There is nothing cutesy or phony about Tartine Bakery. The bakers are all about the food. The tables are long wooden and rustic, made for sharing with people you don’t know, and they are covered with flakey relics of someone else’s pastry. Tartine is not finicky about making its baked goods look like pieces of artsy perfection. It is food. It looks like something you want to eat, not display in a museum. I’ve also never been to a bakery with a constant line out the door.
It was difficult only ordering one thing, especially while peering through the display case while standing in line, but I was there for their morning bun, #7 on the bucket list.
The top of my bun was brushed with orange infused simple syrup, which made it just slightly gooey, chewy and sweet citrusy, then sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. The dough was curled into a spiral. When I pulled back the layers of the flaky crust, my bun exposed the most heavenly, warm inside, as soft and light as a feather pillow, every unwrapping revealing a steamy, velvety surprise, until sadly, my bun had vanished.
Although my morning bun is gone, Tartine Bakery is still there. I am just lucky enough that my list of 100 forces me to return to 600 Guerrero Street for #24 on the list, a loaf of bread straight out of Tartine’s oven. To be continued…
