A ‘bread revolution’ might refer to returning to a time when every village had their own local bakery and baker.
The Glenwood Bakery, like many other ‘artisanal’ bakeries the world over, was established with this small scale, localised bread production in mind. All our products, including the range of deli products we make, are handmade and produced for selling locally and eating immediately.
Food like this is the antithesis of industrially manufactured, ultra processed food which is centrally produced resulting in a homogeneous product that appeals only to the lowest common denominators of affordability, convenience and tastelessness. Industrially produced food is made to be free of complicated logistical concerns, but the price is culinary excellence and nutrition.
The breads we produce are all hand formed, slow fermented & baked in a hearth oven. The deli products are free of stabilisers, preservatives, colourants and other additives, making it unsuitable for wide distribution and an unnaturally long shelf life.
The result is breads that taste of something and satisfy. The satisfaction we are aiming for is that of complex aromas and long flavours. There are undoubtedly health benefits to such breads. Our emphasis, though, is on flavour.
Our flour comes from three different sources. Two local mills, one in Durban and one in the Drakensberg of KZN. Most of the feedstock (wheat) is grown in KZN, some in Germany. And for a few of our breads, we stone grind our own flour with our little mill.
We make one gluten-free sourdough loaf, which is available every day. What distinguishes this gluten-free loaf from most others is that we have crafted a bread which is free of the usual additives and replacements used to make gluten-free bread. It is also slow fermented.
The heart of the Glenwood Bakery is our breads, in particular our sourdoughs. But there is also coffee. This is compulsory as those who rise at 1 am are addicted to that noble berry. Our coffee comes from the various excellent roasters in the extended Durban area. There are daily changing sandwiches, hand made pastas, freshly made flatbreads, an iconic hamburger, filled bagels, tarts, salads and much more on our lunch menus. Our cafes have idiosyncratic cafe menus and we have daily changing specials menus.
The Glenwood Bakery consists of three premises: The main bakery and shop in Glenwood, with an adjoining café. This bakery site is where all the bread, viennoiserie and deli production takes place. And then we have another bakery and café in Morningside. Here we have a dedicated sandwich and bagel bar. The rolls, bagels and breads for the sandwiches are baked here. From Morningside also emerges all the soups we now sell as part of our deli range.
Our Morningside café is open five nights a week for pastas, pizzas and various slow cooked dishes.
We provide unlimited, free WiFi so that our customers don’t have to talk to each other.
