The Old Baker's Tale

Photos: Kazi Tahsin Agaz Apurbo

For over 160 years, the Prince of Wales bakery has been serving mouth-watering pastries and cakes to thousands of customers.

Located in Lakshmi Bazaar, near the famous St. Gregory church, this bakery is claimed to be a pioneer in Bangladesh. It is known for its famous fruit cake, cheese cake, and the popular flavours titled love letters, jam tacks and many sweet goodies. The bakery is also one of the firsts to have baked wedding and Christmas cakes in Dhaka.

Established by a British gentleman from Wales, the bakery had been passed down to Sheikh Buddhu Mia before the partition. "My Father, Sheikh Buddhu Mia, used to work for the British gentleman who owned the bakery. After the man left, he bought the establishment from the landlord and our family has owned this bakery since," says Nuruddin Ahmed, the current owner. It was in Buddhu Mia's time when baked goods were becoming popular in our country, and at that time he was one of the first to bring the mouth watering delicacy which we know as Cheese Cake. "I remember the store throbbing with people placing orders. My father used to hire extra people during winter and we would be sold out in two hours after opening," says Nuruddin.

Most of their exclusive bakery items such as jam tacks, love letters and cheese cakes are seasonal and made solely in the winter, around December. "To tell you the truth, we still bake in the old way, the way my father or the proprietor used to. There are equipment back in the kitchen which are a 100 years old,' says Nuruddin. He also adds, "The old way might not be so sufficient in this time and age, but it has a personal touch to it which makes customers return. It makes everything a little more familiar and homely."

The bakery is now jointly run by Nuruddin and his son, Atif Ahmed. For three generations, the Prince of Wales Bakery has held its head high on the streets of Old Dhaka and is considered one of the best baking establishments in town. One true example to the saying, "Old is gold".