theultimatebakeoff-brianna

[theultimatebakeoff-brianna]

A Look Behind the Pastry Case

Courtney Dougan’s Experience as an Employee at Quebrada Baking Company in Arlington, MA

Courtney Dougan is a hometown friend that I grew up with, and she also happens to be a student at Endicott College like myself. Right now she is an Elementary Education major, and throughout high school, Courtney was a member of the cheer team and the gymnastics team. Right after the height of Covid, Courtney got a job at Quebrada Baking Company in Arlington with the help of her cheerleading teammate Faith. While Courtney is still at college, she tends to go home and work at the bakery during school vacations and holiday weekends. 

 Quebrada has bakery locations in Arlington, Belmont, Watertown, and Wellesley Massachusetts. The Mass Ave bakery has a delicious array of cakes, cupcakes, cookies, breakfast sandwiches, and more. They also serve a selection of coffee and tea drinks. Quebrada tends to be busiest in the early mornings. Local customers keep coming back for special breakfast items and a caffeine fix. The prices for items like cupcakes and pastries range from $2 to $6. A breakfast sandwich is around $8. At the lowest price, the classic cookie flavors are $1.87 each. Customers can order cakes and cupcakes in one of Quebrada’s signature flavors, or customize a cake based on their own preferences. Quebrada Baking Co. takes pride in its community involvement initiatives to support the local community of each bakery location. In this interview, Courtney provides an insider perspective of what it is like as a young employee at a bakery. She highlights both the positive and negative aspects that come with the job. 

Q: How long have you worked at Quebrada Baking Co. and what is your position there?

A: I started at Quebrada the summer going into junior year of high school. It was right after Covid. Faith Griffin, somebody that I used to cheer with got me the job. I worked behind the counter as a cashier and food server. I still work at the bakery on breaks and weekends when I’m not at Endicott College. 

Q: What was it like when you first started working there?

A: It was very busy because I got trained in the mornings. So you have to deal with the morning rush. But once you can do the morning, the afternoon is quiet so it gets super easy.

Q: What were the main things you did on the job?

A: We took customers' orders and got them out of the case, then rang the customers up. We also made the coffee that people ordered and had to make backup coffee for the day. We decorated cakes but a lot of the baking was done at the headquarters of Quebrada. And of course, we had to clean up.

Q: Did you ever get to bake anything?

A: Yeah, we did bake cookies. We got to decorate a lot of the cakes there. We also baked the croissants for all of the breakfast sandwiches. We also baked the scones and muffins, but the actual cupcakes and cakes were baked at the headquarters.

Q: What are the customers like at Quebrada?

A: They were all very nice and a lot of them were locals. Many of them came in every single day. We definitely got to know them. I see a lot of people that I know come to Quebrada. I see so many people. So many people will come in and tell me “I know your mom!”, and I have seen some teachers. I saw a teacher from middle school the other day and she was picking something up for Easter. 

Q: Do you have any stories about bad customers?

A: We did have a few bad customers, even some over break this year. There was one lady who was refusing to pay until a Black customer left the store. I was astonished. I was like “Can you repeat that for me?” I told her that somebody else was gonna ring her up and that there was a line behind her, but I told her I was not waiting on her. I was so caught off guard to hear that at Quebrada. 

Q: Do you have any more interesting stories from working at Quebrada?

A: I have lots of crazy stories. The old manager that I worked with for about 2 weeks got fired for acting inappropriately toward some of the employees. I also don’t really like one of my managers. But I actually trained her and I have worked at the bakery longer than her. So yeah I do have many interesting stories to tell from the job. 

Q: Do you get free food or drinks while working at the bakery?

A: Oh yeah. I get free food and drinks whenever I want so I don’t have to pay for anything. That is one of the benefits of working at a bakery. 

Q: What are some of your favorite things to eat or drink at the bakery?

A: I love the sausage egg and cheese. I also love the parmesan scallion scones. I also like to make my own coffee there. But yeah nobody else has parmesan scallion scones, so I loved to get them at Quebrada.

Q: Did the bakery connect with the community in any way?

A: Quebrada does a lot of community involvement. Each month there is a charity item and all of the profits go to a certain charity that we choose. One time it was for a women’s shelter, sometimes it is certain things for education. Some are donations for cancer. They did our Last Blast cookies, which was an event for seniors in the Class of 2022 that just graduated from Arlington High School. They donated all of the cookies for that. I did cheer raffles with them. People would ask if we could donate a gift card for things like raffles, and we would always donate the gift card for that. We would sometimes give a flier for a free cake, which could also be raffled off. So they did a lot of community involvement and donations which was great. 

