FOCUS: A taste of Romania

Sunday 02 June 2024

A new bakery has opened up in town that offers homemade sweet and savoury treats, with a special emphasis on authentic Romanian cakes and desserts.

Nicoleta's Home Cakes opened its doors on Burrard Street in March of this year, serving everything from coffee to sausage rolls.

But owner Nicoleta Radu said her passion lies in baking – drawing on her background to create different, traditional, and delicious treats for islanders to enjoy.

Pictured: Nicoleta's Home Cakes is a new bakery in St Helier specialising in homemade Romanian cakes and desserts.

She said: "After I had my second child and selling my previous business, I found it difficult to stay home.

"I wanted to do something so started recreating the homemade cakes from my childhood. I learned how to bake from my mum.

"I liked to help her with cooking and baking and through this, I found my inspiration and passion for baking and knew this is what I wanted to do." 

"Year after year my ambition grew, so I took courses to learn how to do everything perfect. I stayed late at night until my cakes were perfect."

Pictured: Owner Nicoleta Radu learned baking from her mother and draws inspiration from her Romanian heritage.

Originally from Romania, Nicoleta creates many traditional treats from her country and culture, while offering twists on some classic baked goods.

"The cakes I make are what I grew up with and what my mum made every birthday, Christmas, Easter, or celebration," Nicoleta said.

"I don't just sell Jersey cakes – half of the cakes I sell are Romanian. It's something different to what you can find in Jersey."

Nicoleta's Home Cakes at its heart is a family-run business.

Pictured: The family-run business offers traditional Romanian treats alongside classic baked goods.

Nicoleta's team is made up of her niece, sister, and best friend.

She took her time to find the perfect space to make the vision of her cake shop come to life, and that homemade, familiar feeling is present in the Burrard Street shop and the food on offer.

Nicoleta said: "I wanted somewhere cosy and pretty for people to relax and enjoy cake.

"Here, we have our own kitchen so we can bake everything from scratch.

"Apart from the big mixer, we don't have any machines to help us – everything we do is made by hand."

As well as making all her food in-house, Nicoleta is sharing her expertise so her team become star bakers, just like her.

"My team didn't work in baking or with cakes before this, so they're in training," she explained.

"The most important part is that they like to learn and they like what they do. You can't make it happen without that.

"I bake and teach them at the same time with the hope that in one year or so they will be the same level as me."

Pictured: Nicoleta aims to create a cosy atmosphere where customers can relax and enjoy homemade treats.

Nicoleta's ability to run and lead a successful business is a result of the experience she's gained over the last 13 years of being in Jersey.

She said: "When I came to Jersey I was working at McDonald's and didn't know how to speak English, but I worked my way up to become manager after six years.

"I soon opened the shop Romanian Delight, and after that I knew I wanted to open my cake shop.

"It's popular and we are happy. Because we offer different cakes, it needs time, but customers come in and say 'wow' and want to try more every week."

With noticeably more treat shops opening in town, there's clearly a demand for people looking to satify their sweet tooth.

Sharing why she thinks sweet treat businesses are on the rise, Nicoleta said: "Who doesn't love cake? I haven't heard of anybody who doesn't like sweets or cakes.

It's the joy of the life – treats, a slice of cake with a coffee. It's even better when it's homemade."