The One With The Bread
How two couples took a concept from San Francisco to a brick-and-mortar in Portland, Maine
photos: raeann serra
“Bread is truly the sum of its parts,” says Baker Tanner Rubin. And so is Bread & Friends, an all-day cafe in Portland, Maine owned by Rubin, his wife and Operations Manager Maggie Rubin, and partners Jess Rattey and Rising Star Chef Jeremy Broucek.
In January 2020, Tanner was selling loaves of bread at a farmers market in San Francisco. Jump to April 2023, and he’s opening a full-blown brick-and-mortar; a multi-armed bakery and restaurant with a grain mill and wood-fired oven. You’d never know that the 3,000-square-foot operation was the first foray into restaurant ownership for the Friends, whose passion and expertise in food and hospitality are on full display the moment you walk through the door.
The two couples met while working in restaurants in San Francisco—Maggie and Jess at State Bird Provisions and Jeremy at its sister, The Progress. When the pandemic hit, they used the opportunity to join forces at Tanner’s farmers market stand, going on to expand into another stall selling breakfast brisket sandwiches under the name Practical Yolks. “That was really when we realized we liked working together,” says Tanner, “and we wanted to take this to the next level.”
With Tanner’s expertise in all things baked, influenced by his time at Backhaus Bread and Tartine, Jeremy’s savory focus honed as The Progress’ chef de cuisine, Jess’ precise-yet-whimsical approach to pastry, and Maggie’s multi-faceted front-of-house experience, the team could come together with a well-rounded approach to service.
Jeremy and Jess grew up in New England, so the group packed up and moved to Freeport, Maine, where they dove into research and development. A local bakery, Forage Market, agreed to let them rent prep space so they could start selling goods at farmers markets. “It gave us time to develop those relationships so that when we opened [our brick-and-mortar], we already had a list [of resources].”
“After working in restaurants for 17 plus years,”says Jeremy, “I wanted to feel prepared, but absolutely did not, but we figured it out as we went. If one of us had a gap in knowledge, someone else could fill it.”
Ricotta, Jamon Iberico, Peach Mostarda, Hazelnuts, Focaccia
Soft Scrambled Egg, Onion Jam, Toasted Brioche
They eventually secured a location in Portland,and in collaboration with an architect and a designer, they approached the buildout with a similar mindset: group effort and flexibility would be key. “We went in with the mentality of not limiting ourselves in terms of what we could put out,” says Maggie. “We tried to be intentional about sourcing the equipment so that it was built to lean on any department if one really popped off”—from the grain mill by baker-owned New American Mills that allows for constant, high-volume milling, to the custom wood-fired oven that could be used for breads, produce, and more. The team collaborated on the layout, leaning on their years of experience. “We had all worked in enough spaces that we were able to make conscious choices.”
Within just a few months of opening, those choices began to pay off. Initially, the menu was a simple evolution of the original concept: bread, pastries, and things that go with them, but in the form of composed dishes, like fresh ricotta with jamón ibérico,peach mostarda, hazelnuts, and focaccia, or soft scrambled eggs with onion jam and brioche. “We wanted to make sure there was synergy between departments, so it's cohesive and makes senseon the plate.” says Jeremy. Soon, they will add dinner service too. “The sky’s the limit for this place. We can open a wall into the bakery, so we can do private events around the bread table, stuff like that. This concept can be so many things.”
At the end of the day, while skill and experience are essential building blocks for Bread & Friends, the foundation was the trust and collaboration between friends. “The power of four motivated, invested brains can not be overstated,” says Tanner. “We wanted this so bad, and had to figure out how it was going to work for all of us. That's something you can't learn or find—we created it together.”
