Praise the Lord and pass the butter

Praise the Lord and pass the butter

Long before Zak the Baker was baking bread and making bread, others were scattering the flour upon which this dough has risen. When visitors mispronounce their order for a Kouign Amann, there is no cognizance of what historically existed in Wynwood before Tony Goldman. (Yes, I know this sounds like Christopher Columbus; I apologize in advance.) I first heard about Wynwood through local legend Teo Castellanos, whose 2002 one-man play, NE 2nd Avenue, featured a cast of local characters, one of whom repeatedly shouts, “Wynwood.” Teo would ride me through the streets, dodge broken shards of glass, and engage painters. Martha Cooper would be photographing everything. Scope erected tents in Roberto Clemente Park for Art Basel in 2006, near Rubell and Margulies Collections.

The Wynwood Walls opened in 2009.

Now it’s been a few years since Zak Stern did for local bread what Joel and Leticia did in 2010 for local coffee. From the beginning, when Panther set up house on NW 2nd Avenue, and Zak opened shop around the way a few years later, these folks have been the maestros of changes for the better in a once godforsaken landscape of bread and pastries. The thrill of sourdough and the agony of no wheat are the subjects of this week’s current bakery landscape. Let me count the ways of ranking them. Though the baguette is the gold standard, free throw, fastball, jab, and basic fundamental, all these spots do more.

#1: On Sunday morning in Pinecrest, rich people still line up for bread now sold with charm by Harvey Stern, Zak’s father. They don’t run out like they used to, but Zak’s baguette is still the king of the hill, top of the heap, number one with a bullet. Zak does everything the right way. In every way, he is a mensch.

#2: The French Bakery: Sometimes known online as Delices de France, but always just called the French Bakery, prepare for a Sunday line snaking out the door at Patrick Baboun’s place. With a few stools inside and a handful of tables outside overlooking SUV’s with engines running, this beloved local spot has been satisfying Palmetto Bay for years. Their rustic baguette gives all a run for the money. Sandwiches, cakes, eclairs, and croissants also rule. One particularly unique characteristic of the French Bakery’s confidence is this: there is no website.

#3: Atelier Monnier: Man cannot live by bread alone, but the rustic sourdough baguette found across from Dadeland South Station would sustain you. Patrick Feyten’s Belgian offerings include macarons, sandwiches, and bottles of wine. Rosé lovers are in a kind of nostalgic paradise here. With its big wooden tables, there is an intimate, indoor vibe going on at all times.

#4: Way out of the way, closer to downtown than this article should be, El Carajo elevates the tapas bar, wine shop aesthetic to an art form; it is a gas station. Aside from baked goods, they make a mean cortadito and feature a heavenly assortment of cakes and cookies.

#5: More inclined to attract those hoping to be waited upon, new in Pinecrest, La Boulangerie Boul-Mich, straight outs Key Biscayne and Aventura, brings a bit of wayward panache to the south US1 corridor. This Venezuelan/French hybrid looks good, with incongruent flea market touches in a big space with high ceilings and gorgeous croissants, expensive empanadas, alfajores, tequeños, and a list of salads and sandwiches.

#6: Joanna’ Marketplace: For 25 years, Joanna’s has been doing its thing with a horseshoe bar of over twenty types of artisanal bread and more than fifty varieties of cakes, pastries, cookies, and pies. Their multigrain baguette is made by Pagnifique, a Uruguayan company. Joanna’s loyal crowd eschews any decorative upgrades.

#7: Pinecrest Bakery: Places began sprouting like mushrooms in 2012. Soon to be in a dozen locations, these guys feature 24 hour pastelitos, facturas, and snack familiar to la cutura Latina. Their baguette is the Pan Cubano, which appeals to the traditional Ileana Ros-Lehtinen voter. Of their 30 odd cakes, the buzzworthy one, flan cheesecake, reaches epic height.

Space allows no more than a shout out to Mainzer’s, House of Bagels, Chocolate Fashion, Tea & Poets, Ricky, Vicky, Roma, and so many others, but avoiding carbohydrates has never been harder.


Connect To Your Customers & Grow Your Business

Click Here