If you're not local to Oldham, you might initially find it a bit tricky to track down the new bakery and bistro that people are travelling from all over to visit. However, even though it is tucked away down a residential street just outside of Oldham town centre, you really can't miss the building that Wonderlust calls home.
Parking up on Library Lane you'll instantly spot the venue, which not only boasts a bright pink exterior with dreamy purple clouds and frosting framing the takeaway hatch, but a beautiful and poignant mural, nodding to owner Saarah Chowdry's heritage. "It's a a tribute to my dad who passed away three years ago, and we wanted to reflect both his and my mum's journey from Bangladesh," explains Saarah.
Painted in vivid red and green colours of the Bangladeshi flag, the image shows women sewing and dancing, while in the background, people work in rice fields and make their way to work in textiles factories. "My mum is from central Bangladesh whereas my dad was from a tribal community. He came over in the 1980s, while my mum came over in the 1970s.
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"They came to Shaw originally, before moving to Oldham to start their textiles business, which my mum continues to run today. She's been a great help in me setting up the business, I do front-of-house while she does the finances.
"My mum is a massive inspiration to me, it's rare to come across Asian women fronting businesses. And especially after being widowed, most people would curl up and not want to carry on, but she hasn't give up."
While Saarah's parents also dreamed of opening their own Bangladeshi restaurant, her mum Shelley has now turned her attention to helping with Wonderlust. Launched as a cake hatch just after Covid, and now encompassing a full bakery operation and bistro serving up cakes, brunch and Sunday dinners, the business has blossomed, becoming a popular spot for locals and visitors alike.
While the eye-catching exterior will stop you in your tracks ( there's also a 'secret garden' and greenhouse round the back), inside, the dining space is a more relaxed, pared-back affair with a botanical-themed interior, with plants hanging from the celling and a soothing colour scheme of green, grey and cream.
Adding an Instagrammable quality, the entrance features a seat adorned with flowers, while the bar and cake counter is lit up by a bright purple sign.
A self-taught baker, Saarah tells me she always envisioned opening her own her own cake shop after picking up baking as a teenager, and now feels lucky to fill Wonderlust with some of her most delicious creations - from stuffed doughnuts and blueberry cupcakes, as well as Nutella cookies and tiramisu brownie stacks.
"I started baking when I was around 13 and doing bake sales and then progressed to stalls and markets," she recalls.
Then, when I was 21, I began doing custom cake orders like celebration cakes and cupcake orders. I did a patisserie course at college, but I didn't do more than two weeks, it wasn't for me and my hands are to shaky for the intricate pastry.
"To be honest, I prefer making the cupcakes and bakes where people can have a single slice rather than celebration cakes, as that's quite stressful especially with weddings. It's been a bit of trial and error, but I've picked up loads from YouTube and books, and over time I've learnt to trust my instincts and adapt the measurements and quantities so I can produce really moist and tasty bakes."
The go-with-your-gut attitude has worked in Saarah's favour as many of her cakes have gone down a storm, with many regularly selling out. The milk cake, better known as Tres Leches, has proved a hit, as has her new 'Matilda' cake, inspired by the delicious but massive chocolate fudge cake from the 1996 American fantasy comedy film. A recently introduced pistachio Paris-Brest with choux, pistachio cream and powdered sugar, has also been drawing in hungry customers.
And, while there's plenty of brunch spots in Manchester, Saarah feels that her unique selling point is the team's ability to provide high-quality Halal brunch, roasts and desserts in a beautiful café setting. "I don't think there's many places that stand out for Halal food where the design is nice and the food is really good," she says.
"The thinking was, if we're opening a café, why not offer really nice Halal brunch too because they're good places in Manchester but people in Oldham may not want to to have to travel into town. Every meal now is a treat, so if people are spending their money with us I want to make sure it's the best it can be.
"We make sure to have really good ingredients for the brunches too, so the egg yolks are super yellow and come from Saddleworth Dairy Farm, while we go to Roger's Bakery and markets for bread and ManCoCo in Manchester for our coffee. We also use great Halal butchers and make a lot of our jams and sauces in house.
On the brunch menu - available Wednesday through Sunday - diners can treat themselves to everything from pancakes topped with honeycomb and more than a drizzle of chocolate sauce, to full English breakfasts and French toasts in varieties spanning Kinder, pistachio and s'mores. Drinks wise, Saarah decided to start with a small but carefully crafted mocktail menu alongside coffees and hot chocolates, before launching a full-scale cocktail offer - though she's preparing to launch that imminently.
"We also have plans for an evening menu when we take on more staff and loads of people have asked about an afternoon tea which we're getting there with," she smiles. During Ramadan, Wonderlust also relaunched their car service to make it easier for customers to pick up their tasty treats.
"The drive-thru was just during Ramadan, and we did that because of the late hours - people want to pray, come in their pyjamas and then just eat. I think it will just be a Ramadan thing as it is quite stressful running between the kitchen, bar, and floor and taking orders out.
"But it was great, and it's meant we've had a real mix of customers, from mums with children to older couples and people travelling from far away during Ramadan. Because we were doing a big platter we attracted people from all over, from Blackburn, Liverpool and there were even some people doing crazy trips from London."
Wonderlust Bakery and Bistro, Library Ln, Oldham OL9 6DZ
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