Craft to Crumb mini-mag | March Q1 2023 | Kneads Bakeshop

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CRAFT TO CRUMB

Paul Lattan Publisher paul@avantfoodmedia.com

Steve Berne Director of Media steve@avantfoodmedia.com

Joanie Spencer Editor-in-Chief joanie@avantfoodmedia.com

Mari Rydings Editorial Director mari@avantfoodmedia.com

Jordan Winter Creative Director jordan@avantfoodmedia.com

Olivia Siddall Multimedia Specialist olivia@avantfoodmedia.com

Annie Hollon Managing Editor annie@avantfoodmedia.com

Evan Bail Associate Editor evan@avantfoodmedia.com

Maggie Glisan | Bella Foote Contributors info@crafttocrumb.com

Photo by Jonathan Mount

JOANIE SPENCER Editor-in-Chief

joanie@avantfoodmedia.com

HERE’S TO THE SPINOFF

Welcome to the first-ever mini-mag from Craft to Crumb ! You might be wondering what the heck a mini-mag is … or, for that matter, what Craft to Crumb is.

In a nutshell, this is a spinoff. Avant Food Media was formed in 2020 by three baking industry media veterans wanting to deliver a new kind of bakery trade media. After the successful launch of its flagship title, Commercial Baking, Avant launched Craft to Crumb, an all-digital media outlet for the retail and artisan baking community. Bakers are busy, so we boiled it down to all the best parts — the features.

This month, I’m proud to give you a first look at a brand-new concept: Kneads Bakeshop by H&S, Baltimore’s premier bakery cafe. Celebrating its grand opening concurrently with this issue, Kneads has something else in common with us: It’s also a spinoff.

Specializing in premium artisan baked goods, Kneads was spun off by the fourth generation of the Paterakis family, owners and operators of the H&S Family of Bakeries. The Paterakis’ passion for baking bread on a commercial scale is second to none, and the fourth generation — Next Gen, as they’re called — is carrying that legacy into the artisan world.

Shawn, Ryan and Adam Paterakis and Kira Paterakis Nissley have put their hearts into developing a bakery lineup that honors the Old-World style of bread making while adding modern touches like baking classes, a chef-led cafe menu and an Insta-worthy building design. Kneads is proof that tradition and innovation can co-exist.

We’re kicking off the issue with an overview of the bakery cafe market and its related consumer trends. On that foundation, you’ll see that Kneads is on trend … and setting a few of their own.

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THE NEW BAKERY CAFE

As traffic returns for foodservice, bakery cafes stage a comeback.

BY MAGGIE GLISAN

Dining behaviors have changed significantly as the restaurant industry has found itself deeply and profoundly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, the very notion of a traditional dining experience has evolved entirely to include a wide range of options and technology-driven conveniences.

Like any other restaurant in the industry, bakery cafes have faced unprecedented challenges in the past few years, and the current trends for the category reflect these seismic shifts in consumer behavior as well as the current economic climate and labor markets.

Carry-out and delivery services became non-negotiable for bakery cafes after the pandemic’s onset, and yet the demand for convenient ordering and off-premise dining options has not gone by the wayside, even as restaurants have started to regain dine-in traffic that was lost.

“Consumers are facing pandemic fatigue and are enthusiastically returning to dining out,” said Varchasvi, analyst for US foodservice and menu insights at Mintel. “Their interest in and usage of takeout/ delivery offerings remains virtually unchanged but is set to grow even further. As technological and operational advancements strengthen off-premise offerings across the industry, operators will need to compete on delivering the perfect at-home experience to consumers whose expectations for value, convenience, quality and easy access have been elevated over the pandemic.”

Many of the biggest chain brands have adopted new store concepts that lean into off-premise dining, utilize convenience-driven innovation, and leverage digital touch points to meet consumers where they are.

50%

St. Louis-based Panera Bread recently rolled out several stores that reimage the traditional bakery cafe. In May 2021, the brand introduced a new restaurant design with a double drive-thru, where one lane is dedicated to the restaurant’s Rapid Pick-Up service. And in November, Panera debuted a modern urban store format in New York designed specifically for digital and off-premise customers. It features a footprint that’s 40% smaller than traditional Panera stores with limited counter seating, ordering kiosks, a digitized menu and digital order status tracking.

