12/07/2023
Before the baking can begin, every single pastry and loaf of bread at Prove Patisserie needs to spend time in the proving cabinet where it doubles in size as the yeast gets to work. And since launching in October 2020, co-owners Anna Rogers and Megan Bowditch have seen their business grow even more rapidly, adding eight staff members and building a network of 60 wholesale customers.
Bowditch (who has previously worked with the likes of flamboyant celebrity chef Anna Polyviou) is in charge of production, while former litigation lawyer Rogers looks after “everything outside the kitchen.” And she says there’s an even better marker of the business’ success than the 5000 croissants they turn out every week.
Since relocating from Port Adelaide early this year, Prove has become firmly entrenched in the Magill Road precinct. “We love our neighbours; there’s a strong community and we feel really privileged to be part of it. We supply ciabatta to Ambrosini’s across the road and we’ve used their ragu in a seasonal Danish, and Arz next door supplies our za'atar and feta so we've done a few collabs with them as well.”
Image credit: Ali Nasseri
Because both co-owners live in the area, Prove supplies a range of local businesses including Cheeky Grin, The Runhouse, Pogo Coffee Roasters, Rodeo Deli and Rio Coffee, and there’s also a strong emphasis on local produce with three South Australian flour suppliers alongside Fleurieu Milk and Rohde’s eggs. But a commitment to sourcing only the finest quality ingredients means there’s one important exception; the famously flaky croissants (which take a full 72 hours to make) are all laminated with imported French butter.
Wander past on a weekday afternoon and you’ll likely see them being painstakingly rolled out by hand, while a new four-deck oven has also allowed Prove to increase bread production significantly. Rogers is particularly proud of the sourdough; “it’s a 48 hour process and there are no additives… It's literally 100% sourdough, which is pretty unique.” The team also gets to work early each morning baking fresh ciabatta and baguettes, an indulgent honey loaf with butter and milk that is “our answer to a brioche” and a fruit loaf packed with vanilla-soaked currants, sultanas, raisins, figs, apricots and cranberries.
But the biggest change is that Prove is now open for retail customers on Friday and Saturday mornings (with online pre-orders available from Tuesday to Thursday). So far, it’s been a roaring success. “Every other person that comes in tells me that they’ve followed their noses because they can smell the bread baking,” Rogers says with a laugh. “It’s similar to Haigh’s in the way it just draws customers in, and we'd love it if we could join them as one of those great SA icons eventually.”
