THERE are many things in the world which come with the addition of the word ‘man’ in the title – such as man cold and mansize tissues.

But there is only one ‘manchip’ and it can only be found in Bridgwater.
The manchip is so rare it only appears each Friday at Bath Bridge Bakery at Mountbatten House, Parkway and, when it does make an appearance, it flies off the shelves.

The manchip is part of the Friday treats selection, which are made fresh by the award-winning bakers at the Somerset firm.

The bakers at the family-owned and run business recently scooped the title of The Best West Country Baker 2017/18 in the Western Bakery Championships.

They beat hundreds of other bakers and bakeries from the Midlands, Somerset and Devon to come away with the title.

Bridgwater Mercury:

Jack Lowe, a member of the family which runs the bakery, said: “The Manchip is a pastry with jam.

“It comes from the Second World War, when people had to use up left over food as there was rationing.

“The manchip is like a fruit Danish but without any fruit.”

And he said the delicacy was more popular than ever.

“We sell more than 100 manchips every Friday,” Jack said. “Nobody else does these and we do not sell them at any of our other shops.

“It is not really known outside Bridgwater and people in Bridgwater like to enjoy their manchips.”

Not only did Bath Bridge Bakery win the baking award, but their trainee Stephen Oparowski also won the Trainee Championship.

Bath Bridge has been a family run business since 1977 and makes and produces a huge selection of products in Somerset.

The company also makes a large proportion of its produce in Bridgwater.
If you buy a pasty at 9.30am you will be eating something which was made two-and-a-half hours previous.

The staff start mixing the pastry at 7am before filling it with locally sourced meat and vegetables (except swede). They then bake them and send them off to shops in the area. The bakery makes all items fresh every day and always uses the best quality ingredients.