This Bed-Stuy bakery is built by the community, for the community

Chef Tony Yarema wants his ingredients to tell the story. That much is evident with breads that cross the boundary between baguette, ciabatta and sourdough and frozen coffees stirred with tahini. But more than that, Yarema and his colleagues at the new Bakery by Textbook (874 Hancock Street) want to feed the community.

Debuting on July 17 this year, Bakery By Textbook is the sister eatery to Textbook Cafe in Fort Greene. The newest location piggybacks off of the principles of the first location, meaning, Bakery by Textbook is for the community, by the community. The staff here is made up of Bed-Stuy locals, and each person is paid $20 dollars an hour with the potential to make tips. Drip refills are free and alternative milks don’t incur an extra charge. And they have a “Name Your Price for Bread” program so residents can eat even if they don’t have the means.

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“We want to build in places that, at least we feel, need some sort of fresh food,” Yarema tells Time Out New York.

Baked goods touch the world here with leanings on Middle Eastern flavors. Blending influences from Northern Africa, Europe and the Middle East is the Noon (نون) bread. Shaped like a baguette with the unmistakable tang of sourdough, this bread is ready to eat on its own or can be dragged through one of the shop’s rotating dips. Nodding to his New York roots, the head-sized bacon, egg and cheese features harissa, ketchup and Kashkaval cheese from Georgia. Vegan options are aplenty here, scribbled on a roll of butcher paper at the door. A lunchtime favorite is the beet pastrami, marinated in a mixture of orange, dill, black pepper and coriander. And while breakfast calls for a freshly made pita with an egg and a dusting of za'atar sourced from Jordan, dessert calls for Tony’s favorite: the sweet and salty olive oil cake. For refreshments, juices, not too sweet lemonade, and a full coffee menu that includes the wonderfully smooth frozen tahini cold brew.

Growing up in the Upper East Side, Yarema began cooking at an early age with his father. Together, they watched Chef John on YouTube and made eggs, pizza, and most importantly, bread. In his teens, he got an opportunity to move to London thus kicking off a worldwide culinary education. Over three years, Yarema began working in kitchens abroad, including stints at a friend’s cheese manufacturing facility in Greece to building wood-fired clay ovens from scratch in Morocco.

“I was traveling to learn from locals [and] to learn more about foods that aren't here in America,” he says.

When he returned to New York, he continued to work his way up through the restaurant scene, holding the titles of sous chef and executive chef. However, the fast-paced nature of the scene caught up to him and he was ready for a change. Leaning on his breadmaking roots, he decided he was ready to use the medium to reconnect to his community.

“I moved into the bakery as a way to slow down and be closer to feeding people,” he says. Looking to get hired with intention, he answered an ad from the Textbook Cafe. In the community-driven cafe, he’d found the gig he was looking for. 

Community feedback is taken seriously here, just take a look at its Instagram. On its social media channel, the bakery constantly engages with its followers, asking about the types of sandwiches people want to see, down to the types of cups they want to drink out of. While this type of open door policy can spell trouble (a.k.a. keyboard trolls), Yarema is willing to sift through the noise to create a bakery the community can be proud of.

“While I want to introduce new flavors to people that have never tried it, I know that it’s also important to listen to the people that you’re serving,” he says.

On the horizon, the downstairs bar, named Understudy, will open in the next few months. While it remains to be seen what will crop up there, you can be certain the bar will also reflect the community it serves.

“I really wanted to be able to connect with my community, and that’s something I felt that I didn’t have for a long time,” he says. “I’m glad it’s happening here.”