We make no secret about being a carbo-holic. In fact, there are few things, other than wine and cheese, that stir up our senses like bread. The aroma of yeast, the sound of a crackling crust, the visual beauty of a golden-brown exterior, the feel of the soft pillowy inside and finally, the tantalizing taste that comes from a simple marriage of flour and water, with perhaps some added yeast, salt, or oil.
Some people avoid gluten because of their medical conditions. Others eschew bread because of the carbohydrates. There are numerous fad diets that make bread the villain. Well, if bread is evil, we have gone to the dark side.
For thousands of years, though, bread was considered the staff of life. Its importance is reiterated throughout the Bible, signifying both physical and spiritual sustenance. The breaking of bread is important in many cultures and various religions have feasts centered around both leavened and unleavened versions.
While we understand that many people have cut bread out of their diets for their own personal reasons, we love it. Maybe too much. So, when we saw that a bakery near our home was getting a lot of praise online, we had to check it out. For research purposes.
Artisan Bread Gallery originally opened on Windfern in February 2024 as a small grab and go bakery making European-style breads with all-natural ingredients. This past March, owners Oksana and Krzysztof Ramotowski opened a second larger location right off FM 1960 near Jones Road. It’s only about four minutes from the original location, but the new spot offers a dining room, with views into the baking operations.
We had no idea that the new bakery was only ten minutes from our home in Cy-Fair. This past weekend, with no breakfast in our stomach and lunchtime nearing, we decided to see if the bakery lived up to the online hype.
The 1960 cafe is still fairly bare bones. There are both booths and tables, but the decor is minimal. Because they were in soft opening mode through March, there are still new items that are planned for the menu, so maybe there will be more decoration as the business gets up to speed. The exterior, however, is lit like a Broadway marquee, with window graphics showcasing its breads and sweets. Though I am not a fan of window wraps, in this case guests are spared the unattractive views of the strip center and busy road.
The line wasn’t long, but a little patience was necessary because customers were trying to choose their orders from the bounty of breads and pastries available. One woman in front of me was happy to see her favorite baked potato soup on the menu. There were several soup options, which come with a slice of sourdough, but guests may also order the soups in a bread bowl for a little extra cost. We’re eyeing that possibility for next time.
This go-around, we wanted to try one of the sandwiches. It was a hard decision between roast beef, salami or hot capocollo. We opted for the capocollo, or as Tony Soprano would say, gabagool. There was also a refrigerator full of soft drinks and imported waters. We grabbed a liter bottle of Polish sparkling water for $4.
The display of bread and pastries is small compared to some of the larger bakeries in town, but there was still an abundance of choices. We chose a number of items to take back home for a sampling party with our family of four. Each item was individually wrapped to-go. We took the haul to a comfortable booth and awaited the sandwich. It came out in just a couple of minutes.
Originally we thought $13 for a bakery sandwich was a bit pricey, until we saw the sandwich. It was two huge flatbread portions, overflowing with capocollo, or capicola if you’re Italian American. The young staff member saw my expression and said, “I’ll get you something to wrap the extras in.” We were going to need it, because we were still happily munching on the free sample of bacon and tomato focaccia that they had given us, unbidden.
We had requested no grilled peppers, so we imagined the sandwich would be even bigger, and messier, with them. The first bite was amazing. We swear it was the bread. It was just perfect for the ingredients inside. The capocollo had a nice bit of heat, but not overwhelming. The pesto was the perfect condiment to the mix of meat, spring lettuce mix and fresh mozzarella slices. We were in heaven.
Customers were wandering in and out, with a few chatting over coffee and croissants. Some knew what they wanted right away, others lingered in front of the pastry case like little kids making the most important culinary decisions of their lives.
After eating only half of a half of the sandwich, we decided to check out some of the pantry goods that are available, most of them Polish and reasonably priced. We grabbed some mustard, because we love to try new mustards, and a jar of prepared Polish horseradish. We then decided to add a couple more items to our sampling spree, including a boudin kolache. We won’t go into the whole kolache vs. klobasnek debate. The Ramotowskis sell both the fruit and savory ones as kolaches, so we’re cool with that.
We texted our household that we were bringing home some samples of breads and pastries. When we arrived home and spread out the goodies, our husband, Classic Rock Bob, accused us of trying to kill him, in spite of his doctor’s orders. We replied, “But what a way to go.”
We are fans of boudin, so we started with Artisan’s boudin kolache. It was very good and the filling was spicy. It was shaped like a boomerang and nearly twice the size of a regular kolache. For $4.99, it’s a bargain. When I went to have a second taste, though, it had already disappeared.
Unfortunately, the sausage and cheese kolache we had ordered did not make it into the bag of items. We weren’t charged for it, but our daughter was very much looking forward to trying it. That will be for another day. However, the cherry and cream cheese version was very good. The dough was slightly sweet and very tender, but we would have loved a tad bit more of the cream cheese. The bakery does sell just the cream cheese version, but it wasn’t available when we went. We’ll have to make another visit.
Next up was the Polish doughnut with Bavarian cream ($2.50). We had two of them. One was filled with luscious custard, the other just had a little dab in the middle. The one with less, though, allowed us to taste the pillowy interior of the doughnut better. The chocolate is drizzled on top, which we appreciated because it made it less messy. This is a killer doughnut.
We also tried a mini pizza, which was essentially a savory kolache. It had a couple of slices of pepperoni, mozzarella cheese and a tasty tomato sauce. However, it wasn’t a favorite of the tasters. What was a favorite was the leftover sandwich that we split among the samplers. We made good use of that $13.
For dinner, we tried some of the focaccia, which is a bestseller at the bakery. We opted for the rosemary and garlic, but there are several options including tomato and caramelized onion or olives and cheese. The focaccia was just a little bit on the pale side, which was remedied by a couple of minutes in the oven. It was softer than the focaccia we make at home, but it was still delicious.
We saved the croissants for the next morning. Croissants are usually best when eaten the same day they are baked, but a quick turn in the oven made these beauties crispy again and transported us back to our time in Paris. The standout was the chocolate croissant; beautifully laminated layers with rectangles of dark chocolate, just like the European versions.
Later that day, we sliced into the sourdough boule and the ciabatta roll. The boule had a fairly dense crumb with just a hint of sourdough tang, which we prefer. Its texture lends itself to being a good sandwich bread. The bakery also makes a San Francisco-style sourdough boule that offers a stronger flavor for those who like the funk.
We were most impressed with the ciabatta, which was similar to the bread on our amazing sandwich. We now wished we had gotten a full-sized loaf. The airy holes inside were perfect little pockets for melted butter or peppery olive oil. We toasted a few slices, spread on some pricey butter and were happy little carbo-holics.
In a way, we wished we had not discovered Artisan Bread Gallery, or that it was so close to our home. We have often bemoaned the fact that so many of Houston’s spectacular bakeries are in town and a pain in the arse to get to from our neck of the woods. Now, we realize that distance might have been our only protection from indulging our addiction.
Oh, well. Who needs a bikini body anyway?
Artisan Bread Gallery
10602 FM 1960 W.
346-718-3277
