It sounds to me like your pal is stuck in some long-ago decade. And I mean long-ago. Back in the late seventies when I worked in SoHo, the restaurant served very good whole-grain bread for the table, but most of the people didn't eat it or even want it, and we had to throw it out. Eventually the owners decided to charge all of 50 cents for a basket of bread. I do not recall more than a handful of people ever complaining or even remarking on the charge.
You are absolutely correct about the dismal state of sliced, supermarket bread in 2024. It's pretty awful aside from the fancy Bread Alone loaves. OK, and the odd Pepperidge Farm loaf here and there. Luckily there are traditional bakeries around, like Calandra's in the Jerz. Their breads are pretty great.
I love everything about this post. A plate of rosemary sourdough focaccia with cultured honey butter costs $10 at my husband's restaurant (L'Oca D'Oro in Austin). He has grown used to fielding complaints about the cost of bread, among other things. Knowing as much as I know now about how much care goes into the bread, I can't relate to the complainers. I sort of love that bread has become a delicacy in our gluten-anxious age. In our forties, my husband has had to give up gluten and I have had to give up alcohol. I feel like I got the better deal.
It sounds to me like your pal is stuck in some long-ago decade. And I mean long-ago. Back in the late seventies when I worked in SoHo, the restaurant served very good whole-grain bread for the table, but most of the people didn't eat it or even want it, and we had to throw it out. Eventually the owners decided to charge all of 50 cents for a basket of bread. I do not recall more than a handful of people ever complaining or even remarking on the charge.
You are absolutely correct about the dismal state of sliced, supermarket bread in 2024. It's pretty awful aside from the fancy Bread Alone loaves. OK, and the odd Pepperidge Farm loaf here and there. Luckily there are traditional bakeries around, like Calandra's in the Jerz. Their breads are pretty great.
I love everything about this post. A plate of rosemary sourdough focaccia with cultured honey butter costs $10 at my husband's restaurant (L'Oca D'Oro in Austin). He has grown used to fielding complaints about the cost of bread, among other things. Knowing as much as I know now about how much care goes into the bread, I can't relate to the complainers. I sort of love that bread has become a delicacy in our gluten-anxious age. In our forties, my husband has had to give up gluten and I have had to give up alcohol. I feel like I got the better deal.