Q: Have you faced any challenges while working at the bakery?

A: Not really. It was mostly just having to deal with people being annoying. Nothing has ever been a long-term issue or a long-term challenge. It's just easy to get fed up with things that come with food service while I am working there. 

Q: What is your favorite thing about working at Quebrada?

A: I liked a lot of the people I worked with. It was just a really easy job for me. There were also many benefits that came with it. 

Q: What was it like working with your coworkers, were you friends with any of them?

A: When I started working at Quebrada I knew Faith, who got me the job. Two other girls that I had also cheered with worked at the bakery. There were also two other seniors from Arlington High School that I sort of knew. Later on, a few of my friends got a job at the bakery and a girl from another town did too, so we were all friends at the job. We were all around the same age, so we were all good friends. 

Q: Do you recommend working at Quebrada?

A: Yes I do recommend working there. I have gotten many people jobs at the bakery. I got a friend a job there. I always tell my cousins that they should work at Quebrada. But it is an easy job. It was also really nice because it was close to home, right in Arlington. I could leave 10 minutes before my shift started. 

Q: What have you learned from working at a bakery?

A: I learned how to deal with people and also work with them. I learned how to be nice to random people that were not very nice to me. I learned customer service skills. I learned all about coffee and espresso. I also got to learn about baking.

[theultimatebakeoff-brianna]

"Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life" holds true for pastry chef and Vinal Bakery owner, Sarah Murphy

Sarah Murphy is the perfect example of the success that can come from doing what you love. Her love for baking began at her home in New Hampshire. Growing up, Murphy spent days in the kitchen with the bakers in her family. Some recipes at Vinal are inspired by recipes from Murphy’s aunt and grandma. After getting a degree in print journalism, Murphy spent time in an editorial position at Harvard College. During a summer off she started realizing her personality traits and thought about hobbies that could become a career. After spending years in an office job, she took a leap of faith and made baking her full-time career. From all her practice, Murphy managed to skip culinary school and go straight to the kitchens of notable bakeries in the Greater Boston area. Murphy followed her passion and turned her dream into reality through years of hard work and experience.

A year before Covid struck and turned the world upside down, Murphy opened Vinal Bakery in Union Square in Somerville, MA in 2019. The bakery is in a busy area across the street from a fire and police station. The perfect location brings in an array of customers. The homemade English muffin breakfast sandwiches attract customers on the go. Murphy is proud of Vinal Bakery’s success along with her wonderful staff members that keep the business going. In addition to the bakery, Murphy owns Vinal General Store conveniently located next door to the bakery. Following her passion has truly paid off. The handmade food and customer service keep people coming back. In this interview, Sarah Murphy gives an insider perspective on what it is like to open and run a bakery. She gives the fascinating story of the big career change that started it all. 

Q: Can you give some background of what you did before you worked in bakeries?

A: I studied print journalism at the University of New Hampshire. I left, and I had a few different jobs but I came down to Somerville. I was working at Harvard in an administrative job at the college, which was kind of journalism adjacent with some editorial stuff. I wasn’t very good at sitting all day and I liked to be busy.

Q: What inspired you to enter the baking industry since you majored in print journalism?

A: So I always baked, and my grandma was a big baker. I had started baking a little bit more in college, so it was always a hobby for me. So I thought that maybe that might be an area I’d like to pursue. It was something that clearly was active and I could use creative skills, and I could use my hands. I was thinking about culinary school but I also knew just from reading different things that sometimes culinary school isn’t really preparing you. I didn’t really want to invest the money in culinary school while not really being sure. 

Q: How did you learn how to become a professional baker without culinary school?

A: It was 2007 at this point. I was like, “I am going to force myself to bake more regularly at home and hold myself accountable.” And I created a blog. The blog helped me use my editorial and design skills so I was like “Okay this will be good.” I was like, “I'm gonna do things like three times a week by subject.” So it would force me to expand my baking skills a little bit and I could see if I would continue to enjoy it. Cause I also knew from reading different things and from talking to people that often people going from hobby baking into professional baking is very different. It's very different to be like “I like to bake cookies at night” versus “I like to wake up every day and do this for 8 hours a day”. I was like “let's see if I commit.” I very much did still enjoy it. 

Q: What made you decide to take the jump and leave your old job for baking?

A: In 2008 the recession hit, so there was a financial crisis and I got lucky in the sense that my office at Harvard decided to furlough the staff for the summer rather than lay off anyone. Basically, everyone took a little hit instead of someone losing their job. That kind of gave me about 8 or 9 weeks to be like “Okay this is my opportunity essentially risk-free, let me see if I could go find a baking job that I could do.” I had my job to come back to at Harvavrd so if it was a disaster, that was okay I had a safety net. So I got a job at Morning Glory Farm in Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard for the summer.

