by Maya Girimaji & Jennifer Zhan, section editor & senior editor
Tucked behind a corner on Texas Avenue, My Daily Bread Bakery might be easy to overlook. The locally-owned bakery is small, probably able to hold about 10 people at a time. Perhaps it’s not surprising, then, that the bakery’s atmosphere is one of cozy comfort. Upon entering, customers are greeted with upbeat Latin American music. The bakery doesn’t have that generic yeast smell that most bakeries have; it immediately feels unique. The room is full of eclectic decorations, including a xylophone, Batman posters, landscape paintings, motivational quotes, a purple window shutter, and in the back corner, shelves and shelves of video games. We were pleased to find that the staff was just as cheery as the ornamentation.
We ordered a blueberry pastry, a peaches and cream pastry, and the ‘world’s best cinnamon roll’. At other locations in town, pastries of this size could easily cost 8 or 9 dollars. At My Daily Bread, the price totaled just over $2. (Everything was very inexpensive; the highest priced item on the menu was $6.99, and nearly everything else was under $5.)
The only thing better than the cheap cost was the actual taste. The pastries were flaky without being dry, sweet without becoming too overwhelming. The cinnamon roll lived up to its name. The balance of tastes and texture is hard to achieve, but the bakers found the perfect combination of cinnamon and sugar, inner softness and outward crunch, and filling but not heavy. Like the pastries, it was fresh, warm, and worth every penny.
My Daily Bread also boasts a wide selection of drinks. The iced mocha and strawberry limeade were both better than Starbucks. While most places force you to awkwardly hang around at the front while you wait for your drink, the staff made the drinks in a very short amount of time (and didn’t pour the liquids out of mysterious containers or disappear into the back to mix up the concoction). The breakout star was hands-down the Mayan cocoa, and after chatting with an employee at the bakery, we discovered that it owed its rich natural taste to ingredients imported directly from Guatemala. We later discovered that many of My Daily Bread’s creations were of Guatemalan heritage. We couldn’t leave, of course, until we tried one of the many loaves of homemade bread that lay on the bakery’s shelves. It had a subtle, comforting flavor with a faint hint of some sort of spice. It was the perfect end to our visit.
Overall? My Daily Bread Bakery was fantastic. If you have a chance, stop by for a roll or a drink. It’s a small place, and you might have to take a few extra turns to get there, but it won’t take much of your time or money.The staff is friendly and efficient, the atmosphere is relaxing, and the food is fantastic. We couldn’t ask for anything more.
