Alyssa and Teddy Applebaum
Elmendorf Baking Supplies | Cambridge, MA
JULY 2024
After graduating from journalism school during the recession, Alyssa and Teddy Applebaum found a way forward in the world of hospitality. Starting out at Formaggio Kitchen, Teddy worked in the back of house, learning to respect ingredients and cook with intention from Chef Eduardo Miranda, while Alyssa managed the front of house before becoming an assistant baker under veteran Head Baker Alice Southcote. While working at the shop, Alyssa and Teddy had their first introduction to the impressive range of quality grains when they were developing a new cornbread recipe for Formaggio Kitchen’s weekly barbecue pop-up. Meeting with farmers and sampling their cornmeal and grain inspired the couple to start their own Liège waffle pop-up out of the shop, before moving it to the The Somerville Flea Market in Davis Square for the next two years.
In 2015, Alyssa and Teddy got married and moved to Provincetown, Massachusetts. Alyssa sharpened her baking skills at Happy Camper, developing their doughnut recipe, and Teddy joined the team at The Canteen as a prep cook, but that’s when they started to think about opening a place of their own. After a trip down south, they returned to Boston, where Alyssa learned bread baking at Clear Flour Bread and Teddy became junior sous chef at Oleana under Rising Stars alum Cara Chigazola Tobin.
Ready to start their business, Alyssa and Teddy found a space in Teddy’s hometown of Cambridge and opened Elmendorf Baking Supplies in 2018. Originally focused on retail, the couple slowly built out the bakery side of the business, amassing better equipment, expanding the staff, and using their culinary backgrounds to make mouthwatering baked goods and sandwiches. The couple has also kept a focus on the quality of the grains, establishing an in-house milling program and incorporating their flour into over 90 percent of items on the menu. With hopes for expansion in the next few years, Alyssa and Teddy are using their shop to showcase grains, support and work with local farmers, and provide comforting treats to their community.
