So, where did this love of pastry and talent begin?
Ever since Lara was young, she’s always liked baking, being drawn to more hands-on and practical subjects.
This passion continued to grow as she got more involved with the industry, being inspired by others that she met who shared her passion.
One of these people was the French patisserie chef that Lara trained with.
The opening of Lara Patisserie is the result of seven years of experience and training.
Beginning training in college, Lara achieved several qualifications before going into work in a variety of establishments, such as restaurants, bakeries, and hotels.
While never previously running an establishment, Lara has been the head of a team of patisserie chefs and managed kitchens, showing her talent in both patisserie and in team management.
While opening her own patisserie is something she’s always wanted to do, the idea of it was initially quite daunting.
When the opportunity came along to open her own establishment, it was a risk she was ready to take, being unfulfilled in her previous job.
Living in Lymm herself, the patisserie’s location was ideal and it allowed her to build something in a community she was already familiar with.
Since opening, business has remained consistent, already establishing regulars and people coming in saying they’d been told to come to try the various different pastries and cakes.
Lara’s favourite thing to bake is viennoiserie-based pastries, hence the prevalence of such in the patisserie.
And for those that don’t know, like myself before this interview, viennoiserie is laminated dough that’s used to make croissants and similar.
Lara also loves doing seasonal-based dishes, giving her the ability to change her dish line-up while still maintaining the public’s favourites.
Opening a business can be stressful, but there are always great aspects within it.
So, what are Lara’s favourite aspects of owning her own establishment?
First, it’s that everything is her own and that she can make her own decisions over everything, allowing her vision to properly come to fruition.
Along with this, she wants to create a fulfilling workplace, especially after experiencing the demotivating and unfulfilling nature of some other businesses.
She also enjoys talking to customers and getting their feedback, giving her the motivation to continue and finding out what can be improved.
As with any business, there are challenges that do arise and, sadly, Lara Patisserie is no different.
For Lara, owning a business means that it’s constantly on her mind, always thinking about different things she could do.
The need to maintain motivation can also be difficult, being the sole baker for the patisserie, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done in a day.
Speaking on what needs to be done in a day, what’s a typical day for Lara?
Well, her week starts on Tuesday, going in for about 7 am and starting on admin until roughly 10 am, which is when her prep work begins for the next four days.
Typically she’ll get out for 6 pm and the same routine is followed on Wednesday.
Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, she gets in for 5 to 6 am, continuing to do her prep work for the day ahead, along with serving and preparing more for the next day.
Sunday is a day for deep cleaning, ensuring that anything and everything is organised, in-date, clean and ready for the next week.
If you’ve already paid a visit to Lara Patisserie, you know how amazing the quality of her work is.
Everything is made fresh daily and it sells out quickly, so for the best selection, head in early, if you can.
There’s lovely seating upstairs, downstairs and outside, so you can either enjoy your pastries at home or in the cosy seating areas.
Remember, it’s Lara Patisserie, at 20 The Cross WA13 0HU, open from 8:30 am to 2 pm Thursday, Friday, Saturday and from 9 am to 2 pm on Sundays.