According to the company, transactions from digital channels including the app, kiosk and web and digital sales now make up 50% of total system sales. The next step in a digital-forward approach is the adoption of AI technology in its drive-thru lanes. The ordering technology called “Tori” was installed in select New York locations in August with the goal of maximizing efficiency and increasing order speeds.

Source: Near

Boston-based Au Bon Pain also unveiled a new design for its bakery cafes, tailored to customers looking to get in and out fast. Features include a self-serve bakery, ordering stations and to-go areas.

But not all bakery cafes are leaning in quite as hard to digital-first store designs. For Mike Ferretti, chairman and CEO of Great Harvest Bread Company, it will be a long time before kiosks replace front-ofhouse employees.

of survey respondents said they’re more likely to eat at restaurants where they’re part of a loyalty program.

Photo credits (top to bottom): Jonathan Ocampo (Unsplash), Brina Blum (Unsplash), Visitr (Adobe)

Although the company has no immediate plans for digital-first store remodels, Ferretti said Great Harvest has seen considerable benefits from the adoption of the Great Harvest Rewards app.

In fact, loyalty programs have become increasingly popular for bakery cafe customers — especially among younger generations — as digital platforms make it easier for people to earn and redeem rewards. According to a report published by data intelligence firm Near, called “The New World of Consumer Behavior: Restaurants 2022,” 50% of respondents said they are more likely to eat at restaurants where they’re part of the loyalty program, and that number increased to 60% for Gen Zers and millennials.

London-based Pret (formerly Pret A Manger) recently updated its app to better support Pret Pick Up and The Pret Coffee Subscription in addition to its Pret Perks program, which launched in late 2021. The move emphasizes customer interest in having one digital platform that makes it easier to order and earn rewards.

Bakery cafes are also finding innovative new ways to meet consumer demand for sustainable, environmentally friendly practices. A June 2022 IRI survey revealed 35% of Gen Z and millennial consumers have “tried more sustainable food or beverage brands previously never purchased,” and a Morning Consult survey found that more than two-thirds of Gen Z respondents said sustainability had at least some impact on their food and beverage choices.

In 2020, Panera made headlines when it introduced “Cool Food Meals,” menu items that carry a lower carbon footprint. The Panera team worked with non-profit World Resources Institute (WRI) and sustainable consulting firm Pure Strategies to identify dishes that fall below the WRI’s recommended impact threshold and now identifies those items as Cool Food Meal certified (more than 50% of Panera’s menu currently carries the certification).

Other bakery cafes are seriously committing to locally sourcing ingredients and using local suppliers for a host of other items and services. According to an August 2021 Innova Trends survey, when global consumers were asked how important community (food from local producers) is to their diet, three out of five said it was “very” or “extremely” important.

Ferretti said there is a fair amount of local sourcing done at Great Harvest, with many stores choosing to seek out local honey, eggs and butter.

“We’re committed to using the best quality ingredients and making sure

Photo courtesy of Pret

our recipes are very clean label. It’s where we need to be and what our customers expect,” he said.

Inflation, supply chain issues and a tight labor market also impact how bakery cafes operate and innovate. According to Datassential, more than half of consumers believe the US will enter a recession in 2023, while 27% think the US is currently in one.

Ongoing labor shortages make finding operational efficiencies and leaning on technological solutions even more imperative. In fact, the Datassential report found that in 2022, restaurants already cut operating hours by an average of 6.4 hours per week compared to those pre-pandemic.

Rising food costs combined with inflation-fueled price sensitivity is also causing consumers to pull back on gratuitous spending.

In August 2022, a survey by Medallia found 49% of respondents cited price as a driver of household decisions compared to 29% last year. However, bakery cafes remain a relatively affordable dining option to those seeking affordable indulgences. Grabbing a breakfast sandwich or afternoon cookie feels like a special treat, but one that doesn’t break the bank.

Capitalizing on holidays and special occasions are one way bakery cafes can create buzz for limited-time-only offerings.

