Bakeries...

[V8mate]

...is it all over?

This country has lost its way with bakeries. People seem happy to pay handsomely for products which are barely able to make the end of the day in an edible state. There's virtually no demand outside of supermarkets and they are responsible for the death knell of the skilled baker.

Do you think that the situation is recoverable?

How far would you travel for a great bakery? Would that distance change if the bakery included somewhere to sit and enjoy great 'beverages' with their products?

I guess you'd limit yourself to weekend patronage unless it was right on your doorstep/somewhere you tend to frequent as part of your daily rituals?

What would attract you more: great bread or great cakes?

Erm... loads more question, probably. Tell me about bakeries: everything you love and everything that'll have you never visiting them again. And everything inbetween.

[calibrax]

My farm shop sells locally made bread which is delicious, and I get that from time to time. I don't normally get supermarket bread any more or the likes of Hovis,etc... since I got a breadmaker I usually make my own bread. But if I need some at short notice, I nip into the BP garage at Gatwick South Terminal on my way home. It's a mini Marks & Spencer, and their soft white sliced bread is rather good. Their crusty rolls are also lovely... nice texture and flavour.

[wattsie_2004]

100 miles

We live 100 miles from my parents who have a great bakery for fresh bread. It's in West Wales where they have a shop in Laugharne, Saundersfoot and Tenby.

When the missus and I visit them we often bring back at least £20 worth of bread for the chest freezer. The local butcher also has fine steak/ale, lamb/mint and pork/apple and chicken pies so another £20 on pies.

Obviously we don't make the trip sorely to get bread and pies, but we make sure we get bread while we're there. The A4069 road is down there too.

[gregd]

I'd drive a decent distance (20 miles or so) for a really good French style bakery/patisserie. Just about every country I have visited recently does bread/bakeries better than us..

The supermarkets (and to a lesser extent Greggs and the chavtastic/cater-for-the-lowest-common-denominator chains) have a lot to answer for.

[AndyT77]

gregd said:

I'd drive a decent distance (20 miles or so) for a really good French style bakery/patisserie. Just about every country I have visited recently does bread/bakeries better than us..

The supermarkets (and to a lesser extent Greggs and the chavtastic/cater-for-the-lowest-common-denominator chains) have a lot to answer for.

I agree with this to some extent, however you have to understand that retailers are at the mercy of consumer demands, i.e. people buying bread from a supermarket expect, no, demand that it lasts longer than a few days. Likewise, people who buy sausage rolls etc from Greggs don't buy them because they are made from the finest ingredients, they buy them because they represent good value.

I work in the bakery industry (actually food manufacturing, so mass produced stuff), and the retailers are always demanding better quality, longer shelf life, less customer complaints, faster service yet lower costs, all of which are driven by the consumer demand for such items.

In summary, i guess what i'm trying to say is that 'we, as consumers, have a lot to answer for'. I've travelled around Europe visiting bakeries and food manufacturing plants, and i'm afraid it's pretty much the same situation on the continent. Only when you venture into the European cities, towns and villages do you find small independant bakeries that produce high quality goods.

[V8mate]

AndyT77 said:

I agree with this to some extent, however you have to understand that retailers are at the mercy of consumer demands, i.e. people buying bread from a supermarket expect, no, demand that it lasts longer than a few days.

But it doesn't last. The supermarkets push their 'in-store bakery' ranges ever harder, yet the post bake-off shelf life is a matter of a few hours.

And packaged bread will barely last to a third day. Twenty years ago it was pumped full of vinegar to aid longevity, but I belive that's changed now.

A significant proportion of consumers demand their bread to meet a price point. But it seems that the supermarkets are actually delivering an even worse product to those who are able to pay for quality.

I'm not sure where in Europe you have found bread standards to be the same? You may well be able to find the same packaged crap we have in the UK, but the volume is tiny compared to proper, craftsman-derived bakery products.

[SwanJack]

IMO it's not only the supermarkets that are to blame. The bakery from where I'm originally from supplied the local heavy industry with bread, pasties, pies, cakes etc. It has continued despite the decimation of industry, but for how long is anyone's guess.

[Baryonyx]

I was in York the other day and I visited Betty's tea room in the town centre. Not only was I amazed by the quality of the whole experience (having a gruyere rösti with traditional English breakfast fare and a nice Kwazulu estate tea), the craft bakery there was great too. Simply stunning handmade baked goods at very reasonable prices, essentially no more than you'd pay in a supermarket!

[LovelyTia]

I'm willing to travel for 30-40 minutes for a good bakery.
Quite happy as we have a bakery not far from us (plaxtol bakery) and there is a shop opening up 10 minutes in the other direction that will have the best brownies/muffins/cupcakes and local made apple juices etc.
Love weekend farmers markets you can find out some great information.

I agree that its a dying breed, as are butchers, and you can't beat someone skilled in their trade.

[F i F]

Agreed, personally reckon there is a good case to be made for PH wikis for good butchers and bakeries.

[NorthDave]

We are lucky as we have a very good Polish deli round the corner which bakes and sells its own bread all over manchester.

My mate who works in the head office of a well known super market got quite narky when we told him he was talking b0ll0cks when he told us they simply bake ready made loaves. Even swore he'd seen the van dropping part baked off in the morning. He couldn't grasp why anyone would bother making their own now adays. This summed up why supermarkets are rubbish to me.

On the same holiday my mate was talking about opening a deli with rotisserie chickens, he told us you get them fully roasted and vac packed then you only need to warm them. Apparently that is what all the restaurants do nowadays!

Hope he doesn't read this......