Big News @ Wave Hill Breads: New Location...New Bread!

When husband and wife team Margaret Sapir and Mitch Rapaport first began delivering their signature bread to farmers markets in 2005, it was with a signature bread crafted from one recipe. Not that this has been a bad thing. Their Pain de Campagne is what started it all and has brought them the recognition they receive to this day. 

Now, in addition to the fabulously addictive three-grain country loaf that we all know and love, Wave Hill Breads is proud to announce the launch of two new breads for your dining pleasure. (Spoiler alert...and come May, you can dine in their new bakery/cafe in Norwalk). But first, let's talk about these magnificent loaves..

Introducing Roasted Red Pepper and Olive Ciabatta and Whole and Hearty Multigrain. Imagine, if you will, a mouth-watering loaf with pockets of—wait, you don’t have to imagine . . . the bread is as close as Wave Hill Breads bakery in Wilton, CT, but these two are only available on Thursday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., or at local Farmers’ Markets.   

You might remember Stephanie’s recount of her first encounter with Wave Hill Breads back in August 2009. While similar, my recent experience with these two new breads was far less respectable than Stephanie’s when I visited the bakery for a sampling. Had I been allowed to sit on the floor in the corner with a loaf of the multigrain in one hand, a loaf of the Ciabatta in the other and a tiny vial of smelling salts to revive me—because I would have, no doubt, slipped into a bread-induced coma—believe me, I would have had no qualms about doing that very thing. Yes, they were that good. 

For lovers of the original, have no fear. Wave Hill Breads is staying true to its roots. They’re still crafting that delicious artisan three-grain crusty and chewy pain de campagne that people drives miles for just to get their hands on a loaf.

And now for the really fun stuff. Just like those excitedly obnoxious hawkers that scream at you from your 36-inch flat screen plasma television screen in the wee hours of the morning, we’re getting in on the action, too . .

But wait, there’s more!

Psssst! We’ve got a secret to share. Wave Hill Breads is relocating. That’s right, the bread artisans that you’ve come to know, love and devour will be making their new home at 30 High Street in Norwalk, the former home of Scandia Food & Gifts, Inc.

The projected opening for the new location is just around the corner in May 2011, and along with a new address will come a new name (which has yet to be decided on). Not to worry, though; it will still be the Wave Hill Breads that you love—with the focus on breads—but with an added bonus of a Café! Soon you’ll be able to enjoy such delicacies as pasties, scones, croissants, danishes, bread pudding, rice pudding, muffins and coffee cakes. Later, they will add sandwiches, soups and grain salads to the menu.

“Mitch wants to have our own signature Croque Monsieur, too,” Margaret adds excitedly. How’s that for sandwich decadence?

With General Manager Mike Devlin, former pastry chef of Dressing Room and Universal Studios, at the helm, the new Wave Hill Breads will be open for breakfast and lunch. “We also plan to hold classes,” says Devlin. “We can teach kids how to make artisan breads and pastries.” 

The new space is approximately 3,200 square feet, with the café comprising roughly nine hundred square feet of that. The majority of the space will be for production because, after all, it is the bread and butter of the business. 

“While this expansion is great,” notes Mitch, “the wholesale part of the business is most important. The bread is where we started.” 

With a modern look, a community table, café tables, an espresso machine and a retail market carrying local products, there will be so much more to love about Wave Hill Breads besides the wonderful bread. But we know you’ll still come back for the bread.

For now, however, you can continue to visit the Wilton location of Wave Hill Breads at 196 Danbury Road to get your bread fix (fresh bread baked daily except Tuesday, with the bakery open for retail every morning from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m) or visit their website. 

Valerie Albarda is a blogger and writer based out of Stamford CT. She is also a lover of food . . . period. There is no culinary background involved, no chef’s toque to speak of, and the closest that she’s come to being a sommelier is standing extremely close to one at a wine festival once. But don’t worry; the stalking charges were dropped. Nevertheless, none of that has stopped her thus far from soaking up everything food. She is on a mission—a culinary exploration, if you will—to soak up as much as she can about her favorite four letter word.