Learn more about our newest bakery offering featuring an interview with Head Bakery Cari Meil.
Bread Days is a Commonplace Coffee program that provides fresh, scratch-made bread weekly to the Indiana, PA community.
By subscribing to the Bread Days mailing list, you’ll receive a weekly email when orders open that includes the featured flavors, order deadline, and a link to place your order online – it’s a weekly bread subscription without the commitment!
We sat down with Cari Meil, Head Baker at Commonplace Coffee Bakery, to learn more about how Bread Days came to be.
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Commonplace Coffee: What’s your favorite Bread Days offering?
Cari Meil: My favorite offering is babka. It has a strong family connection for me and reminds me of my mother, a talented and prolific baker. After my mother retired, she would bake and cook every Friday with a group of women to prepare for the Sabbath. Baking babka in that group was her first foray into bread baking, and I remember her joy at learning a new skill each time I bake it.
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CP: How do you curate the bread lineup?
CM: Many of these breads feature flavors I gravitate to from my childhood. We always had challah, rye bread, and Montreal bagels at home. I did not grow up on white or wheat bread, but I have developed a love for them as well. I tried to find a balance of lean and enriched breads, as well as sweet and savory. We are always continuing to learn and develop new breads!
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CP: Any suggestions for enjoying these breads?
CM: All of our breads can be enjoyed as is, or simply with a bit of butter. But there are a few special pairings I love: oat bread with peanut butter and banana; chocolate babka with hot coffee; and baguettes as a sandwich or with dipping oil.
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CP: How has Bread Days helped us connect with our community?
CM: I think bread is a great equalizer, which is consumed and loved by different people and cultures across the world. Baking bread for others and sharing bread brings people together. The smell of bread triggers great memories of the bread of our families. It is a joy to share that.