Q: What are some of the bakeries you worked at before opening Vinal Bakery?

A:  I worked at Flour Bakery for about 7 years so I got a lot of experience there both in front of the house and in the kitchen. Then I was overseeing their pastry production kitchen when I left. Then I left, and I worked at a few other places because I needed to get experience in different kitchens. So I worked at Sarma Restaurant as a pastry assistant, I worked at Bagelsaurus for a long time, and I worked at 3 Little Figs.

Q: How did you decide to go independent and start your own bakery?

A: I think the biggest thing for me is what I really like, and I think that some business owners don’t like, is that I like doing a little bit of everything. I do our bookkeeping, I like managing our staff. I think it’s just my nature. I'm a little bit of a busybody so I like doing that but I also like keeping things really interesting. That I'm not just doing one thing, and I like the challenge of it. I had always gotten into that being my end goal and here we are. 

Q: What do you like most about baking?

A: I like the predictability of baking and doing the same thing every day. I think when we hire new bakers that's the thing we talk about a lot. The difference between culinary school and baking at home is that you do the same thing every day.

Q: How did you choose the location of Vinal Bakery?

A: Location was definitely the hardest. I knew from living in Somerville the whole time that ideally, I wanted to be in Cambridge or Somerville if I could find it. And I just feel like I got very lucky that I found an old pizza place that was selling in Union Square, which is my neighborhood anyways. And it worked out. I feel very fortunate.

Q: What are some things you do to attract customers?

A: We try to stay somewhat active on social media. So specifically we have an Instagram just to keep engaged with people and show specials. But honestly other than that it’s just continuing to be consistent both with service and good quality so that word of mouth continues. That has worked for us so that we find new guests all the time. And more importantly, the same guests keep coming back which is what really helps us stay successful. 

Q: What is something that makes Vinal Bakery different from the rest?

A: Our homemade English muffins. I think our product. You know, you see bagel shops around a lot but you don't see English muffin shops. I think by building that culture and community I hope resonates in our service. I am always very proud that a lot of our reviews mention both that they love the food and that the service was great. Which always makes me very proud. 

Q: What are some of the biggest challenges you have faced while running the business?

A: I guess the big obvious one would be the pandemic. Lots of different challenges. I think in some ways there are a lot of silver linings as a small business in the pandemic. We changed a lot of things. We are much more efficient, we changed our hours, and we moved to online ordering. So I think from a business standpoint there are definitely lots of things that have been “wins” out of the pandemic. But I would say not just the actual pandemic but all of the economic, supply chain, and labor challenges that have come from that does make it a very challenging time to be an independent small business owner. 

Q: How did you navigate the challenges of the pandemic after recently opening?

A: The thing I’m very appreciative of is that we had only been open 11 months when the March lockdown began, so I was still very much in the early new business pivot mode. Versus other people I know if they were much more established that had been doing the same thing I had been doing and working, I think it was more challenging to pivot. But I was still kind of in that “oh its our first year and we’re changing things up to see what the community wants.” So I think that helped me and my mindset to navigate pivoting during the pandemic. 

Q: What is something you have learned from running a bakery?

A: I weirdly know more about that stuff than I thought I ever would, like how to clean a condenser. I'm pretty good at that. You know, I never could’ve gotten that at Harvard. That’s one of the things where I'm like, maybe when I'm older and not running a bakery I’ll be like “That knowledge was weirdly helpful.” And I find it very interesting. I think it’s kind of the same way I like running a business as I like to know about a lot of things, so it's just “add it to the tool kit.”

[theultimatebakeoff-brianna]

Fresh, handmade pastries at Butternut Bakehouse are worth the wait

As you walk along Mass Ave in Arlington to the small storefront of Butternut Bakehouse, you will most likely be greeted by a line of people outside almost every time. Since opening in 2019 it has quickly become a popular staple for community members and visitors from surrounding towns. The simple yet rustic pastries are hard to beat. The bakery has a daily rotation of pastries that includes specialty items alongside the regular menu.

Butternut Bakehouse is a short walk from Arlington High School, inviting students like myself to stop for a quick snack during free periods during the school day. Most of my money was spent at Butternut Bakehouse throughout my high school years since it was conveniently located 2 minutes away. The bakery is in Arlington center where various restaurants and businesses are located. There is truly something for everyone at this bakery, including gluten-free and vegetarian options. 

