Best bread in LA?

[Emily]

What does everyone think is the best artisinal bread in LA? I can come up with a quick list of places in SF (Acme, Cheeseboard, Arizmendi, Tartine, etc.), but the only place I've heard a lot of commentary on here is La Brea. What about Euro-Pane? Dolce Forno? Any others?

[patty]

Having just returned from the Bay Area, I feel your pain. A quick search of the board reveals only depressing entries for cornbread and bread pudding and Poilane bread, flown in from France, for heaven's sake. What is wrong with us Angelenos? I have a childhood fondness for Pioneer Sourdough... There's the bizarre flavored breads made by Bezjian at the Hollywood Farmer's Market...and some good places for pita, tortillas, challah, rye bread, etc. How about Le Pain Quotidien? The bread at Figaro Cafe and Cafe Casbah was good for a while...don't know if it still is. Good luck!

[Eric]

You can still buy Pioneer breadf fresh at their bakery at 804 Montana Avenue at Lincoln Boulevard.

[TomSwift]

And if you go in after 5:00pm, the bread is half off.

[ciaolette]

Please don't complain about bread in LA until you have tried Pain Du Jour, then you will feel much better....:-)

Le Pain Du Jour  
828 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90405
Phone: [phone]

[Ron Selgrath]

Le Pain du Jour is truly awesome. It is especially so if you can swing by in the morning and get a real croissant. Their batard is as good as Poilane is when you are in Paris.

[WLA]

When I did a search for bread los angeles on the CH Mainpage search feature it came up with 20 pages of responses, one of which I linked below. Not that all of them were appropriate, but a lot of them seemed to be as I looked at 8 or 9 of them.

Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/...

[michael]

Le Pain Quotidien; best baquettes (yes, better than La Brea). Il Fornaio ciabatta, heated. There used to be a great bakery in Brentwood on San Vicente in a weird little strip center (Brentwood Bakery?);they moved a couple of years ago, big wholesale business; Incredible, dense white bread, great multi grain bread. Juniors Deli; phenomenal Banana Bread (not realy bread, but it is awesome).

[michael]

Le Pain Quotidien; best baquettes (yes, better than La Brea). Il Fornaio ciabatta, heated. There used to be a great bakery in Brentwood on San Vicente in a weird little strip center (Brentwood Bakery?);they moved a couple of years ago, big wholesale business; Incredible, dense white bread, great multi grain bread. Juniors Deli; phenomenal Banana Bread (not realy bread, but it is awesome).

[DanaB]

I really like the bread at Le Pain Quotidien, a mini chain out of Europe. They have a couple of shops in NYC and a couple here -- one in Beverly Hills, one in Brentwood and one in West Hollywood. They bake their bread fresh in the store, and it's quite good. Better than La Brea Bakery for sure. Website with exact locations linked below.

Link: http://www.painquotidien.com/Pages/Ho...

[Theo]

Well - this may not be what you're looking for, but:

The Wine Bistro in Studio City has spectacular bread. They receive it partialy baked, and then they do the rest. Unfortunately I have forgtten from where they get their half baked bread.

[SKL]

We love the stuff at Cha Cha Cha in Silverlake -- if you call there, they'll tell you the bakery, which is nearby.

I'd also try to find out who makes the bread served at Mastro's in Beverly Hills -- it's incredible, too.

[Ernie]

I'm not a big fan of bread with stuff like olives, herbs, etc. (prefer to taste the bread itself with good, quality butter). That being said, I love the distinctly LA-style soft sourdough served at Musso & Franks and The Pantry, and the wonderfully warm baguettes at Café Gazelle in Long Beach/Belmont Shores

[pam]

bought a baguette and a loaf of dense, wonderful olice bread at PAIN DU JOUR this morning (prompted by the resonses touting this bakery posted yesterday) - both are excellent, really great examples of each of their very different styles of bread. I was informed by the very nice counterperson that the baker is the brother of the owner/chef at Angelique downtown, and that Pain du Jour supplies all of the bread for Angelique (which I have long thought had excellent bread)

[Spike]

Europane!

[maxzook]

Specifically, the rosemary currant loaves.

[mc michael]

No doubt!

[Mark Lee]

I'll chime in with yet another vote for the baguettes at Le Pain Quotidien. When I lived in Manhattan, one of the biggest perks of my neighborhood was the fact that the first U.S. outpost of this Belgian chain was scant blocks from my apartment. I still have never found a baguette that I love more, either in NYC or out here. (Caveat, though -- they seem to stale surprisingly quickly, so don't buy up more than you think you'll consume within a day or so; they're not even anywhere near as good the second day as the day you buy them.)

