From the long-fermented and multi-layered, to those enriched with butter or fillings, the tender, the crisp and the golden, the pandemic awakened our collective appetite for carbs in every iteration. Happily, Covid-born bakeries, such as the magical Breadhead, are coming to our aid and helping to feed the need. Opening its first brick-and-mortar location this Friday, July 1, The Tuck Shop x Breadhead will offer a multitude of scrupulously-made bread, pastries, cakes, and more. It will soon have us planning our days around the bakery’s opening hours.
Launched in May of 2020 out of a home kitchen, Breadhead Bakery is owned and run by Lucy Kirby. It was created as an attempt to “bring comfort to people in quarantine,” during the pandemic, she says on the company’s website. To begin, the bakery’s offerings included a variety of sourdough bread, from seeded to cinnamon, along with comforting pastries and cakes, such as scones, doughnuts, miso chocolate chip cookies, pies, cakes and more. Trained at top local spots like Buca and Sud Forno, Kirby envisioned a modern bakery where nostalgic flavours would reign over a foundation of local, seasonal and organic ingredients.
Inspired by two years of wholesale business, sold-out pop-ups and a growing community of “breadheads,” Kirby knew the time had come to move the business into its own space. Announced earlier this year, the new bakery will be located at 1265 Dundas Street West and will open Thursday to Sunday, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. In an Instagram post, Kirby described the new space as a “nostalgic space for the neighbourhood to remember what it’s like to be up at the cottage or at camp.” The Tuck Shop x Breadhead is “for everyone, old or young, ‘cool’ or not, happy or sad. We are here to make your day a little sweeter, and reminiscent of our youth. This is a safe and inclusive space that should bring joy and socializing back into our lives!”
Head to the bakery this weekend, from July 1-3, and take part in a soft launch that’s guaranteed to send you spiralling joyfully upwards to a state of complete bliss. The bakery will be open between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and will have a variety of whole cakes, pies, and cheesecakes, along with never-before-seen pastries and merchandise available for purchase. Studio Ingenue will also be on-site hosting a fabulous flower pop-up.
For more info and to eye some mouth-watering pics of what you might expect from The Tuck Shop x Breadhead in the days, months, and years ahead, visit the bakery’s Instagram.