One of the most popular items that I keep going back for is the morning bun. The morning bun is full of soft buttery layers and blanketed in sugar. The best part is the bottom of the morning bun. A candy-like caramelized bottom is perfect for someone with a sweet tooth. The best way to describe a morning bun is that it is like a croissant combined with a cinnamon roll, covered in sugar. Flavors of cinnamon and orange zest compliment the sweet and buttery flavor. Make sure to visit early, since the morning buns will most likely be sold out by the afternoon. 

The menu has French classics like pain au chocolat and classics with a twist like an everything croissant. The pain au chocolat is delicious. There is a perfect amount of chocolate inside the croissant. It has double chocolate batons, so it does not disappoint. 

The souffle egg sandwich or “the breakfast sandwich” is $6 and consists of an herbed souffle egg with cheese and paprika butter, sitting on housemade bread. I can say with confidence that this is the best breakfast sandwich I have ever tasted. The souffle egg is fluffy and filled with caramelized onions and herbs. The paprika butter is a sweet and savory mix with sundried tomatoes, honey, paprika, and of course butter. The bread is usually a soft focaccia bread, but sometimes the bread changes. The sandwich melts in your mouth. The flavor of the caramelized onion, sundried tomatoes, and cheese are the most prominent. The breakfast sandwich was the first thing I tried at Butternut Bakehouse when they first opened in 2019. This sandwich is what keeps me coming back anytime I get the chance to visit. It is nothing like any basic breakfast sandwich I have eaten before. They managed to elevate a breakfast sandwich to a whole new level. 

The skills of the talented bakers at Butternut are evident in everything they have. In addition to fresh pastries, they also sell a small variety of cakes that can be enjoyed by the slice for $6, or you can buy a whole cake. Custom cake orders are also an option, but the main flavors for sale are devil's food cake, carrot walnut, seasonal chiffon cake, and a chocolate espresso torte.

In addition to the food, Butternut has great options for coffee and tea. I have tried the iced mocha latte, salted caramel latte, and Vietnamese iced coffee. The Vietnamese iced coffee is smooth, delicious, and also very strong. The syrups are made in-house so they are unlike the artificial syrups used at coffee chains. Some of the syrups that can be added to any drink are chocolate, salted caramel, vanilla, and peppermint. One thing to note is that flavors like chocolate and caramel are too thick to mix into the drink, so they sit at the bottom but still taste great. There is also a rotation of teas that are a perfect refreshment during the spring and summer. Some of the current tea flavors are jasmine lychee, ginger lemon, and pea flower blossom tea. An iced mocha latte is $4.50, but the largest size is 16 oz. so it is not the best for someone looking for a large coffee. The iced mocha latte is rich and smooth, and the chocolate ganache is sweet but not overpowering. I can taste the flavors of both the espresso and the chocolate in the iced mocha latte, so it is nicely balanced. 

Butternut has minimal seating, which has been closed off for a while because of Covid restrictions in place. There are a few window seats and three small tables that can fit about 2 people each. Customers visit on the go to purchase fresh baked goods to take to a special destination. Overall the space is slightly claustrophobic, but I prefer grabbing a pastry or sandwich to go. 

Although the space is small, it is warm and inviting. The large windows allow plenty of natural sunlight to shine upon the pastry case. The interior and atmosphere are simple yet aesthetically pleasing. White walls and house plants allow the pastries behind the glass to stand out. The pastries had small paper signs with handwritten names and prices. Wood and brick accents compliment the rustic feel of the bakery. The behind-the-scenes of the bakery happens right in front of you while waiting. Workers can be seen rolling out croissant dough and icing cakes behind the front counter. I like that I can see the food being handmade in front of me as I order. 

One of the only downsides is the pricing, which is similar to almost any cafe or independent bakery in the area. The price of a morning bun or croissant is almost $5, which adds up when you want to buy everything on the menu. Most of the pastries range from $3 to $6, but I think for the price, it is still worth visiting for a treat once in a while. Another downside (that is a result of the popularity) is the line and wait time. Since the space is so small, there is almost always a line out the door. The bakery is always filled with busy workers baking behind the counter, and there are a lot of orders to complete at once. 

Out of the many times I have visited Butternut, the wait time to receive my order is a little long, but that is expected. The workers are always very nice and try to complete orders as fast as possible. Occasionally I have found myself waiting 5 minutes just to be handed a croissant. The bakery is almost always busy especially during the morning and before holidays. The best time to visit is probably later in the morning on weekdays. If you go right before closing, many of the most popular items are sold out by then. The bakery is busiest in the early morning before customers go to work, and also on weekend mornings. 

