European Style Bakery? Artisanal Bread? (Hollywood, Tamiami: 2013, hotels, home)

[zmgriffith]

Good Morning, All,

We're newer to town, and have not yet stumbled upon a good artisanal bakery, just yet.

I love croissants and pastries as much as the next guy, and they're easy enough to find at coffee shops and the like.

Any recommendations for European-style loaves?

Thanks!

[loves2read]

don't know about general bakery but there is one on Venice Main St that makes more pastry offerings and wonderful scones---
they have breakfast/lunch/tea room in back of bakery too
Top Crust or Upper Crust is name I think

[dcp528]

I haven't been there yet. You can call to see if they have what you are looking for.

Premier European Food
(941) 423-3775
13655 Tamiami Trl, North Port, FL 34287

[Rushmore]

Jim's Small Batch in Gulf Gate is marvelous. He is always doing something new, bread-wise and otherwise. While it is not definitively a "Euro style bakery," the guy was trained by Europeans and you can definitely tell.

Here's a little write up from Edible:

[CENTER]JIM’S SMALL BATCH BAKERY[/CENTER]
[CENTER][/CENTER]
[CENTER]WORDS BY MJ WEBER
PHOTOS BY CHAD SPENCER[/CENTER]
If his description on his Facebook page of the rising ciabatta—“soft, puffy clouds on couches, awaiting their turn in the fiery furnace… hot from the oven around noon”—doesn’t catch your attention, surely the taste of his bakery’s delicacies will.
Meet Jim Plocharsky, the artist behind one of Sarasota’s most talked about bakeries, cozily tucked in at the east end of Gulf Gate Village. “There is something magical about combining ingredients and coming up with a finished product,” owner Jim says passionately. When he was a child his parents let him experiment with items in the pantry and whip up late-night desserts upon request for his three older siblings. Pressured as a high school freshman to declare a vocation, his friend strongly suggested he write “cooking.” Jim explains how it became a self-fulfilling prophecy as he later graduated from culinary school at Johnson & Wales.
Asked how he relocated to Sarasota, his answer is simple: “I came down in 1986 for 30 days… and never left.”
With the sweet smells sneaking out to the sidewalk and luring patrons in, it’s anyone’s guess what temptations might lurk within the glass case and how quickly they will disappear. “Variety is my specialty and always from scratch,” Jim states emphatically.
Chat with the regulars who zip in to grab their favorite lemon bar or maple-crusted bacon croissant, then linger a bit to see what new concoction Jim has created. “The homemade bagels, fresh from the oven, are amazing!” testifies Brooklyn resident Annie Bernstein, who always stops in when she’s in town. This artisan baker makes just enough of what he will sell in one day and knows his customers well, adding, “Good ingredients with honorable technique results in a superior product.”
As he tosses the miniature star pasta into his delicious Italian wedding soup, Jim rattles off his array of experience, which includes working under the supervision of pastry chefs at the Don CeSar on St. Pete Beach, working at a few Disney hotels, and—most fondly—his nine years as pastry chef at Michael’s on East. Referring to himself as “the hardest-working chef I know,” Jim calls his success “a culmination of 27 years of cooking, baking, sweating, and making companies and bosses that I work for look good.”
And despite a down economy and everyone telling him he was crazy, Jim’s Small Batch Bakery was born out of courage and hard work in January of 2011.
Claiming to be a proud American chef trained by Europeans, Jim prides himself in not cutting any corners: no mixes, no preservatives, and no frozen croissants. Not too sweet, reasonable portion sizes, and astounding variety set Jim’s Small Batch Bakery apart.
“You can taste each ingredient in my items,” he boasts. Stop in any morning and see Jim’s floured hands meticulously mixing, shaping, sculpting, and baking. Pick up the bread schedule: Get your sourdough made with local, wild yeast on Tuesday and your challah on Friday. Peer at Sarasota’s most talked about flakey, crispy, buttery almond croissants or perhaps dine on a delicate coconut macaroon while waiting for your ciabatta to be pulled fresh from the oven. Stop in for lunch and check out their unique specials, which include fresh fruit sorbet, spinach and mushroom quiche, smoked salmon on a potato-chive “bungel,” and wholesome soups.
“Let the food do the talking,” Jim says, attributing his success to word of mouth and operating within his means. “Just taste it and you’ll see what I’m talking about!”
Jim’s Small Batch Bakery: 2336 Gulf Gate Dr, Sarasota; 941-922-2253

[beninfl]

John Dough Bakery & Cafe - Great Breads Baked to Perfection by John Dough!

@ I-75 & University

[gypsychic]

If you like French, I recommend C'est La Vie on Main St. in Sarasota.

[Supplies]

When making your own home made bread, put a pan of water on the bottom oven shelf, bread will come out nice and crisp ...a tip from Paul Hollywoods cook book.

[Obrero]

Originally Posted by beninfl

John Dough Bakery & Cafe - Great Breads Baked to Perfection by John Dough!

@ I-75 & University

I thought this placed sucked!

You can add my vote for Jim's small batch though - that place is responsible for at least 5 extra lbs of mine.

[beninfl]

Originally Posted by Obrero

I thought this placed sucked!

You can add my vote for Jim's small batch though - that place is responsible for at least 5 extra lbs of mine.

What was turned you away from them?

[Obrero]

Originally Posted by beninfl

What was turned you away from them?

The best way I can describe it was that it was blah. Boring, bland soup and french bread that could have come from Panera. Not an artisan bakery and not worth a return visit imho. Oh and while I'm complaining - let me give a little shout out to the sullen 18 year old working the register. A real delight.