A well-known bakery based in Somerset West recently brought their Argentine pastries to Stellenbosch for the first time.
This is according to Finn Ssegendo, the barista at Weirdough Bakery, who operated the bakery’s stall at the Market in the Garden in the Stellenbosch University (SU) Botanical Garden on 6 September.
Weirdough, a well-known bakery based in Somerset West, hosted its first pop-up stall at the Market in the Garden in the Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden on 6 September. PHOTO: Anke Spies
‘Started on a whim’
Weirdough opened on 1 December 2023 and specialises in Argentine pastries, according to Nadia Kaiser, the co-founder of Weirdough.
“The bakery started on a whim, really,” said Kaiser. “It wasn’t intentional at all.”
Her husband and co-founder of Weirdough, Adrian Schreiber, was born and raised in Argentina, she said.
Kaiser was in software development, while her husband went from business development to being a private tour guide, she said.
“We started just [baking] for fun during lockdown, and then started selling [pastries] over the weekends for our neighbours,” said Kaiser.
Kaiser said that while she and Schreiber do not have a background in the food industry, the bakery has become more popular than they expected.
A stack of cañoncitos on sale at the Weirdough stall at the Market in the Garden in the Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden on 6 September. Cañoncitos are puff pastry tubes filled with dulce de leche, according to Amigo Foods. Weirdough, a bakery in Somerset West, makes a number of Argentine pastries, according to Finn Ssegendo, a barista at the bakery. Weirdough’s stall was selling medialunas, cañoncitos, alfajores, and chimichurri, which is a herb-based sauce. SMF News was in attendance. PHOTO: Anke Spies
The organisers of the Market in the Garden visited the bakery at the beginning of the year as customers and have been in contact with the owners since July, according to Leani Breedt, one of the market’s organisers.
Breedt said that Weirdough was the first stall to sell Argentine baked goods at the market.
Argentine treats
The bakery is known for its medialunas, an Argentine pastry that is smaller than a croissant and has a sugary coating on top, said Ssegendo.
The shape of the pastry resembles a half moon, which is what the pastry is named after, he said.
“It’s a 36-hour process to make from start to finish,” said Ssegendo. “I always like to say it’s a nice little trip that your taste buds take.”
Weirdough, a bakery in Somerset West, displays its Argentine pastries at its market stall at the Market in the Garden in the Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden on 6 September. Weirdough makes various kinds of medialunas with different fillings, according to Finn Ssegendo, a barista at the bakery. The medialunas get their name from their half-moon shape, he said. PHOTO: Anke Spies
A success story
Weirdough won the Yoco’s Choice Award 2025, which forms part of the Kfm Best of the Cape Awards, on 15 August, according to the Yoco website.
Kaiser attributes some of their success to Weirdough’s uniqueness, as they are the only Argentine bakery in Stellenbosch and Somerset West, “so it’s not like you can find it anywhere else”, she said.
Kaiser said that the market was quiet, so “from a business point of view, it was not as good as we’ve experienced in other locations”.
However, she said that Weirdough will likely be returning to the market in October to “give it another shot to actually really see what the potential could be”.