Simply Bread

I love this place. It was worth the almost-​passed-​it-​so-​had-​to-​drive-​backwards-​on-​a-​major-​street fiasco.
Usually, my favorite cookie is of the chocolate chip variety, but at Simply Bread, the oatmeal cherry pecan rules.
Try the orange-​anise challah, or any of the challahs for that matter.
The Funky Monkey is usually great (sometimes has a slight plasticy taste from the bag).

Rocket Burger and Sub
have been talking up Simply Bread because they use them for the subs. Man that is some good CARBS. I love the sub rolls.

For many people, myself included, freshly baked bread represents one of the most simple and sublime treats.
For these people, myself included, the gold standard is Simply Bread.
Take home a loaf for yourself. You will soon be shouting profanities the next time you see a Wonderbread truck driving by. The stuff is good. Only complaint is that I wish they had a bigger selection.

We got a chance to sample at the farmers market and their chocolate baguette was yummy. During the Farm Sessions Chef Sean Currid also used their regular baguette to make those addictive pan made croutons. Holla.

Can you say Mondelbrot? How about Mondel Bread? Well in any case Simply Bread makes a pretty good version of this Jewish biscotti.
It has a slightly different texture and consistency than biscotti-​it yields slightly to the teeth rather than resisting until it snaps as biscotti will. Simply Bread’s version is sprinkled with a light sugary coating which I could do without but other than that it is nearly as perfect for dunking in your coffee as a good biscotti.
So far Simply Bread is the only place I have found mondelbrot in the valley.

My ass hurt, my water bottle was leaking, and I was starving and here came Jesus… an older man handing me chocolate chip baguette slices. «Here, dear, let me get you some more, sweetheart» Am I dead? Is this a willingly given to my sweaty hand free sample as I climbed the porch stairs towards Simply Bread, I felt as if I was being lured in to be shoved in an oven. Shove me in baby! I will gladly be cooked up if it means I can gorge myself on fresh bread in the oven. I can think of worst ways of going (ie Mullet stampede).
My friend insisted we stop here on the way to lunch. «Oh good, do they have coffee?» «No, it is just bread.» «WTF? Why not? Who hasn’t heard of a bakery that doesn’t serve coffee?» «It doesn’t matter. You will see» «No. I won’t. I want coffee with my bread. I hate this place already» And as I climbed off my bike, already over an hour of hardcore pedaling from Tempe registering itself in my low blood sugar, there he was. The grandpa I wish I had. As we stepped in, he offered more. «Here dear, have this yummy orange…» I don’t know what he said cause I just went for it. The world went away when I was eating that bread. I felt ravenous. MORE! «Cookie?» YES I will take that cookie! Cranberry, chocolate chips, oatmeal, almonds, YES YES YES. I think he was ready to offer more, but I ran to the back of the storefront to look at the selection. Mmmmm… doggie treats? Breadcrumbs, crispy bread treats, etc. Smart business to use up as much of product as possible.
But then it was time to choose. The vegan asked all the hard questions which the Baker (and the Grand Master Bake Master as everyone else has stated) answered all of them. She ended up w/​foccaccia, which we just nibbled on for the rest of our bike journey. I ended up with the potato garlic bread that had tons of other herbs in it, it was $ 6 and sliced for sandwiches for me and it smelled amazing. Everytime we went to a store or restaurant, people would ask me what smelled so good. Since I was sweaty and even Toms of Maine lavendar deodorant wasnt saving this lady, I knew it was the yummy bread.
As we left, I think Jesus/​Grandpa/​awesome guy who worked there wanted to stuff me more for fattening up to be tasty in their oven, but I resisted… well, not really, I bought a chocolate chip cookie. Yup, I did. And I ate it after lunch and it was RAAAAAD. Best choco-​chip cookie ever. That was 75 cents of raditude.
So all the haters talking about price, so get your Sara Lee, cause I am a slave to this place. And I am not even a carb monster.

I am all for paying for quality. But this place seems a little price-​y even for the deliciousness. $ 4 for a simple baguette, that had probably been sitting out much of the day, judging on its texture once consumed?
also, big minus points for closing at 5. what’s the point of staying open for the rest of the afternoon if you are going to close right when folks get off of work?
simply bread is definitely very delicious, and i love it when i end up at a restaurant that uses their loaves — but their storefront is definitely disappointing.

I like this place. I never know what to get and just end up staring at the counter for like ten minutes. My favorites are the Olive Bread, focaccia (best eaten heated), baggettes, and, yes, the pumpkin bread.
The negatives are obvious. It is expensive. Their hours are limited. And, the bread should REALLY be eaten that day.
Yes, this last point seems obvious. Shouldn’t any bread be eaten that day? But, sometimes you just wanna cheat and eat the bread the next day. That doesn’t really work for SB.

