After blowing a gasket about Lind's overpriced, mediocre brezeln last week, and while I patiently wait for them to get back to me about why exactly their brezeln are smaller and more expensive than what may possibly be the most expensive brezeln in Germany, I thought I'd introduce a bakery that is doing it right for a change.
Bread Studio is bringing real bread (no sweetbuns with pork floss localizations) to Shanghai at reasonable prices, which is about damn time. How reasonable? A good, rustic baguette runs 10RMB, while a crusty, dark and chewy wholewheat, mulitgrain loaf (about 500g) costs a mere 7RMB.
These are good breads- not superlative, but then again, they are far, far better than most breads on offer in town and at less than 10 RMB for almost everything, they have THE cost/value equation to beat. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of their loaves or pastries at my local bakery in Montreal, to give you an idea of their quality. All their goods are made on site, from scratch, under the tutelage of their French-trained Japanese baker.
They have 40+ items available now, and will expand to 100+ soon. Most of their range are standards- croissants, danish-y things, brioche, (painfully good) blueberry cheesecake cups, plus a small assortment of breads. There are a few pre-fab snack items from around the world, including egg and cheese toasties, Japanese curry filled buns (these are actually surprisingly good) and curry-topped naan! None of their baked items cost more than 10RMB. The baked goods are rounded off with coffee standards (americanos, espresso, cappucino etc) for 12-13RMB.
The grand opening is tomorrow, and they are launching a website and delivery service soon- I'll be back with details when I have more information.
I'm hoping that Bread Studio brings a breath of realism into the overblown expat bread market- because while some people are willing to accept paying ridiculous prices for basic breads, I think that it's more than time for a change.
DETAILS
What: Bread Studio grand opening
When: September 1, 2010
Where: 321 Guangyuan lu
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Indeed I am- after 8 years in China, I yearn for good bread at reasonable prices. Also cheese and vino, too- but imports are imports and a different story, unfortunately.
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I still maintain that Croissants De France is the best here - best of a bad lot, but still, any port in a storm. Speaking of which, I've got a nice bottle of Special Reserve around here somewhere... Delivery service would be ideal as well - we eat a fair amount of bread, and it's not always the case that we remember to buy. So Lind still haven't gotten back to you, huh? Hmm...
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Sorry for the double post, just wanted to draw attention to my alternative review of a certain bread shop... http://thebigc.blog.com/2010/08/31/the-feud/
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Croissants De France was my bread savior when I first landed in Shanghai. This new place sounds intriguing, though.
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Also, be the first to put it on Dianping.com: http://www.dianping.com/search/keyword/1/0_bread%20studio
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Baker and Spice is my pick. It has delicious sourdough and some amazing grainy bread rolls. I will be keen to try this new place though.
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I'm not saying that this place is the best by any means- just that they are making very credible bread products for fantastically low prices. And somewhat odd as they may seem, the Japanese curry buns are really, really addictive lunch snacks.
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It's 'under construction', but since they are Japanese and serious about it, I actually believe it'll get built, and soon. Still soft open, really.
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