Bread equipment has radically changed since I started baking. It gets people talking. Besides offering eye appeal and variety, the centerpieces enable the staff to concentrate more on serving than passing rolls. Though Werry lacks space for a pastry kitchen and a budget for a full-time pastry chef, he can't afford not to serve housemade bread. Ready-made batters and doughs for muffins and Danish are individualized with nuts, fruit or streusel topping.
Local bakers supply other yeast and specialty items.
Though flatbread is made on premise, potato-rye and pretzel bread, standard issue in the bread baskets, are outsourced with specifications and recipes, according to Burke. To give customers variety and minimize temptation to overstuff before the meal, Burke includes low-calorie nibbles such as raw vegetables in the presentation. While variety is the goal of most restaurateurs in filling the basket, Nieman Marcus, the Dallas-based department store chain, demonstrates an attention to detail and freshess in their retail restaurants. The signature bread at the store's Zodiac Room is popovers. About the size of a baseball, they're made daily, served warm and arrive with a ramekin of whipped strawberry butter.