At Great Harvest, demand for holiday-themed treats has unlocked new potential for product innovation.

Of course, holiday offerings aren’t the only way for bakery cafes to stir interest around new products. Street-food flavors, sweet-andspicy combos and botanicals are all having a moment and spurring new product innovation that bakeries should consider. At Moonachie, NJ-based Paris Baguette USA, items such as curry croquettes, matcha mochi donuts and whole red bean bread offer authentic global flavors in an accessible way. Meanwhile, savory pastries such as cheese boureka and spinach labneh pita at Cambridge, MA-based Tatte Bakery & Cafe afford customers with just the right dose of adventure.

Sweet and spicy combinations continue to intrigue, with hot honey showing a 53% increase in consumer interest in the last two

years, according to Tastewise, and the botanical category — think floral flavors such as hibiscus, rosehip, and cherry blossom — has grown more than 31% in consumer interest during the same time span.

All of these trending flavors give bakery cafes the opportunity to deliver on classic and seasonal flavors like pumpkin spice, maple and apple while also experimenting with “newstalgia” twists, combining nostalgic foods with new trending tastes. Clever creations like spicy maple streusel muffins or orange rose shortbread cookies could give customers the perfect dose of new and different in a baked good they already know and love.

As foot traffic returns for bakery cafes across the country, these operators find a combination of classic fare paired with technology to make life a little easier will ensure the comeback continues.

Bakery cafes are exploring unexpected flavor profiles with ingredients like hot honey.

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Featured Bakery | Kneads Bakeshop

NEXT-GEN ARTISANS

Kneads Bakeshop by H & S is spinning off from a commercial baking icon into an artisan showplace.

BY JOANIE SPENCER

In Baltimore, the fourth generation of a family long known for commercially producing baked goods along the Eastern Seaboard is about to do things a little differently at Kneads Bakeshop by H&S.

In 1943, the H&S Bakery was founded by Greek immigrants Harry Tsakalos and Steve Paterakis. After a decades-long relationship with McDonald’s and acquisitions that led to the successful entry into the retail market in the early 2000s, the H&S Family of Bakeries is still owned and operated by the Paterakis family.

Coming through the ranks is the fourth generation of Paterakis leadership, affectionately known in the company and family as “Next Gen.” And this group is looking at bakery through a new lens.

The Paterakis Next Gen — brothers Shawn and Ryan Paterakis, director of sales and operations and director of national sales at H&S, respectively; and siblings Adam Paterakis, corporate operations director at H&S, and Kira Paterakis Nissley, leasing and special projects manager for Harbor East Properties, a Baltimore-based property developer and Paterakis family business — started to question the way things had always been done. They looked at American consumption habits and wondered if there could be a new way to make and market baked goods.

For 80 years, the H&S Family of Bakeries has successfully fed the masses through commercial baking. But the artisan market is on the rise, and the Paterakis Next Gen has taken notice.

All photos by Jonathan Mount

Needless to say, they’re shaking things up a bit, and their questions have sparked intelligent reflection but also a new opportunity.

“Our parent company has supported these customers through strong, long-standing relationships,” Adam said. “Our customers kept growing, so [H&S] kept growing. We became a product of the evolution that is a high consumer market. But when [Next Gen] took a step back, reflected and asked ourselves, ‘Should we take part in the artisan world?’ we always found ourselves saying, ‘Yes, we should be there. We have the expertise to be there because it’s in our roots.’”

Those roots go all the way back to the first loaves of bread made in the basement of a Baltimore rowhome in the ’40s, but the inspiration for these young executives came from the H&S outlet store, located on Fleet Street just outside the company headquarters. For years, it’s been a great resource for the community, but the group felt that bread could tell the story better.

From the Paterakis family legacy, Next Gen set out to create the first H&S spinoff.

After extensive due diligence, Shawn, Ryan, Adam and Kira presented a Shark Tank-style pitch to H&S leadership, complete with mockups of what the artisan bakery would look like, a pro-forma P&L with sales estimates and cost analysis, and a mockup of labor models.

At last, the concept was approved, and Kneads Bakeshop by H&S was

born. This marked the first time that all four came together on one project, taking on the titles of Kneads co-owners.

