Milano Bakehouse is a place where the smell of fresh sourdough, warm pastries, and real butter fills the air each morning.
Inspired by family traditions and a deep love of Italian food, we bake the slow way, using time-honoured artisan techniques, natural ingredients, and no shortcuts.
From Café Milano to Milano Bakehouse
Milano Bakehouse is the next chapter in Dean Merlo’s lifelong connection to food, family, and tradition.
Inspired by his father Gino, who brought Brisbane its first espresso machine and a taste of Italian café culture in the 1950s, Dean grew up surrounded by the warmth of hospitality and the joy of shared meals.
Now, Dean and long-time business partner James Wilkinson are reinventing this tradition with the launch of Milano Bakehouse—fulfilling their dream of delivering both the finest quality coffee and freshly baked goods.
Our People
Together, owners Dean Merlo and James Wilkinson have built a passionate team that includes celebrated chef-consultant Shannon Kellam and Head Baker Thomas Meneau.
Shannon is renowned for his pursuit of excellence, consistency, and innovation. A respected mentor and leader in the industry, Shannon brings his vision to Milano to help pass on artisan baking skills to the next generation.
Head Baker Thomas brings a world of experience and a deep love of traditional baking to Milano. From Paris to Singapore and now Brisbane, his passion, precision, and international flair is evident.
Our Bakes
We’re baking an impressive range of over 25 artisan breads and 30 sweet pastries—each crafted with care by our incredible team of bakers.
Our artisan bread range is where tradition meets technique. Each loaf is slow-fermented, hand-shaped, and baked to golden perfection using age-old methods and the finest Australian flour.
Our sweet treats are the result of time, technique and tradition. Each pastry begins with carefully laminated dough, folded with cultured butter and rested overnight to develop flavour and texture.
