Jocelyn’s Provisions

Wonderful cake shop. Very inviting with bags of lovely cookies and biscuits, jars of sauces and a variety of beautiful cases lining the entry way; generous tastings of bread and biscotti kept our kids busy while we sorted through our options. The lemon delicious (a lemon curd meringue concoction) was a little-​too-​seriously sweet, but the fruit danish was heavenly. The plain croissants were a bit-​bready for my taste and not terribly flaky or buttery, but they would be an excellent (albeit pricey) foil for any chicken salad sandwich. The seeded sourdough was truly great, but the winner is their justifiably famous chocolate sour cream cake. Moist, rich… very, very good.
Prices here are steep and there’s no seating that we could decipher (though there is parking within an off-​street lot for the center), but I’d still come back again and again to try just about everything on offer (we skipped the quiche tarts though as they were a bit too pricey at $ 44 — they looked divine). A great destination bakery that was actually open over the holiday season! That alone seems to be worth a pretty penny in a city that enjoys a good long Christmas/​New Year’s sleep.

Hands down, best patisserie in Brisbane. Delicious Salted Caramel Tart along with everything else. A must try.

Jocelyn’s Provisions in Fortitude Valley makes a variety of sweets, pastries, and relishes that are packed into their cabinets. You will find something tol fulfill your every craving, from a passionfruit tart to lamb & rosemary pie to their candied walnuts. Thankfully their price tags prevent me from making decisions my metabolism will regret, though it means I haven’t tried much of their offerings. On a special occasion, I called in to order a small flourless chocolate cake (34) — an easy choice when choosing for a chocolate lover. I was rather excited, as I’d never been able to justify going to Jocelyn’s Provisions «just because.»
The flourless chocolate cake is a dense chocolate cake with chocolate nuts, and toffee and praline bits. Not having looked at the pictures too closely previously, we were all impressed with the sugar lattice on the cake. Although a bit of a strange combination to have paired chocolate with a sugar lattice (flavour-​wise), it was a lovely touch to the cake. It says online that the small cake is for 6 people, but we managed to make eight pieces, with all of us being satisfied (and even having some difficulty finishing the cake after dinner at Siam Samrarn). Needless to say, that was one delicious rich and dense chocolate cake! Even though I tend to not be a fan of chocolate cakes — or just cakes in general — if you want a scrumptious and impressive looking cake, this is the place to go!

Throw your diet out the window before you enter. Probably hide your credit card also. I come here when I’m depressed and want to treat myself with something really indulgent, and when I need to buy a cake for birthdays, celebrations etc. High quality products, range completely different from the usual bakery/​cake shops around town and very quick to accommodate special orders.

Despite working in the area, I normally avoid James St for food and drinks because I’m a bit of a cheapskate. Jocelyn’s is the one place that I just keep coming back to though (probably due to my mega sweet tooth).
I’ve had a variety of treats from here so far and I can’t wait to go back and try more. One of the more unique items has been the chocolate salted caramel tart — amazing! I can’t go past the cupcakes though. They’re so light and fluffy, sweet without being sugar overload. And it’s not just about sweets here. The savoury stuff is amazing as well, particularly the pies!
The service here is always incredible friendly and the staff are always happy to lend a hand if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed with everything to choose from.

Great cakes and other treats. The tarts/​quiches are always delicious. They can get busy but you can usually get a park behind the store and it shouldn’t take long to get served.
The chocolate sour cream cake is beautiful and I prefer the smaller tarts to the larger ones (even though they are the same flavours). I think the smaller ones cook through better.

Jocelyn’s Provisions is like stepping into your really awesome nanna’s kitchen who has cooked up a gourmet storm. Cakes, james, chutneys, pies (in winter you cannot go past the Duck pie) and ingredients for the finest home chef are all found in abundance at Jocelyn’s.
My tip: grab something take away, walk down James Street to New Farm Park and enjoy an afternoon (or morning) in the sunshine.

About a decade ago I used to go to Jocelyn’s for their wonderful, homemade bread. They had proper sourdough, fresh ciabatta, and best of all — corn bread. A few years ago now they stopped making bread when they realised they didn’t need to because they did such good business with their sweet and savoury baked goods alone. Over years of going to Jocelyn’s weekly to buy bread, I would often also try something sweet or a savoury tart and by the time they’d stopped making bread all together, I’d become so enamoured with all the other things they sell that I’ve kept coming back.
One of my favourite things to take to a picnic or lunch is one of their fresh, rustic roast vegetable tarts. They’re always a hit and people always ask me where I bought it. Jocelyn’s isn’t much of a secret these days, but they’ve kept up their excellent, homemade quality even in the face of their ever-​expanding popularity. It’s buzzing on weekends, and if you’re after a particular item I’d recommend ordering it or getting there very early. They have lots of little pre-​packaged biscuits and things that make nice gifts, and their range of cakes and tarts will leave you struggling with which to choose. Jocelyn’s is like Brisbane’s favourite aunt. She always brings the best food and we all want her recipes!

When I turned 21 this year I sent out a facebook shout out to find the best cake makers in Brisbane, and Jocelyn’s Provisions was the frontrunner by far. My friend had bought her 40^th birthday cake from Jocelyn’s — an amazing chocolate sponge with fresh fruit — so I knew we were in for a treat.
After browsing on their online catalogue, I went with the flourless chocolate cake.
When I rang up to make my order, the staff member I talked to was very thorough and friendly.
When I cut into the cake at my birthday party, it blew each of our minds. The cake itself was such a simple recipe but it was done so superbly; it had the freshest cream and softest sponge I’d ever had, and was very rich but never too filling. I took the rest home and devoured it within the day.

It had been a long time since I’d visited Jocelyn’s Provisions having abandoned it for French Twist but I’m glad I went back the other weekend.
They are not about macaroons, pain au chocolate, lemon meringues or any of the products associated with fancy bakeries. Instead, they produce a home style gourmet range of cakes and baked goods. Their pecan and choc brownies are to die for and their passionfruit sponge is like the good version of a Shingle Inn cake.
As a birthday present idea, I bought a couple of boxes of their homemade cereal for a health obsessed friend. Even as a cereal hater, I would be willing to try their oven baked, rolled oats and dried fruit mix.
There are some other really good gift ideas for food hampers in here as well such as biscuits, nougats and chocolates. This is definitely a place I’ll be re-​visiting again perhaps to buy a cake loaf for the next time I have a dinner party.

Oh Jocelyn’s Provisions, the heaven of cakes,
Such delights at home, I’ve never mastered to make.
So when a special occasion comes rolling around,
Desserts this good are nowhere else to be found.
The chocolate buttercake is a great way to start,
But it’s the passionfruit sponge that really has my heart.
Orange and almond is always a delight,
And for the 3 tier white ganache I’d put up a fight.
For coveted cakes and savory snacks
Head to Jocelyn’s Provisions and there’s no turning back
You’ll return, no doubt, for another try,
You can’t walk into this bakery, without wanting to buy.

When I first read this business name on the glass door to be honest I was not sure what to expect. Its a hidden secret, tucked away on the other side James St Centro– (keep walking around the corner from Vroom) I walked in and was over powered by the delicious smell. Everything is made fresh on site and you can watch the professionals in the kitchen bring these creations to life if you peek around the corner. Truly professional and master pieces. From slices, to cakes and all things an extremely talented bakery could create.
Sweet, Savoury and Speciality. Very much a touch of France just off James Street