With Adam’s product development and operations expertise, Shawn’s sales and business acumen, Ryan’s marketing savvy, and Kira’s property development skills, the team was unstoppable.

“For Next Gen to work together on something like this was not only good because we were all passionate about it and believed in this concept, but also because this is the future,” Adam said. “We get to interact and collaborate and develop these skills that will be necessary for the long haul as we get more involved in growing this business.”

The Baltimore area is seeing smaller bakeries pop up on corners throughout the city. For this team, the timing is perfect to capitalize on the opportunity to stand out in a space that is competitive but not yet saturated.

“It’s a burgeoning new idea in the US in recent years, but people want to experience Old World breads that Europe has been doing for decades,” Ryan said. “I’ve always been excited to sell something that has this kind of artistry behind it.”

When the doors officially open to the public this month, people will enter 17,000 sq. ft. of retail space that includes a walk-up counter for ordering from a full menu of bakery and cafe items as well as gourmet coffee.

Featured Bakery

Craft to Crumb

Kneads Bakeshop

“Someone might come in to simply pick up a croissant and coffee. But they get an experience when they can stay and watch everything that’s going on ... This is a place to bring the Baltimore community together.”

Shawn Paterakis | co-owner | Kneads Bakeshop

With hours of operation running 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, Kneads will also offer light-fair dinner, including tapas and charcuterie, as well as wine, some craft cocktails, and — of course — bread all day.

Grab-and-go options are also available on the main level in a marketplace-style area, and to-go orders can be picked up at the window of a classic H&S Family of Bakeries bread truck replica mounted on the wall in the back, where an Instagram-worthy mural reads, “All you need is loaf.”

Behind that truck window, Kneads uses the Toast POS platform for to-go and carryout orders, and customers can also pick up through a streetside window.

WATCH NOW

Dine-in seating is available inside or on the patio, as well as on the mezzanine level where there’s a bird’s eye view of breads, pastries and other baked goods being made on workbenches and a semi-automated line. That state-of-the art production space provides bakers like Tyler Vegetabile, Kneads’ head baker, with every tool a baker could want.

Adam had a keen awareness of what resources were needed to produce hundreds of artisan baked goods ranging from fermented breads to laminated pastries, donuts and more, thanks to the knowledge he gained from years working in operations for the larger H&S production.

“As I’ve continued my bakery education, especially around ingredient functionality, I sort of stumbled into artisan and developed this

natural curiosity,” Adam said. “In this bakery, I’m able to live out that curiosity. I’m the type of person who likes to get my hands dirty, so to speak, so I love getting in here, running the laminate and really understanding all the equipment. I like to learn, and this is the best way for me to support Kneads’ success.”

Growing up in the H&S Family of Bakeries, Adam spent a big part of his life either watching new facilities being built or working as part of the operations team, whether it was observing and learning or programming the equipment.

“I’ve been around bakery equipment my whole life, so this part came naturally to me,” Adam said. “Not only with designing the bakery but also picking the best of what the industry has to offer for what we want to create here.”

Jordan Gershberg, director of engineering, talks about automation in artisan baking.

The original in the bakery world!

Craft to Crumb

Kneads Bakeshop

The view from the mezzanine is impressive. But for a baker standing in the middle of it all, it’s a dream come true in this bakery designed for quality over volume or speed.

“We obviously want to be efficient, but we’re not here to make as many baguettes as possible. We’re here to make high-quality, artisan baguettes,” Adam added.

To streamline the procurement process, the team worked with Gemini Bakery Systems to commission most of the equipment.

Whether it’s the Belshaw donut frying system, the Rheon bread makeup line or WP Bakery Systems pastry makeup lines, Kneads has tapped into supplier partners that manufacture right-sized equipment for artisan and retail operations. The bakery also relies on two Italian F2 spiral mixers that feed those production lines by creating a consistent dough that will process well and retain the desired artisanal finish.

Coming from an environment that relied mostly on industrial horizontal mixers, Adam trusted his relationship with Gemini to

guide the mixer choice for this new style.

