Anne Braly
John Sweet, owner of Niedlov’s Bakery on Main Street.Toast. Who thought that it would ever be on a restaurant menu?
I’m not talking about toast as a side to eggs and bacon. That’s common. I’m talking about toast as a standalone item served with various toppings. It’s a trend that started at a hole-in-the-wall coffee shop in San Francisco, Trouble, according to an article in the magazine Pacific Standard. And now it’s become a trend in larger cities and has made its way onto menus in some of the Scenic City’s trendy restaurants, as well.
Andrew Freeman, president of Andrew Freeman and Co., a hospitality and marketing consulting firm in San Francisco, accurately predicted the trend last year, saying he expected 2013 to be the year of toasted bread.
“And I have no doubt that it will continue and expand on appetizer menus in 2014,” he says. Why? “It’s such a good complement to savory toppings, such as chicken liver mousse, hummus and other toppings. They make nice little taste treats.”
Local bread baker John Sweet, owner of Niedlov’s Breadworks on Main Street, says several restaurants in town buy his bread, then toast it and add it to their appetizer menus. Public House toasts Niedlov’s sourdough bread and serves it with its popular pimento cheese, Sweet says, and The Meeting Place toasts his French baguettes and then tops it with beef tartare.