Since moving to the LBC, I've grown rather fond of the breads at Babette's Feast in Belmont Shore, particularly the walnut. (Though with my on-again, off-again Atkins flirtation, I've had to swear off all of these joys lately. Sigh....)

[LiskaB]

Maison Du Pain, Pico Blvd. Mid CIty. You're Welcome.

[Das Ubergeek]

Another years-old thread re-opened... The best baguette is at Eilat Bakery on Burbank and Whitsett. The best chorniy khleb is at Blackjack Market on Sherman Way and Bellaire. The best sourdough is from Wheatland Bakery and is sold at Fish King in Glendale. The best pain de campagne is from Le Pain Quotidien. The best rye is from Bea's in Tarzana. The best sangak is from Wholesome Choice in Irvine, where they make it a la minute. The best ciabatta is at Eagle Rock Italian Bakery.

[SIMIHOUND]

Will anyone agree with me that Porto's makes a good soft challah? It doesn't have the hard crust that some people are used to but I love it and they don't only make it Fridays for Shabbas. I think Bea's is fantastic but Poprto's makes a different type of challah.

[latindancer]

Everyone's idea of what defines 'great challah' is different. Some believe hard crust is essential and then there'll be others who will argue the crust must be soft. I've sat at tables and listened to this subject debated for, what seemed, hours.
My challah must be soft on the inside with a hard crust.

[tchad]

Thanks Das for disinterring this thread. Is there any place that has a baguette or batard or ficelle or other similar bread that is comparable to Bread Bar without that nasty mineral water taste? I want that slightly chewy texture and hearth-baked flavor that so many people, usually Europeans who grew up with Pain du Jour-type bread, for some reason revile. Thanks.

[Das Ubergeek]

Baguette, at Eilat. I couldn't say about ficelle or batard, unfortunately.

[maxzook]

Worthy of links ...

-----
Euro Pane Bakery
950 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91106

Wholesome Choice
18040 Culver Dr, Irvine, CA 92612

Bea's Bakery
18450 Clark St, Tarzana, CA 91356

Fish King Seafood & Poultry Co
722 N Glendale Ave, Glendale, CA 91206

Eilat Bakery
12522 Burbank Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 91607

Eagle Rock Italian Bakery
1726 Colorado Blvd, Los Angeles, CA

Blackjack Market
12643 Sherman Way, G North Hollywood, CA

Wheatland Baking
8010 Wheatland Ave, Sun Valley, CA

Le Pain Quotidien
113 N Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004

[lil mikey]

Tried to get the ciabatta at Eagle Rock Italian Bakery today, and they said they don't make it. But I got the Italian roll and made a turkey, salami and swiss sandwich with tomato, lettuce, black olives, mayo, mustard and Italian dressing.... Yum.

And what really made it was the roll.

[sbritchky]

The best bread (with outstanding butter) that I've had recently is the crusty white loaf at Boneyard Bistro. Completely unexpected and one of the few, alas, benefits of my current trek around the county in search of decent Q.

[scoot]

Al Gelato.

[bruinike]

What kind of bread do they serve at AL GELATO?

[Dommy]

Wow!! I would never even think of Al Gelato w.r.t to this question, but I agree... it's great for what it's used for. Basically it's crusty country white bread that is just perfect for its soups, salads and pasta dishes... but does it compare to the loaves at La Maison du Pain... not at all...

--Dommy!

[flowergirl]

Kate Mantillini has perfect bread - crispy on the outside and hot and chewy inside. Lawry's also has very good sourdough bread

[josh L]

if the bread is anything like the gelato at al gelato, i'd stay far away! the best bread i've had in los angeles is at huckleberry in santa monica.

[elizabeth333]

Lawry's gets its fabulous sourdough from a wholesale bakery called Oliver's Artisan Breads. A little known but wonderful artisan bread bakery

[trimtab]

Check out Berolina Bakery on Ocean View in Montrose...Just up from Schriners.

[orythedog]

Olive loaf at Europane.

[thursday]

Do any of these fantastic bread places sell true French baguettes - crusty on the outside and practically cotton candy on the inside they're so soft and full of air? Even the best baguettes I've found in the US are so bready and heavy. I've been looking for a French baguette maker for decades.

[Das Ubergeek]

You want Vietnamese baguettes. Buy them fresh and early in the day.

[artichokey]

Village Bakery on Los Feliz in Atwater (opened fairly recently) has great breads - from baguettes to asiago cheese to hamburger buns. Great neighborhood place.