For artisan breads, the bakery’s workhorse is its cold fermentation room, where dough enters its transformation stage at 50°F for about 15 hours. Between the formula, process, and fermentation time and temperature, the dough grows at a slow, steady rate, developing the bread’s signature taste and texture.

“In the commercial world, it’s about how quickly and efficiently we can get the product through the line,” Shawn said. “But here, we’re focused on letting the complexity of the product develop so you get the nice sour and flavor notes.”

When needed, certain loaves spend time in warm proofing racks before heading into the WP Bakery Systems deck or rack ovens for their final bake.

At Kneads, the oven may be the final step in the process, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle. There’s an equation that has to be carefully constructed before these artisan baked goods are ready to go, and no step can be missed or shorted.

“The biggest difference between these products and others on the street is time,” Vegetabile said.

The Kneads production team is still in creation mode, but they’re look-

ing at around 100 SKUs while they test new products ahead of the grand opening. After that, the real fun begins.

“We’re starting with core, staple items, and then we can get creative after that,” Adam said.

With the right equipment in place, the team can introduce limited-time offers as well. They’re off to a great start, selling special direct orders such as baguette “bouquets” for Valentine’s Day and Irish soda bread for St. Patrick’s Day before the cafe doors opened to the public.

While people can purchase products and watch the process,

they can learn firsthand how it’s all done when they step into the bakery lab for classes taught just off the production floor.

“We wanted to showcase the baking process like it’s theatre,” Shawn said. “When people come in, they’ll be able to see it all. They can take a baking class while looking directly into the bakery as it’s happening, and customers waiting for their order can watch the classes in action.”

From the Baltimore-industrial building design, to the “rolling pin” chandeliers, to the floor-to-ceiling windows that look onto the classroom and production space, the Kneads experience is a show … and the Baltimore community has a front-row seat.

“Someone might come in to simply pick up a croissant and coffee,” Shawn said. “But they get an experience when they can stay and watch everything that’s going on, learn about a baking class or shop the marketplace of select local artisan vendors. This is a place to bring the Baltimore community together.”

WATCH NOW

That sense of community runs deeper than the customer experience.

The bakery prioritizes local vendors not only in the marketplace but also in its products. From the bakery’s inception, the team explored what was available locally for bakery items and the cafe menu.

For example, Kneads works with a local cheese monger who sources products exclusively from woman-owned farms to create ultra-high-quality cheeses. And Moon Valley Farms, Kneads’ supplier of certified organic produce, was started by Emma Jagoz, a single mom who began growing produce in her backyard and sells directly to local chefs.

“It’s not so much the products but the back stories with these particular vendors,” said Loïc Hémery, Kneads’ director of operations and executive chef. “Take Moon Valley Farms … today, Emma has leveraged her success to where she can help other small farmers who don’t have the same resources and reach that she does now.

Tyler Vegetabile, head baker, talks about artisan baking in the modern era.

Kneads Bakeshop

When we meet these kinds of vendors, we want to showcase their products as well as their stories.”

Breaking into artisan baking is a whole new world when it comes to ingredient procurement, if for no other reason than the difference in volume. In commercial production, scale often dictates the options for available ingredient suppliers. But on the artisan side, there’s more opportunity to seek out vendors that not only offer the types of ingredients needed but also have values that align with the story a bakery like Kneads wants to tell.

Kneads does, however, benefit from existing supplier relationships they’ve had through their parent company. The team has worked with suppliers like Lallemand, which has developed creative ingredient solutions tailored to Kneads’ specific scope and style of baking.

Artisan bakery production is, by definition, a simpler process in terms of formulation, so while it is a mindset shift, it has been a welcome change from the complexities of large-scale production. While the process is simpler, a shorter ingredient list puts a heavier emphasis on how those ingredients work together, especially for items like pastries, where butter can make all the difference for a finished product.

“I came from an environment where you’d see as many as 12 or 15 items on a formula card,” Adam said.

“But with the artisan lineup, we’re looking at four, maybe five items,

which makes it a lot easier to build an ingredient map.”

For Vegetabile, even the simplest formulas require a careful approach because true artistry — whether in bakery or elsewhere — is about the pursuit of perfection, not perfection itself.

