Hereford Times 14 March 2026
When on the hunt for a delicious baked good, what name could be more trustworthy than 'The Queen of Tarts'. I'd spoken to owner Sian in 2024 when her striking pink van began to take the city by storm, but I hadn't managed to find the time since to taste the produce that I was writing about.
Her branding and social media promotion are surely a driving factor for many customers like myself who are keen to try some of the sweet desserts. I'd be surprised if other residents of Hereford's algorithms hadn't brought up her posts before, which are usually highly colourful and include tempting photos of her creations, sometimes inside her honesty box.
Ms Parkes previously said she was the first cake business in the county to set up an honesty box, with a box now stationed on Venns Lane in Hereford, where customers can help themselves to a variety of baked goods, and post their cash through a letter box.
What started as a lockdown hobby for Sian turned into an award-winning business. Although I'm sure the company sells plenty to the masses like me, they also cater to the wholesale market and supply local businesses in Hereford. The business is well known for its occasion-themed treat boxes, baking everything from sweet treats, celebration cakes, and wedding cakes, and catering for school events and workplaces.
The business started as a lockdown hobby for Sian, and she even renovated her spare room to turn it into a commercial bakery. She has accumulated a collection of accolades, winning the New Business of the Year 2022 award with Hereford Business Awards, and in 2023, she was nominated and became a finalist for Customer Service Provider of the Year 2023.
She regularly sets up in Hereford High Town, and to my delight, when I was looking for something to review, I saw she had just a few brownies left, which clearly needed a good home to go to. It seems I had missed somewhat of a rush, as plenty were sold out, but a few of the classic brownies remained, including a gooey Galaxy caramel brownie and a traditional chocolate chunk, which looked equally as decadent. If I had to choose my favourite to repurchase, I would almost definitely go for the caramel brown. Although I'm unsure exactly how it was made, it seemed like a slab of the indulgent chocolate had been placed through the middle of the batter, which had combined perfectly to leave just enough room for a small amount of the caramel to drizzle out. The chocolate chunk was undoubtedly an understated classic; it had the same luxurious batter but was broken up with pieces of milk chocolate throughout, some of which formed a nice crust on the edges. Sian told me that there had been something of a morning rush, which I was not surprised by, given that her stall looked like it had been eaten out of house and home. This was further confirmed when I got back to the office, and saw a social media post from her business account saying she had sold out for the day, probably a mere 20 minutes after I had left.
For anyone passing through the Hereford High Town market on a Saturday, I'd highly recommend stopping by. The two brownies only set me back £7.50, and given they could definitely each have been split in two, I didn't think this was a bad price whatsoever.
Hereford Times 3 November 2024
Sian Parkes, owner of the Queen of Tarts, which tours the county in a unique pink and white van, initially started baking as a lockdown hobby, posting all her creations to her personal social media pages.
Soon after, she renovated her spare room and turned it into a commercial bakery, where the business currently operates from.
Ms Parkes left her civil servant job to pursue her bakery dreams.Ms Parkes left her civil servant job to pursue her bakery dreams. (Image: ROB DAVIES) "Friends and family encouraged me to set up a business as they loved all my creations that I was baking.
"I decided to leave my Civil servant job where I worked for the Ministry of Defence.
"This was 2.5 years ago and I’ve been building my business up since and it’s growing from strength to strength," she said.
Ms Parkes has quite the collection of accolades, winning the New Business of the Year 2022 award with Hereford Business Awards, and in 2023 she was nominated and became a finalist for Customer Service Provider of the Year 2023.
This year, Ms Parkes has claimed the title for the Midlands Enterprise Award for Best bespoke sweet treats bakery.
The business was the first to open a cake honesty box in Hereford.The business was the first to open a cake honesty box in Hereford. "We attend Hereford High Town market on the first Saturday of every month, where you can buy all our sweet treats from brownies, cookie pies, blondies, cake slices etc and are always really popular where we sell out usually by midday".
The business is well known for its occasion-themed treat boxes, baking everything from sweet treats, celebration cakes, and wedding cakes, and catering for school events and workplaces.
Ms Parkes says she is the first cake business in the county to set up an honesty box, with a box now stationed on Venns Lane in Hereford, where customers can help themselves to a variety of baked goods, and post their cash through a letter box.
Queen of Tarts not only caters to individuals but also to wholesale and supplies local businesses in Hereford.
So far, the likes of The Coffee Cart Company, Eden coffee house, Play Planet, the Whole Moo World vending machines and The Sidings at Allpay, have been selling her delightful produce.
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