Braved rush hour Tuesday (my one-​way trip there took more than an hour!) to stock up on bread before the shop closes in observance of Passover, and left wondering why I even bothered at all– I even risked having a handyman wait for me while I fought traffic to rush home to meet with him. I was told by Ben that Funky Monkey came in two sizes (1– and 2-​lb. weight loaves), but only had the smaller loaf to purchase that afternoon. Also, the baker there was not as helpful, nor as understanding, with my allergen ingredient questions than Ben was. From now on, I will only visit if Ben is there to offer up a more amiable approach to customer service!
Today’s purchases:
1. Sweety Wheaty loaf ($ 6.99?, plus tax), sliced to order. I specified sliced to serving size (2 oz.), and I’m glad that the machine’s calibration was set so that the resulting slices were even thinner (more slices than specified serving size amount). Gotta find ways to cut down calories!
2. 1-​lb. Funky Monkey loaf ($ 4.99, plus tax) — I suppose the cute packaging is useful in gift-​giving, but I prefer the packaging treatment given to those loaves sold at Whole Foods– first wrapped in parchment paper and taped, then wrapped again in a beautiful and classy brown bag with store logo and nutritional info decals. Granted, those loaves I buy are of the 2-​lb. variety, which incidentally are currently marked up by at least $ 2 ($ 2.50, I think)! Definitely get these at SB. Of course, WF’ store hours are much more useful to those of us who cannot visit SB during its business hours (9a-​5p) Mondays to Fridays.
3. Tasty and gorgeous (esp. the pepper) focaccia «rolls,» ($ 0.77 each); non-​herbed and sun-​dried tomato. Both have great toothiness and surprisingly rich and complex favors, yet are a bit too salty, esp. the tomato. The non-​herbed, which touched the paper-​side of the bag they were both sheathed in, did leave a HUGE grease stain (the entire width and length of the roll), which indicated a hefty amount of butter and/​or oil was used in the recipe. I’m glad to see the grease stain on the paper bag, actually, as this showed that less of the grease made it into my digestive and cardiovascular systems! ;) The sun-​dried tomato roll was touching the plastic side of the bag, so I detected less grease stains emitted, but I’m pretty sure it was also fat-​laden, bec. it just tasted so buttery and simply utterly sinful! Oh my! I can’t wait to go back and get some more (but only when Ben is there to assist me!).

I find myself stopping by Simply Bread almost weekly for raisin/​walnut or cranberry/​walnut bread or multi grain and a variety pack of 12 rolls. The rolls are a nice smaller size, tasty and you never know what might be the the mix.
The cookies — chocolate chippers, sour cherry oatmeal, chocolate, chocolate chip, are about as good as any cookie could be. i have to put them in the trunk of my car or they would be eaten before i get home. They have cookie dough to buy as well.
Simply Bread also slices up their bread, very thin cracker like and toasts them. These make for great bruschetta, dipping, cheese plates etc.
I find the staff nice, friendly and helpful.

You get what you pay for, and at Simply Bread, it’s worth the price. I recommend the challah and the fabulous macaroons. I bought a macaroon on a whim one morning after hiking at South Mountain and almost turned the car around to buy 100 more when I bit into it on the way home.
My only saving grace (for my wallet and my waist) is that I’m always at work during their business hours.

baker jeff and his team are true artisanal bakers. ooh la la bread, challah, olive bread, you name it they’ve got it. the little retail store is great to stop by but has limited hours. the selection is more varied (vs selection at aj’s and whole foods) and often have something cooking and ready to come out of the oven. the bread will cost you an arm and a leg but it’s worth the splurge

I don’t know how many leather-​bound books he has or whether or not his apartment smells of rich mahogany, but head baker Jeff Yankellow is kind of a big deal. In 2005, he was part of a team that won the Coupe du Monde, so he’s literally been a world champion at baking.
You’d think with that kind of cache, you’d find him working at some ridiculously upscale restaurant or in an overly pretentious bakery in the middle of an overly pretentious area. Nope. The Simply Bread bakery is a non-​descript warehouse with a small house in front to serve as the shop located on 24^th St north of McDowell.
But, trust me, if this is out of the way for you, make the trip. Jeff and his staff make some of the most ridiculously good baked things you will ever have. The baguette is his specialty, but the bakery also served dozens of varieties of bread, jams, jellies, cookies, rolls, etc… Even just the standard white bread you’d make your PB& J on is awesome. I overbought the last time I went in and spent the next 3 days finding things to do with bread, because I’d run out of freezer space.
I can’t deduct a star for it being pricey. You get what you pay for, and at this place you get the best possible ingredients prepared by those who are actually passionate about making bread. This is one of the true hidden gems of Phoenix.

I’ve been a fan of Simply Bread for awhile, (Drip Coffee Lounge serves their bread). I had yet to stop in to the bread bar because they carry the same hours I do (9 – 5 M-​F).
I can tell you it was well worth it. Very friendly and happy to give samples.
I bought a loaf of «The Don» and the chocolate chip cookies, perfect!

The Bread Bar on 24^th St. is a cute place to stop by and check out. Very friendly lady working behind the counter who offered me samples of just about everything they had, when I asked for a drinking fountain she said «let me get you a bottle of water», very nice. The store also has cookies, rolls, jams/​jellies, lavosh, and even doggie treats.
I bought a loaf of the rustic olive loaf. Hard and crunchy on the outside and just perfect on the inside.
It’s a little pricey so I’ll come back here probably just for special occasions, but I will be back!

When we read that the head baker at Simply Bread was part of the USA team that upset the European favorites and won the Coupe de Monde de la Boulangerie in 2005, we had to check it out. You can get Simply Bread at AJ’s and fine restaurants like Binkley’s but we wanted to get right to the source.
They happened to be doing a promotion on mini rolls which was just perfect for us, given how indecisive we tend to be when presented with such variety. We got:
— Walnut raisin: my favorite when done right and it was here — complex flavor from the long fermented dough, filled with thoughtfully sourced walnuts and raisins
— Black bean and corn: savory and nice crunchy texture from the cornmeal on top — good enough to eat on its own
— Sundried tomato: tasty and tangy
— Challah twist: pillowy soft with a hint of sweetness
Ah Simply Bread… simply delicious…