“As soon as I feel a stagnant flow, I change something up to see if there’s a new shape we can work with or a new flavor we can incorporate,” Vegetabile said. “It’s about always learning, growing and trying to perfect, but knowing there’s never such thing as the perfect loaf.”

Ultimately, the intention behind Kneads is creating something bigger than just artisan products in a new bakery. It’s becoming a North Star for how artisan bakeries and other local companies can do business in their communities.

While that ethos was built into the business model, the team didn’t set out to become trailblazers for a new way of doing business.

“We didn’t mean to be,” Adam said. “We were just doing our thing.”

Often, those are the ones who bring about the most change … the unintentional standard setters.

Call it irony or divine, but these lifelong — yet Next Gen — bakers are making waves in the artisan space and changing what doing good looks like, simply by doing their thing.

Craft to Crumb

Thought for Food

HERE’S TO THE SPINOFF

Welcome to the first-ever mini-mag from You might be wondering what the heck a mini-mag is … or, for that matter, what is.

In a nutshell, this is a spinoff. Avant Food Media was formed in 2020 by three baking industry media veterans wanting to deliver a new kind of bakery trade media. After the successful launch of its flagship title, Commercial Baking Craft to Crumb all-digital media outlet for the retail and artisan baking community. Bakers are busy, so we boiled it down to all the best parts — the features.

avantfoodmedia.com

This month, I’m proud to give you a first look at a brand-new concept: Kneads Bakeshop by H&S, Baltimore’s premier bakery cafe. Celebrating its grand opening concurrently with this issue, Kneads has some thing else in common with us: It’s also a spinoff.

Specializing in premium artisan baked goods, Kneads was spun off by the fourth generation of the Paterakis family, owners and operators of the H&S Family of Bakeries. The Paterakis’ passion for baking bread on a commercial scale is second to none, and the fourth gen eration — Next Gen, as they’re called — is carrying that legacy into the artisan world.

Shawn, Ryan and Adam Paterakis and Kira Paterakis Nissley have put their hearts into developing a bakery lineup that honors the Old-World style of bread making while adding modern touches like baking classes, a chef-led cafe menu and an Insta-worthy building design. Kneads is proof that tradition and innovation can co-exist.

We’re kicking off the issue with an overview of the bakery cafe market and its related consumer trends. On that foundation, you’ll see that Kneads is on trend … and setting a few of their own.

a·vant: adjective culturally or stylistically advanced

Craft to Crumb Baker Profile | Loïc Hémery

BAKER, CHEF, ENTREPRENEUR

Loïc Hémery brings the Miami food scene to baked goods in Baltimore.

BY JOANIE SPENCER

Every step of building Kneads Bakeshop by H&S was made with intention, and that includes bringing Loïc Hémery along from the start. As director of operations and executive chef for Kneads, Hémery brings Miami culinary experience combined with a foundation in baking.

“My siblings and I were born in a bread mixer, so to speak,” Hémery said, describing how he grew up learning about bakery and patisserie with his parents, who owned a French bakery cafe in Miami for 33 years.

After attending college in Washington DC to study international relations, Hémery returned home to help with the family business … and never left.

It was in that chapter of his life that Hémery parlayed his baking experience into culinary expertise.

Bakery and culinary arts often run parallel, and they rarely intersect. But the winding path that Hémery took in his career makes him one of those rarities indeed.

Loïc Hémery, director of operations and executive chef, shares his insights on building an artisan baking business.

Photo courtesy of Kneads

After his parents closed their bakery and retired in 2008, Hémery explored the culinary world as an entrepreneur, starting his own businesses and working for different hospitality groups throughout South Florida. He developed myriad skills in a variety of cuisines, starting with the Cuban-inspired fare that Miami is known for.

Even at his most adventurous, Hémery has always called upon the fundamentals for executing the best possible products.

“Throughout my journey, everything I’ve done has been artisan and from scratch,” Hémery recalled. “I’ve done everything the old way … with love, with time and by using amazing ingredients.”

Helping launch Kneads was a culmination of not only his culinary and bakery background but also the entrepreneurial spirit that had been his driving force.

