Jane on Fillmore’s ethos of making everything fresh from scratch resonated with San Francisco’s food-obsessed culture and quickly began bursting at the seams. Amanda opened another small shop in the rough-and-tumble Tenderloin district in order to expand her catering business in 2014.
Now, Jane the Bakery in Japantown finally realizes Amanda’s vision, with dozens of different breads kneaded, proofed, and baked each morning.
“The day we moved in, I felt so much freer to experiment,” says head baker Jorgen Carlsen. Aside from the expanded space, Jorgen suddenly had more time thanks to a more efficient setup.
Among the results of his alchemy is the 100-percent rye sourdough. Though he calls himself “more of a purist,” he decided to put a Teutonic spin on the San Francisco icon after a memorable trip to Germany, where dark bread reigns at all three meal times. After much tinkering, Jorgen perfected this sourdough that’s at once classic and innovative. The process involves feeding the sourdough starter three different times in order to turn it into more of a paste than a dough. He stops short of spilling the recipe, but it’s obvious that he’s excited and proud to share this new creation. And it’s just one of many endeavors that have come to fruition since Jane the Bakery opened.
By noon, the line goes out the door, with expectant diners coveting items like roasted cauliflower on ciabatta, Nutty Bird Bread bejeweled in seeds and topped with almond butter, and dark chocolate cookies. No, they don’t just want to try them; they will sample them all.
Go there:
1881 Geary Blvd.
San Francisco, California
415.658.7971
2123 Fillmore St.
San Francisco, California
415.931.5263
925 Larkin St.
San Francisco, California
415.593.5359
