On this week's fifth-anniversary episode of "What's Eric Eating," Bread Man Baking Co. owner Tasos Katsaounis and director of operations Drew Gimma join CultureMap food editor Eric Sandler to discuss the latest developments at the rapidly growing artisan bakery. Bread Man recently moved into 40,000-square-foot facility that's 10 times larger than its former home.
At maximum capacity, the old facility could produce about 5,000 pieces of bread per day. With more space and $2 million in new equipment, Bread Man can now produce between 30,000 and 35,000 pieces per day. Sandler asks Gimma about how the bakery maintains its quality with the increased capacity.
"The main thing in terms of this scale is simply time. I don't think you need hands touching bread. The equipment can shape bread better than I can," he says. "We don't skimp out on pre-ferments . . . that add a lot of flavor and strength to the bread. We invested in much better ovens . . . We will never try to take a sourdough and try to make it in two hours. That's where the quality of our bread has been maintained."
Prior to the interview, Sandler and co-host Linda Salinas discuss the news of the week. Their topics include: Uchi's plans to open a new, omakase counter as part of its Montrose restaurant; Chris Shepherd's decision to rebrand his downtown restaurant as GJ Tavern; and Dallas nightclub Citizen opening a Houston location on Washington Avenue.
In the restaurants of the week segment, Salinas and Sandler describe their meal at Reikina. The tasting menu concept recently relocated from CityCentre to a home in Montrose. They also share first impressions of The Warwick, the new restaurant that recently opened in the former Houston's space on Westheimer.
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Bread Man founder Tasos Katsaounis.
