the_dakota•1mo agoMost Upvoted

Stopped by an old bakery in Portland last weekend

Walked into this place I used to work at like 10 years ago and noticed they swapped out their deck oven for a rotary. The head baker told me it's faster but I miss the way the crust used to develop with the stone. Anybody else seen their old spots change up equipment like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

henry_palmer241mo ago

Rolled my eyes so hard I nearly pulled something when I read this. Yeah because swapping out a deck oven for a rotary is definitely about 'speed' and not just cutting corners on quality. I mean sure, rotaries are great for volume but the crust on those things always comes out sad and flat compared to a good stone bake. Maybe it's just me but I swear you can taste the difference in the first bite. That deck oven was probably old and crusty but it had character, you know? Hope the head baker at least kept the old oven in the back for some weekend batches or something.

miller.avery1mo ago

A rotary gives you a consistent, even bake every single time across the whole batch, and that "character" you're nostalgic for is just uneven heat spots and burned edges. People who actually run bakeries for profit don't have time to romanticize a finicky old oven that needs babysat.