This post is part of my 2022 Word Project. You can read what that’s about here.
Thursday, September 28, 2023
7:05pm
A trip to the bakery today restored my faith in humanity just a little bit.
It’s a new bakery. Actually it’s a flower shop/bakery/coffee shop which is as weird as it sounds, but it is very pretty inside so that’s a plus. No screeching kids and soccer-moms-in-crocs. No white marble bathroom tile.
Just a very civilized little shop with wood tables and lovely flower arrangements and very soothing, organic décor.
Their selection is fairly minimal. Some muffins and scones, a cinnamon bun and a few cookies. But they bake them all in-house, which is both a plus and not a plus.
When stuff is baked in-house it is usually fresh, and you can bet someone cares about the quality. But as with all homemade things, they are irregular. Some scones are a little bigger and fatter, some are a little more browned on the edges. Some cinnamon buns have a tad more icing than others and some cookies are rounder.
When you walk into a bakery like this you naturally scout out the nicest thing on the tray. And you can pretty much bet that that’s not the one the guy behind the counter is going to hand you.
I can put money on the fact that if I order a brownie, I am going to get the one small crusty burnt edge instead of the big gooey middle piece.
Small crusty burnt edges always cost the same amount as the big gooey middle pieces.
They always set up the display so the best looking stuff is in the front by the glass, which is what you see, and the worst stuff is on the inside – which is exactly where they reach to get your muffin.
Today I ordered a lemon poppyseed scone. There were about a dozen on a tray, same setup – big, pretty ones up front, rejects in the back. I knew exactly which one was going to end up on my plate.
But then something completely extraordinary and quite possibly miraculous happened. The guy picked up his tongs and looked over the scones on the plate and chose the best one. The biggest, fattest, prettiest one there.
And gave it to ME!
This might have been a fluke and a bizarre accident, but then he did the same thing with Ralph’s cinnamon bun.
I was so astonished that at the last minute I asked him to add a chocolate chip cookie to our order. You know, for science.
And he did it again!
Three times, three different baked items, all the best ones on the plate.
Like he meant it.
I tried all of them, and they were all fresh and delicious. I don’t know how he did it, but this one guy with his coffee shop/flower shop/bakery managed to Do Unto Others, at least where scones are concerned. And he made it look so easy. Just chatting nicely, getting the good pastries, going about his business like any old day.
It’s a new bakery, and I asked how things are going. Up and down, stressful, but they have good reviews and people post about them on Instagram and come back for more.
Which is great. I want them to succeed. I almost posted the picture to my Instagram with glowing praise. But then, I also don’t want anyone else to know about them, because I want them to continue giving me the biggest and best cookies on the tray.
Photo: today’s scone, a perfect specimen.