Independently Owned, Locally Grown, Community Loved
Monique Toichev with one of the winning smoked brisket pies. Photo credit: Victoria Velton
By Victoria Velton
Ingham's own Mick’s Bread Kitchen has taken gold on the national stage with four pies on the podium at the 2026 Official Great Aussie Pie Competition.
The Ingham bakery took home two gold, one silver and one bronze medal across its four entries, with its Pork Pie, and the Smoked Brisket Pie created by Mick’s daughter Monique Toichev, both earning gold.
The Ned Kelly Pie claimed silver, while their humble Plain Pie also made its mark with a bronze medal.
For Monique, seeing her Smoked Brisket Pie recognised at a national level was a particularly proud moment.
“It feels pretty amazing,” she said, “We put in a lot of work into that pie, with our pastry chef Aidan perfecting the pastry and us perfecting the seasoning for the brisket. It all works together perfectly.”
The team watched the results unfold live, with the gold-medal announcement making for an exciting moment at the bakery.
The strong showing across all four entries was even more reason to celebrate, with Monique saying the team was very happy with the results. The competition is one of the biggest events of its kind in Australia, making the four-medal haul a significant achievement for the local bakery.
Monique said the response from customers since the results has been particularly encouraging, with the gold medal Smoked Brisket Pie quickly becoming a favourite among locals.
The gold-medal creation will remain on the menu, alongside the bakery’s other award-winning varieties.
With the team already looking towards developing new flavours and creations, the latest awards may be spark the creation of more recipes to vie for space on Mick's pie oven's shelves.
For now, Ingham can enjoy the bragging rights of having four locally-made pies recognised on the national stage, with two gold medals sitting proudly at the top of the podium.
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