Arobake Aro Street is the original home of one of Wellington's best-loved bakeries. Established here in Aro Valley in October 1989 by master baker Maximilian Fuhrer, Arobake began when Max — fresh from his apprenticeship at Barends Patisserie and three further years of training and work in Switzerland — bought a run-down health food bakery at 96 Aro Street, and the whole family chipped in to scrub and paint the place. Business cranked from day one, and today the shop sits across the road at 83 Aro Street, still in the valley where it all began.
Bread is at the heart of it: nine bakers work through the night on loaves that are carefully fermented, hand moulded and baked crusty, led by the Multigrain Bread that has been a star since opening day. The cake kitchen keeps pace too — the Lemon Sour Cake, Rhubarb & Custard Tart, Swedish Princess Torte, Custard Raspberry Buns and biscuits from Afghans and Belgiums to Toffee Biscuits all have their devoted regulars. Coffee comes from Arobake's own roastery, The Last Coffee.
More than anything, Arobake is about the centrality of good food — family, friends, breaking bread together or settling down with something sticky and sweet. A team of around thirty keeps the ovens going, from the overnight bake to the smile at the counter. Come on in and let them do the hard work, while you focus on the celebrating.
Aro Valley is where Arobake began, and the Aro Street shop is still the heart of this Wellington bakery. In October 1989, master baker Maximilian Fuhrer took over a run-down quasi health-food shop and bakery at 96 Aro Street. He had completed his apprenticeship at Barends Patisserie, then spent three further years in Switzerland working and training at the Richemont trade school, all with the goal of opening his own bakery. Six weeks after arriving home in New Zealand he bought the site, and the whole family chipped in to scrub and paint the place. The doors opened on Monday 9 October 1989, and business started cranking from day one.
From the very start, the Multigrain Bread was a star, alongside two Kiwi biscuit classics, Afghans and Belgiums. By the end of the second year, new ovens were in and the shop expanded into neighbouring 94 Aro Street, leaving the whole of number 96 as the working bakery. In 2001 the bakery crossed the road to its current site at 83 Aro Street, and in 2006 a second building went up behind it as a dedicated bread bakery — home for years to a lovingly restored, second-hand, stone-soled French bread oven that served faithfully until January 2020.
Bread comes first — and bread that takes real effort. Nine bread bakers work through the night on loaves that are carefully fermented, hand moulded and baked with the crust in mind; the Multigrain has been a favourite since opening day, joined over the years by loaves like the Sunflower Sourdough. As the bakers will tell you, bread baking is hot, dusty and more physical than you might think — never undervalue a loaf, and eat those crusts.
Then there are the cakes. Ten cake and pastry cooks run to keep up with Wellington's appetite — the Lemon Sour Cake in particular, a recipe the team has perfected and which customers clear out almost as fast as it leaves the oven. Alongside it sit long-standing favourites like the Rhubarb & Custard Tart, the Swedish Princess Torte, Custard Raspberry Buns, Toffee Biscuits and Chilli and Lime Cookies. Coffee comes from the company's own roastery, The Last Coffee.
About thirty people make Arobake what it is: the overnight bakers, the cake kitchen, the front-of-house team who greet regulars with a smile — and soon by name — and the drivers who carry bread and cakes across Wellington, where locals are told to watch out for the Ladybird. Behind the scenes, Max and Antonia look after wholesale customers while Liz keeps the accounts and admin in order.
Underpinning it all is Max's simple philosophy: eating is central to daily life, whether that means families gathering around a table, breaking bread with friends, or settling down with something sticky and sweet. Let the bakery do the hard work, he says, while you focus on the celebrating — you deserve it.
The Aro Street shop keeps proper bakery hours: weekdays from 7am to 3.30pm, Saturdays from 7am to 1.30pm, closed on Sundays and public holidays — so arrive early for the best pick of the loaves. Arobake now counts three shops — Aro Valley, Petone and Lambton Square — supplies cafes wholesale, and offers home delivery, so the Ladybird can find you too. There is also an online shop covering biscuits, bread, cakes, savouries and gift boxes, including seasonal Christmas baking. Joining The Arobake club brings regular coupons for those who keep coming back.