BreadsnBakes Tempts With European-Style Treats in Pound Ridge

Restaurants

BreadsnBakes Tempts With European-Style Treats in Pound Ridge

Adobe Stock

Adobe Stock | rangizzz

A hobbyist baker has turned his calling for all things flour and sugar into a successful business in Westchester County.

Taking a passion he discovered as a teen in the U.K., when he worked part-time at a bakery, Jason Bowman and his wife, Dawn, have made Pound Ridge’s BreadsnBakes a must-experience destination.

Baking had been a hobby of Bowman’s, but in 2018 he left his full-time job and opened a consulting company, which gave him the time to explore that hobby in greater depth. He opened a home bakery in January of 2020, and it proved to be one of the businesses that flourished during the early days of the pandemic. “Customers ordered online and picked up outside of Booksy Galore,” the town’s bookstore, says Bowman. In mid-2021, the couple began looking for space in town, with BreadsnBakes launching this summer in Scotts Corners, a hamlet that serves as Pound Ridge’s business district. The bakery’s vibe is inviting and packs a lot of product and hospitality into its 2,000-square-foot space. There’s comfortable window seating and a number of tables. The counter entices you as you walk down the bakery aisle, surveying all the wares.

Courtesy of Breadsnbakes

Bowman describes the bakery goods he carries as “primarily European style.” Croissants of all kinds are bestsellers here, but there is a plethora of other choices, ranging from shortbread cookies to meringues and seasonal pies. There’s a limited selection of breads and focaccia, and a couple of sandwiches are available. For the holidays, Bowman’s popular premade gingerbread houses and kits are front and center. Customers can also look for such items as Yule logs, mince pies, and panettone bread.

In keeping with the European-style bakeries, coffee is also a big part of BreadsnBakes. “We wanted customers to come in and enjoy a great coffee and a great pastry,” Bowman says. And Dawn notes that with the increased retail businesses in Pound Ridge, they’re finding that BreadsnBakes has become “a community space for both people in and out of town.”