Ask the Baker

This is our chance to answer the myriad of questions we are asked, or we imagine ourselves to be asked, over the course of a week:

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Dear Baker: I came to the bakery and you ran out of my favorite bread. Can't you just make more?

Person on Yelp.com, Anytown, MA

Baker Andy:Good question! We get a lot of the "you always run out of bread" observation, and one of the few ways I can reply to that is "Trust me, we'd rather be selling it to you than saying we're out!"

The big problem is that we make most of our stuff fresh every day. After we close, we donate what's left over to homeless shelters. We don't sell day-old bread, because we fell that a fresher product is a better product, and this results in a business model that revolves around predicting the future, as in "What are people going to want tomorrow, or the next day, or this weekend?" We keep daily charts of what was left over, track trends in product buying, check the weather for the next few days, etc. We just can't predict when someone's going to come in order a million croissants, or get a bunch of bread for their bed and breakfast, or, more simply, when the stars align and the Walnut Sourdough is just really popular one day.

Combine that with the fact that almost all of our breads, and all of our croissants and sticky buns, take over 48 hours to make, just "making more" can be out of the question! We try as hard as we can to have as much available to each person. It's an elusive art, and I know bakers who have been doing this for years and years and years who still can't predict public opinion.

And we always say: when in doubt, call and reserve, or place that special order! The special orders help us manage our retail numbers and have more product for walk-ins.

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Dear Baker: What's your least favorite job in the bakery?

Dylan C., Reading, MA

Baker Andy: Cleaning the grease trap is no fun at all. Soaking and scrubbing the floor is also a drag. Removing and cleaning the oven door windows is not only time-consuming, it's very, very hot.

Email your questions, baking or personal, to  andy@ajkingbakery.com. By asking a question, you are begging to be put on the blog, so look out!