Shelly Bay Baker on Park Road is the home bakery, flour mill and retail shop of Shelly Bay Baker, founded by chef Sam Forbes in 2017. A chef since the age of 15, Sam started the bakery in a small space in Shelly Bay before outgrowing it and designing and building this dedicated facility at 133A Park Road, which houses the bakery, an in-house flour mill, and a small retail shop.
Sam is on a mission to produce the tastiest, healthiest bread possible, using natural ingredients and natural levains (ferments) to bake sourdough breads, bagels, baguettes and more. At the heart of the operation is fresh stoneground flour, produced in-house from organic New Zealand whole grains via a partnership with Capital Millers — this flour goes directly into the bread, giving it its distinctive flavour and aroma, and is also sold to the public through the bakery shop.
Shelly Bay Baker bakes a range of sourdough breads, bagels and pastries fresh every day, constantly experimenting with new ideas. The Park Road location is one of four Shelly Bay Baker cafés and bread stores in Wellington, alongside Leeds Street, Karori Road and Oriental Parade.
Shelly Bay Baker on Park Road is where founder Sam Forbes' bread-making journey has landed after outgrowing his original small bakery in Shelly Bay. A chef from the age of 15, Sam established Shelly Bay Baker in 2017 with a simple mission: to produce the tastiest, healthiest bread on the planet. Today, by all accounts, he's well on his way to winning that quest.
As demand grew beyond what the original Shelly Bay premises could handle, Sam designed and built a dedicated new facility at 133A Park Road. This isn't just a bakery — it houses the bakery itself, an in-house flour mill, and a small retail shop, all under one roof. The move reflects Sam's hands-on approach to bread-making: rather than outsourcing key parts of the process, he brought flour milling in-house to have full control over the quality and freshness of the flour that goes into every loaf.
At the core of Shelly Bay Baker's philosophy is a belief in the power of real bread, and a sense of responsibility in helping people eat real food. The bakery uses natural ingredients throughout, relying on natural levains — wild yeast ferments — to bake unique, flavourful sourdough breads, bagels, baguettes and more, rather than relying on commercial yeast or shortcuts.
One of the things that sets Shelly Bay Baker apart is its commitment to fresh stoneground flour, produced through a partnership with Capital Millers. The bakery sources organic New Zealand whole grains and mills them in-house, producing fresh stoneground flour that goes directly into the bread — a process that adds time and effort, but delivers a noticeably different flavour and aroma compared to bread made with older, pre-milled flour. This flour isn't just for Shelly Bay Baker's own bread, either — it's also sold directly to the public through the Park Road retail shop, as well as through Capital Millers' wider network across New Zealand.
Shelly Bay Baker bakes a range of sourdough breads, bagels and pastries fresh every day, alongside seasonal specialties like handmade hot cross buns — crafted with organic, freshly milled local flour, citrus peel, raisins, sultanas and the bakery's own spice mix, finished with a sticky glaze. The café side of the business also serves coffee, croissants and sandwiches, and home bakers can pick up organic rye, white, spelt and wholemeal flour, along with sourdough starter kits and a sourdough starter guide for anyone keen to try baking their own bread at home.
Beyond the bakery counter, Shelly Bay Baker has built a genuine community around real bread — sharing market updates, sourdough recipes, storage tips, farmer updates and nutritional information with subscribers. The team has also represented the bakery well outside the kitchen: a Shelly Bay Baker team took second place at the Alternative Dairy Co Championship (Team Edition) barista competition, competing across latte art, specialty drink and alt-milk tasting rounds against ten other local teams.
As one of four Shelly Bay Baker locations in Wellington — alongside Leeds Street, Karori Road and Oriental Parade — the Park Road bakery offers the full Shelly Bay Baker experience: fresh sourdough, house-milled flour, and a café serving coffee and pastries, all from the facility where it's all made. For anyone who hasn't tried a proper sourdough before, Sam's advice is simple: it's something you've got to taste to believe.