly 500 varieties of citrus, curating an expansive library we can dip into thanks to the brilliant work of the team at .london.
🍋
‘s work means we get to try citrus that’s under-represented in the usual rotation: varieties with stranger perfumes, softer sweetness, sharper edges. By January, after months deprived of fresh fruit and growing tired of root veg, anything bright would offer a reprieve, but in the face of such an expansive collection, it’s hard to imagine wishing citrus season away, rain or no rain.
🍊
Right now, we’re building our own little library of the season in a series of golden, glistening marmalades. Marmalade can be a little divisive, but it lets us hold onto citrus for longer than winter usually allows. You’ll find an array of jars lining the bakery shelves, and some of those same marmalades tucked between layers of double chocolate chip cookie dough on the counter
🍪

Pics & Words ♥️

The end of January beckons and it’s hard to begrudge its passing. After the third consecutive week of being rained, drip...
28/01/2026

The end of January beckons and it’s hard to begrudge its passing. After the third consecutive week of being rained, dripped, drizzled (and occasionally snowed) on, we’re in need of a tonic to see us through the last stretch of winter. 🍂

Thankfully, we’ve got our house-made chai (formulated by the ever-talented ) ready to wrap your hands around on the chill, overcast days still to come.✨

The tea leaves that form the base of our sticky chai mix come from . ☕️ We use their English Breakfast blend for its full-bodied, perfectly bitter backbone, balancing the gentle sweetness of the honey that binds it together. Their teas are sourced exclusively from micro-farms of less than 15 acres, which supports quality and flavour, but also a more transparent and ethical supply chain.

That honey comes from Quinton, whose bees are hard at work in orchard apiaries just down the road in Tunbridge Wells. You can find Quinton’s Pure Local Honey on our shelves in the bakery, too. 🍯

And then: the spices. These are what make chai, chai. Star anise, cinnamon, clove, ginger and, of course, cardamom. Aromatic and warming, there are few cold-snaps, snow days or weeks of unrelenting rain that couldn’t be softened by an adequate dose of each. ’s dedication to traceability and thoughtful processing means the spices we source from them keep the character of the plants they come from. That character, whether it’s assertively spicy, medicinal, bright, or warming and mellow, stays intact all the way from the plant to the cup. 💛

For an extra kick of fresh heat, Maizey adds a little fresh organic ginger, then rounds everything out with a pinch of flaky salt. ✨

Finally, the chai mix is steamed to order with oat milk, which brings a slightly malty sweetness (but feel free to order it with dairy if that’s your preference).

Chai is good all year but it’s never more welcome than in times like these.

The end of January beckons and it’s hard to begrudge its passing. After the third consecutive week of being rained, drip...
28/01/2026

The end of January beckons and it’s hard to begrudge its passing. After the third consecutive week of being rained, dripped, drizzled (and occasionally snowed) on, we’re in need of a tonic to see us through the last stretch of winter.

Thankfully, we’ve got our house-made chai (formulated by the ever-talented ) ready to wrap your hands around on the chill, overcast days still to come.

The tea leaves that form the base of our sticky chai mix come from . We use their English Breakfast blend for its full-bodied, perfectly bitter backbone, balancing the gentle sweetness of the honey that binds it together. Their teas are sourced exclusively from micro-farms of less than 15 acres, which supports quality and flavour, but also a more transparent and ethical supply chain.

That honey comes from Quinton, whose bees are hard at work in orchard apiaries just down the road in Tunbridge Wells. You can find Quinton’s Pure Local Honey on our shelves in the bakery, too.

And then: the spices. These are what make chai, chai. Star anise, cinnamon, clove, ginger and, of course, cardamom. Aromatic and warming, there are few cold-snaps, snow days or weeks of unrelenting rain that couldn’t be softened by an adequate dose of each. ’s dedication to traceability and thoughtful processing means the spices we source from them keep the character of the plants they come from. That character, whether it’s assertively spicy, medicinal, bright, or warming and mellow, stays intact all the way from the plant to the cup.

For an extra kick of fresh heat, Maizey adds a little fresh organic ginger, then rounds everything out with a pinch of flaky salt.

Finally, the chai mix is steamed to order with oat milk, which brings a slightly malty sweetness (but feel free to order it with dairy if that’s your preference).

Chai is good all year but it’s never more welcome than in times like these.

We will be closing a little early on Saturday 31st January 🍪We will be heading out to with the whole team for our belat...
24/01/2026

We will be closing a little early on Saturday 31st January 🍪

We will be heading out to with the whole team for our belated Christmas gathering. December and the festive season is a busy time for all of us at the bakery, waiting until January means we can enjoy our time together meanwhile supporting our favourite places during the quiet times 🌟

Well be open as normal 8am-12.00pm

Thanks to all of your for your continued support ❄️💛

Address

24 Camden Road
Tunbridge Wells
TN12PT

Opening Hours

Thursday 9am - 11am
Friday 9am - 11:30am
Saturday 10am - 1pm

Telephone

+447816682908

Website

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