Kiama’s Parfait Patisserie has taken home four awards at the National Artisan Baking Awards, including best croissant.

Owner of Parfait Patisserie, Troy Hindmarch, and baker Alex Miller claimed the awards at the Baking Association of Australia event in July.

Troy won first place in the white sourdough category, and Alex secured first place for croissants and second place for flavoured sourdough.

Alex’s winning croissant scored highest out of all Viennoiserie products, earning him the overall Champion Viennoiserie award.

“It feels amazing that we’re being recognised for something that we've always thought we could do,” said Troy.

The team's success is even more impressive considering they entered the exact products that they sell daily in their shop.

“We didn't have anything special as one-offs, we took the exact same croissants we bake in our shop every day and entered them in the competition,” Troy said.

“We all feel in our team that we just have a great product range as it is, we just want to focus on what we do day in, day out, and it's paid off.”

Troy explains that what sets Parfait Patisserie apart is that they do all the “fundamentals really well”, utilising the right procedures to make a great product.

“Using the right ingredients, no shortcuts, and just skill and a lot of years of practice have definitely gone into it as well,” he said.

The competition format allowed them to bake in their own kitchen environment before driving the finished products to Sydney for judging, rather than baking the product in front of judges.

Troy plans to enter the team into more regional and state competitions in the near future, explaining that it's beneficial for apprentices to compete in lower-level competitions to gain experience.

“When you do a competition it forces you to learn some new skills,” he said.

“It’s going to grow their knowledge a lot faster and just give them a more well-rounded understanding of the industry.”

Kiama locals are the clear winners here, with award-winning pastries available fresh daily at Parfait Patisserie.