Olympia: The Bakery Brawl and the Sandwiching
Not actually a “brawl,” but that was as close to an alliteration as I could get.
I’ve recently been reading Jonathan Ames’s Happy Doll books. It’s a quirky detective series – a funnier, less violent Jack Reacher, primarily set in L.A. The fact that the protagonist’s name is “Happy Doll” should give you an idea of what to expect.
I was surprised to find the second book, The Wheel of Doll, spending a good chunk of time in Olympia. I’m on the record as being a fan of Washington State’s capital, so the combination matched up with my liking. It also made me crave bread from Oly’s San Francisco Street Bakery.
All this to say, we did as we’re wont to do here at the Digest, and took a trip to Olympia to find fixings for a San Francisco Street Bakery sandwich. Bread, cheese, and lettuce – the simplest of ingredients.
The Bread: San Francisco Street Bakery
Here’s a bakery that suitably lives up to Olympia’s Hallgrrrl aesthetic – the pastry case shows off eye-catching goods, while the building is slightly worn. The latter doesn’t make for an unwelcoming space; rather, it gives off an unapologetically casual vibe. The coffee station even leans into the town’s Riot Grrrl legacy, with some prominent slap tags.
The baked goods, then.
We picked up a generous assortment, ranging from sweet to savory. For the former, the lemon meringue tart was the stand-out. The meringue has the fluffy texture you're looking for, with a smoky bitterness that evens out the sweetness. Zest and sugar balance the curd into something that doesn’t pucker, yet still has a noticeable bright acidity. All is packed into a buttery, ever-so-salty shell. It comes in a size that’s easy to hold in one hand, and it’s not a sickly, overpowering experience.
For the sandwich, we grabbed the sourdough loaf, a perennial San Francisco Street mainstay. The chewy texture and crispy crust are exactly what a hearty sandwich requires, and the bakery has correctly gone the classic route with the bread – just an honest sourdough loaf without any gimmicks or surprises.
You can say that about most of San Francisco Street’s goods. The bakery is all about a consistent delivery of flavors and textures, without any frills. That’s something I can respect.
1320 San Francisco NE, Olympia • Map • Web
The Side Trip: Left Bank Pastry
Think Left Bank Pastry, and “bougie” comes to mind. The Paris-style patisserie has a clean, contemporary vibe, with a more spacious pastry case. That’s not to say it’s better than San Francisco Street, just that it has a different ambiance. Odds of finding slap tags inside Left Bank are right around zero.
We didn’t pick up anything for the sandwich here, but Left Bank’s chocolate/banana tart is, in a word, legit.
Note the aggressive use of banana chunks – Left Bank’s tart isn’t just banana-forward, it’s banana-dominant. The chocolate and cream tame it just enough to avoid a potassium overload, but no one will accuse the tart of being subtle. And I’m OK with that, particularly as it comes in a shell that stands up to what could have been a soggy mess.
Shoutout to their “Swan,” too – a profiterole more similar to a Norwegian fastelavnsbolle than the traditional French version.1
1941 4th Ave E, Olympia • Map • Web
The Vegetables and Cheese: Olympia Farmers Market
Here is one of those places Olympia really should flaunt – and also what undoubtedly would be the heart of any Hallmark movie. The downtown Olympia Farmers Market is the second largest of its kind in Washington State, and it’s open year-round. More than 120 vendors serve 400,000 annual visitors. Those are impressive numbers.
There are plenty of fruit and vegetable vendors at the market, none of which are noticeably better or worse than the other. The quality is consistently high. We went with Stoney Plains Natural Farms, a spot that deserves a special mention for its display alone.
Swiss chard, romaine, cilantro, parsley… we picked up a medley of what looked the freshest. Bonus points awarded for their honey – you really can’t beat the small-batch stuff.
A few stalls down is TUNaWERTH Creamery, with its excellent garlic-and-chives cream cheese. Made up of milk, culture, and rennet, it’s about as pure a cheese as can be. Their Gouda, too, holds a high quality, and as it would be downright impolite to leave it behind, we grabbed both cheeses for the sandwich.
Also worth noting: San Francisco Street Bakery has two stalls at the market. If you want a more compact – albeit less fulfilling – roundup of sandwich fixings, this is your one-stop shop.
700 Capitol Way N, Olympia • Map • Web
The Full Experience: A Bang Bang Bang
San Francisco Street Bakery and Left Bank Pastry are a short distance apart, and Olympia Farmers Market isn’t far off, either. You can make a go of it if you want to hit them all in quick succession.
Here’s the direct link to the Google Maps Route.
The Sandwich Assembly
A good sandwich is often a simple sandwich, so let’s recap the fixings we picked up for our Olympia-centric handheld:
Sourdough bread from San Francisco Street Bakery.
TUNaWERTH Creamery’s garlic and chive cream cheese, and Gouda for good measure.
A melody of salads from Stoney Plains, finely chopped.
Additionally, toss the salad in olive oil and lemon juice for an even fresher flavor.
Broil the slices of bread, schmear with cream cheese, and top with Gouda and tossed salad. That’s it – let the flavors do the talking.
Now, you may not have to go to Olympia for this type of sandwich, but seeing how it’s a great town, you probably should.
Further Olympia Reads
Merch for the People!
Don’t just read Awesomeness – wear it! This distinguished publication proudly features two official shirts – or magnets, stickers, or whatever medium you can think of: The Hallgrrrl and Zune. Why those? For one, the Hallmark channel and Riotgrrrl are, as I’ve said before, the natural combination. And, who doesn’t love the Zune?
Go shop at The Better Taster Boutique for only the finest goods.
I didn’t snap a picture as I was more concerned with eating it.
You made me very hungry 😋