Mayfair Bakery & Patisserie

Mayfair Bakery & Patisserie is an artisan bakery in the heart of Port Adelaide, trading from the heritage Bower Buildings. Its origins date to 1870, when the original group of shopfronts was built by David Bower, and the bakery has continued operating on the site for around 150 years.

The business is proudly South Australian, family owned and operated, with its current chapter beginning in 2014 when Philip Donnelly and his family took over. Mayfair’s story is closely tied to Port Adelaide’s working waterfront: its early customers included sailors, sea captains and wharf workers arriving as tall ships travelled through what is now the Port Canal. The bakery has remained in the area through major changes, including the move to containerisation and the decline of the old wharfs.

The website highlights Mayfair’s traditional baking methods and long-running recipes, as well as its historical connection with doughnuts, which it says it began making in South Australia in 1960. In 2020, the business also launched gluten-free cheesecakes for sale through supermarkets. The setting is part of the appeal, with the bakery operating among the Bower Buildings’ heritage shopfronts and having undergone a balcony renovation in 2018. For visitors exploring Port Adelaide, Mayfair offers a chance to experience a long-established local bakery whose identity is inseparable from the suburb’s history.