I think that bread is under-sold. In a restaurant, for example, it is often used as a distraction before the starter or main course.
My wife and I go to a lovely fish restaurant in Ockley, Surrey, called Bryce’s. The bread there is something else. I always try to catch the waitress’ eye to get more. I don’t even put butter on it, because it spoils the taste.
They have all sorts of varieties of bread. Some have poppy seeds on top, others have sesame seeds, but they all taste great.
I find that when I buy a sandwich in a shop, there is often too much junk in them. If you have a moustache like mine, you end up wearing most of it on your face. They put too much mayo and creamy sauces in, which are full of fat as well.
We have a breadmaker at home. I get a superb bread mix from the kitchenware shop Lakeland. It’s a soya and linseed mix. The bread is easy to make and the smell of baking bread is wonderful and very comforting. That’s why they tell you to bake bread if you are trying to sell your house. The smell alone will sell it.
Bread also reminds me of my youth. When my brother and I were about 14 years old, we used to get our bread from a place called Jonquil bakery on Whitton high street in Middlesex. We’d go and get a lovely crusty bloomer. It would never stay fresh for long, only a day or two. I think that’s because bakers didn’t put as many additives in bread as they do now. Maybe that’s why it tasted so nice.
It was good having to get bread fresh everyday from the bakery; it meant that I could pick up a Danish pastry at the same time.
Chris Firth, West Sussex
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