MARIETTA, Ga. — Country: Australia
Dish: Meat pie
Location: Marietta
Stop: #13
The team behind Australian Bakery Cafe may be more than 10,000 miles from home, but there's no homesickness to be found at the shop in Marietta Square.
Instead, you'll find rows upon rows of freshly baked meat pies.
"My father was a baker back in Australia," owner Neville Steel told At the Table ATL. "We learned off our teachers."
The shop has been a staple of the square for 17 years, offering the traditional Aussie experience by way of traditional meat pies, as well as sausage rolls, pasties, fish and chips and more.
“Mark and Wendy and I were all born in a small country town called Bort, which is about three hours north of Melbourne," Steel said. “They set up a meat pie company for the Olympic Games...that was here until early 2000. That’s when I come over and help set up this location here.
“How does this dish represent Australia?”
“We had meat pies with tomato sauces, and we were happy with that," Steel said. “It was all you had to eat growing up, you know?”
That childhood experience shared with co-owner Mark Allen; the two friends were born in the same hospital in Australia three weeks apart.
Together, they offer the same culinary treat to their Atlanta customers.
“The way we do it’s an old-fashioned method," Steel said. “The bottom pastry is a ... base, just strong enough to hold the meat … and the top pastry is a flaky pastry."
“How does this dish represent Atlanta?”
"Americans like cheese in all the meat pies," Steel said, the shop in Marietta and another location in Cumming offering 30 varieties to please all palates.
“It’s a good feeling," Steel said. "You feel like you’re an ambassador for Australia."