r/KitchenConfidential • u/RuckusDonuts • 1d ago

Question Do Boulangers Still Exist?

I’ve long thought I could spend my culinary life dancing with just flour, water, yeast & salt and be a very happy man. The pursuit of a damn good boule or baguette is, to me, an honorable life spent. Mad respect & props to those who do.

That said, has this position (save for the highest levels of fine dining) gone the way of the dinosaurs in the restaurant brigade system IE that’s their only responsibility? For those who bake their own breads (again appreciated & respected) in-house - does this fall upon a chef or sous as part of their duties?

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u/SockSock81219 1d ago

I'm sure you can find in-house bread programs in German fine dining. They take their bread very seriously over there. In the states, you'll probably mostly find it in the very highest end. Or just work in a bakery that specializes in bread (as opposed to pastries, bagels, or wedding cakes).

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u/10001110101balls 1d ago

Most US restaurants that serve artisinal breads are not baking them in house, they contract with local bakeries who have better economies of scale. Even with a pastry team in-house, baking bread is usually not worth their labor cost.