A new sourdough bakery is set to open in Rufus Court later this month, specialising in sourdough bread, pastries and cakes.

Offering a range of sourdough baked goods without refined sugar, Sunsets and Sourdough is owner Michelle Anderson's latest venture.

"I feel like if you're going to go to the effort of introducing sourdough, which is a gut healthy food, why ruin that by then incorporating sugar into it," Michelle told Nub News.

"Everything is made with sourdough, so everything is super gut-healthy."

The Saltney resident, who brings a corporate background to the role, first started experimenting with sourdough to cope with the stress of redundancy and a divorce.

The 44-year-old said: "I came across sourdough and it was just a way really to keep my mind quiet and focused on doing something other than all of the crap effectively that was going on around me.

"Sourdough was just a way for me to sort of focus some of that nervous, anxious energy."

Owner Michelle Anderson brings a corporate background in tech to the role (Nub News)

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She started making sourdough for friends and family, creating a hobby which soon snowballed and before long she was selling her bread at local markets in the area.

Upon realising she needed a bigger space to keep up with demand, she visited a location in Chester's Rufus Court and soon fell in love with the building.

"It just worked very well for what I had in mind for what I wanted to be able to bring to the community," she said. 

Overlooking the historic city walls, the "Gilmore Girls-esque" space is clad with eclectic second-hand and vintage furniture.

Alongside selling baked goods with freshly milled flour, Sunsets and Sourdough will also stock local honey and olive oil sourced directly from Palestine.

With a desire to create a community hub, the space will also be available for venue hire - with the owner citing plans to host events such as "Bridgerton-style tea parties" and intimate movie nights.

She said: "I just feel like with everything that's going on in the world, if we could have a little bit more whimsy and if I can do something to try and help foster that, then that's what I envisage really for this space."

With plans to host lessons at the bakery, Michelle also hopes to teach people in Chester about the health benefits of sourdough.

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You can find out more about Sunsets and Sourdough here.