Overall I think Butternut Bakehouse is unique and has a special variety of food and drinks that are unlike other bakeries. I think there is something for everyone to enjoy from the bakery. If you ever find yourself in Arlington, visiting Butternut Bakehouse is a must. Whenever I am at home I will continue to visit and try new things because it is that good.  

[theultimatebakeoff-brianna]

Homemade English muffins are "the star of the show" at Vinal Bakery

Vinal Bakery is not your typical bakery. Located on 222 Somerville Ave, Somerville, MA, Vinal Bakery has become a staple for community members and young professionals on the go. The small New England bakery specializes in six flavors of homemade English muffins. “We also have a sandwich menu and everything comes on an English muffin, so that is kind of the star of the show,” says owner and pastry chef Sarah Murphy. 

After learning from the bakers in her family while growing up in New Hampshire, Murphy took a risk-free opportunity to pursue baking as her full-time career when the 2008 Recession hit. “I realized I wasn’t cut out for desk work,” Murphy explained. She skipped culinary school and went straight to the kitchen, working at places like Flour Bakery and Morning Glory Farm in Martha’s Vineyard. Owning her own bakery was always Murphy’s end goal. Vinal Bakery opened in April 2019 after an old pizza place was selling in Murphy’s own neighborhood. “I think there’s a little bit of an entrepreneurial gene in the family,” Murphy jokingly noted. She credits some inspiration for opening the bakery to her dad who was also a business owner. Murphy also took the lucky opportunity to open Vinal General Store in 2022, after the space next door opened up. Vinal General Store is an old-school New England general store serving sandwiches, beer and wine, and even soft-serve ice cream. 

The small bakery invites customers inside with the scent of freshly baked English muffins and what Murphy describes as “rustic New England pastries.” The soft green walls and aroma of coffee greets you as you walk through the door. Staff members can be seen preparing fresh bakery items and sandwiches behind the glass. Simple but delicious pastries like banana bread or a chocolate espresso cake inspired by a recipe from Murphy’s grandmother can be paired perfectly with a breakfast sandwich or coffee. One of the most popular items on the menu is the “Miss Maple”. The sandwich features an over-medium egg with cheddar cheese and a sweet touch of maple butter, all on top of a fresh English muffin. The homemade English muffin is soft with a nice crust, and it easily beats any store-bought English muffin. The sweet and savory combination creates the perfect bite that can be enjoyed inside the bakery or on the way to work. In addition to a tasty variety of food, Vinal Bakery has a range of coffee, tea, and espresso drinks to enjoy. The mocha latte features smooth espresso with your choice of milk and dark Valrhona chocolate ganache. The drinks can be enjoyed hot or cold, and they are the perfect start to your day.

“I like that our menu is all made from scratch and really thoughtful in terms of the ingredients we put in, but it’s a very accessible menu to people,” Murphy explained. “It’s not too elitist,” Murphy joked. The food and drinks are especially accessible along with the online ordering system and the small pickup window on the side of the bakery. The new head pastry chef works with Murphy to research and develop new pastries for the bakery. The Union Square community full of young professionals and families is the perfect location for Vinal Bakery. The bakery serves an array of families, construction workers, cops, and more. A warm breakfast sandwich and an iced latte are hard to pass up while working in the area. 

From bookkeeping to spending time in the kitchen, Murphy loves every part of it. “I think the personalities that do best as professional bakers are the ones who really like both the act of making things with your hands and also the predictability of the routine of the day,” says Murphy. Like herself, Murphy looks for the same traits when hiring new bakers. Leaving her desk job and following her passion for baking worked out in the best possible way for Murphy. Vinal Bakery has maintained its success, even while navigating the pandemic during its first year of business. Owning an independent bakery comes with many challenges, but it has taught Murphy leadership skills and unusual but useful skills. “You weirdly get a lot of knowledge that you wouldn’t otherwise get,” Murphy noted. Owning a bakery has helped Murphy learn how to troubleshoot and fix any challenges that come with the job. But that is exactly what she loves to do.

As Vinal Bakery is approaching its fourth birthday this April, Murphy and her staff continue to provide excellent service. “I think really fostering a community of caring, and respectful individuals, which I think shows in our service,” says Murphy on what makes Vinal Bakery different from the rest. Murphy focuses on maintaining a positive culture and community within the bakery. “I think just holding the team accountable to keep things very consistent so that when guests come they know they are gonna have the same type of experience they had the last time,” Murphy said. The outstanding reviews reflect the consistency of both the service and quality of Vinal Bakery. If you ever find yourself in Union Square of Somerville, MA, Vinal Bakery is certainly worth visiting.