Mercado on Kent Gets a New Bakery, Continuing the Trend of Restaurant Bread Selling

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Less than a month after opening, Williamsburg restaurant Mercado on Kent (291 Kent Avenue, 718-782-8810) is getting a new chef, Eater reports. But that's not the only change afoot. They'll also be launching a retail bakery by Friday, which will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., selling bread plus charcuterie and olive oil. While the market-restaurant hybrid isn't anything new, this marks the growing trend of New York City eateries launching bakery businesses.

Just last month, Sfoglia launched a bakery business, selling its sourdough, olive oil, and sea-salted bread for $8.50 (not cheap, but they are large loaves). That bread's available on Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. until shelves are clear, or can be reserved ahead of time by calling or emailing bread@sfogliarestaurant.com.

Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria, the new offshoot of Noho's Il Buco, also sells a huge assortment of freshly baked loaves of bread, including filone, lentil, fig and hazelnut, ciabatta, country wheat, cereal, and walnut-raisin, all in the $7-to-$9 range. What's more, they recently debuted house-cured meats for sale, including salame Toscano, finocchiona, capocollo, lonza, culaccio, guanciale, pancetta, lardo, and lardo mantecato. That's to say, all you need for an indoor picnic.

Roberta's has been selling its bread for a few months now. The batards, French-stick, city-white, and whole-wheat loaves were available at Smorgasburg/Anarchy in a Jar and can also be found at the Brooklyn Kitchen, Depanneur, Greene Grape Provisions, and the Brooklyn Grange markets -- and, of course, at Roberta's proper.

Should you be looking for bakery sweets, though, your best bet is Midtown's Alfama, which launched a bakery program this past spring. Naturally, you'll find Portuguese specialties like Pão de Bico, Broa, and Fork in the Road favorite Pão de Deus.

Yep, it's time to break bread.

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