“This recruiter tracked me down and told me about this opportunity in Baltimore,” Hémery said. “I thought I’d consider it and listen to what it was about. I met Adam [Paterakis, co-owner of Kneads] over Zoom, and we had this incredible, organic conversation and hit it off right away.”

It wasn’t long before Hémery was traveling between Miami and Baltimore, checking out the local food scene and getting acquainted with Kneads and its parent company, H&S Family of Bakeries, owned and operated by the Paterakis family.

“Hearing about this project gave me goosebumps,” Hémery said. “I was put into a position where I could pull from my bakery and patisserie experience growing up, my experience in the kitchen, and my knowledge of building and scaling a business.”

Hémery is building Kneads’ bakery lineup and cafe menu around what has driven him the most — love, time and quality ingredients.

“The menu will be from scratch,” he said. “And we’ll find the best ingredients that we can source to make the most amazing products we can.”

He draws inspiration from not only his Miami roots but also his multicultural heritage.

“There’s amazing cuisine going on in Miami,” he said. “There was a lot

of Venezuelan and Peruvian influence back home, and of course a lot of Cuban. And coming from a French and Japanese background, I’ve learned to blend the European side with the Japanese.”

During his culinary years, Hémery studied under a master kaiseki chef developing high-end Japanese cuisine, which he now implements into his menu development for food as well as baked goods. This unique approach will surely have an impact in Baltimore, where menus typically stay close to their core influences.

At Kneads, Hémery will bring a fusion to the bakery and cafe that will expand on the core artisan items and create signature products that can’t be found anywhere else. To accomplish that, he’s built a star team including Tyler Vegetabile, head baker; Cyrus Keefer, chef de cuisine; and Cynthia Ruane, head pastry chef.

This is a chance for Hémery to employ a variety of techniques and get a little adventurous in ways atypical of culinary and artisan bakery trends often seen in the area.

“We’re definitely going to push a very cultured menu with international flair,” Hémery said. “It’s going to be a fun lineup, where someone can come in all the time and always find something different to get excited about.”

Whether it’s internationally inspired, seasonal or a limited drop, Hémery’s product development will keep Kneads guests on their toes … and coming back for more.

Craft to Crumb

Loïc Hémery

“I’ve done everything the old way: with love, with time and by using amazing ingredients.”

Loïc Hémery | director of operations and executive chef | Kneads Bakeshop

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PRODUCT SHOWCASE

At the all-new Kneads Bakeshop by H&S in Baltimore, the team is in “creative mode” when it comes to the product lineup. With the potential for more than 100 SKUs, the possibilities are endless. Take a look at some of the most innovative products currently available on the bakery and cafe menus.

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Product Showcase | Kneads Bakeshop

BLUEBERRY GINGER SWIRL GOAT MILK CHEESECAKE, TOPPED WITH BLACKBERRY COMPOTE

BROWN SUGAR AND CINNAMON SWIRL SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE

CURED LEMON YOGURT AND EGGPLANT SHAKSHUKA WITH GRILLED BREAD

ALMOND FLOUR TORTE, BANANAS FOSTER, COCONUT PASTRY CREAM, DULCE DE LECHE GARNISH

PASSION FRUIT CURD, WHITE CHOCOLATE CREMEUX, FRESH PASSION FRUIT CAVIAR

All photos by Jonathan Mount

It all starts, and ends, with a cup!

T h e o l d e s t , m o s t s u c c e s s f u l , a n d o n l y a n n u a l t r a d e s h o w f o r t h e b a k i n g i n d u s t r y .

W h a t c a n y o u e x p e c t t o s e e ?

N e w e s t p r o d u c t s a n d e q u i p m e n t f r o m t o p s u p p l i e r s

T h o u s a n d s o f q u a l i f i e d b a k e r y i n d u s t r y b u y e r s

I n v a l u a b l e o p p o r t u n i t i e s t o l e a r n f r o m

i n d u s t r y e x p e r t s . . . a n d m o r e !

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PROMOTES THE PEOPLE.

“IF YOU WANT A LASTING AND SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS, YOU NEED TO CULTIVATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT

— ADAM PATERAKIS | CO-OWNER | KNEADS BAKESHOP