Huron Village: Local Bread

This week is my spring break. I’m spending my precious free time in Huron Village, a quaint neighborhood of Cambridge, Massachusetts. The area feels reminiscent of an earlier time. The streets are lined with old Victorians and they smell perpetually of lit fireplaces and home cooked meals. No industry supermarkets or chain restaurants litter the pristine street corners. The inhabitants of this locale are adamant about supporting small, individually or family owned food stores and restaurants. Among these is Hi Rise Bakery, clearly a gem in an already special lot.

Hi Rise Bakery is a shop that specializes in artisanal breads. All of their breads are made in house by a team of young, enthusiastic bakers, with the freshest ingredients. Owner, Rene Becker, purchases his grains directly from local farmers, and has them “ground to his specifications at an independent mill.” (Harvard Gazette) The freshness of the bread simply cannot be questioned. This is evidenced by the ingredients, but also by the kitchen’s universal access to every customer. You walk in the door and you’re practically standing in the kitchen. I found myself mesmerized as I watched many hands kneading fluffy dough, shaping it into the plump loaves I knew I would soon taste. I think viewing these bakers at work is part of what makes Hi Rise such a unique place. The shop wants its customers to not only enjoy their bread (and it is delicious), but also to understand the process. In our industrialized times, it is rare that one bakes bread at home. Hi Rise puts a little bit of that tradition back into the lives of the locals, along with an irresistibly warm, comforting smell.

The display case is piled high with a variety of different breads, toppling over one another in an abundant, stylized chaos. One Hi Rise favorite is a dense brown bread, loaded with whole-wheat flour, cornmeal, and rye flour, packed with dried New England blueberries, and sweetened with Molasses. The bread is baked in coffee tins, creating a cylindrical and dense, ribbed loaf. Two slices are paired with cream cheese on the brunch menu, a magical combination — creamy, filling, and slightly sweet. I bought a loaf on Monday (it’s long gone). They also have a unique yeasted corn bread, a traditional challah and baguette, fluffy potato bread, buttery brioche, crusty semolina bread, and dense cranberry walnut loaves. At lunchtime the breads are filled with delicious meats, cheeses, and vegetables to create delectable sandwiches. On my first visit I enjoyed the “Andie’s Loose Knit Crew,” a combination of grilled portabella mushrooms, melted jack and gorgonzola cheeses, steamed spinach, bacon, a spicy spread, and two thick slices of grilled Huron loaf. The fillings are great, but the bread is what makes each sandwich, and the shop.