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The discreet charms of Secret Sister
The South Park sourdough bakery dabbles in the unfamiliar
A breakfast sandwich of fried egg, arugula, and ham, made on a gougére roll
San Diego appears to be experiencing a golden age of baked goods. At least, I’ve had trouble keeping up with all the capable bakeries doing business around the county. Every other week seems to find me nodding my head as I chew on a fresh loaf of bread, or sweet pastry, thinking “this place is really on to something.” It feels like I’m writing about baked goods as often as hot chicken or birria.
This week found me visiting my beloved former community, South Park, where the now institutional Rose Wine Bar has spawned a sister business next door. Make that a Secret Sister business. The so-called “sourdough bakery and tea house” opened a year ago, adding a modest yet compelling assortment of loaves, buns, and pastries to what was already a food-rich neighborhood.
I’ve yet to try the counter shop’s popular, glazed sourdough donuts, but only because I’d already spent my budget loading up on too good to pass up items, including a nourishing boule (round loaf) of sourdough wheat encrusted with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, and pepitas ($10).
Grab and go baguette sandwich topped with turkey, brie, and sliced apples
I would take that home, along with a ready-made baguette sandwich, the sort of grab and go treat that make Parisian boulangeries so valuable to meandering tourists. This one featured turkey, brie, sliced apple, and arugula ($11), which made for a nice, change of pace lunch. I’ve heard that, as a sort of secret menu item, you can get a similar “sandwich” that simply features butter. Which doesn’t sound like much, but the more I think about it, is all that’s truly necessary to make the most of the perfect crust and chew in those baguettes — might want to bring one of those home with you, too.
Baguettes baked fresh daily
Of course, much of the charm of Secret Sister’s location on 30th Street is the chance to grab a seat on the dog-friendly patio and enjoy its ambling street scene. The tree-lined street on a lovely, late-autumn day made all the more an impression thanks to one of the shop’s breakfast sandwiches ($11 with ham). Made with fried egg and arugula, it’s unique in that it puts the cheese inside the bread: specifically a cheddar and garlic chive gougere.
The small buns are what’s known as choux pastries, meaning they’re made without yeast, relying instead on steam to puff them up in the baking process, resulting in airy, savory bites that keep the breakfast sandwich from feeling too heavy. They’re a far cry from the greasy breakfast croissants more commonly found at local cafés, and feel very South Park appropriate. Would that I still lived down the way so I could conveniently eat these several times per week.
A babka-like chocolate and yuzu morning bun
Finally, I may have bypassed the donut, but the biggest reason was the tantalizing presence of a chocolate and yuzu morning bun ($6). The babka styled bun, marbled with chocolate and sprinkled with citrusy sugar, pulls apart easily to render satisfying pastry bites that, in flavor, remind me of Terry’s candies: those foil-wrapped chocolate-orange treats that break apart into what resemble orange slices.
Compared to many other local bakeries, Secret Sister sports a rather small menu, and a shuffling baking schedule means you may find different items available on different days, or different times of day. I suppose it’s telling that, whenever you happen to show up, you’ll still find plenty of not-so-secret options to tempt you.
Here's something you might be interested in.
The discreet charms of Secret Sister
The South Park sourdough bakery dabbles in the unfamiliar
The discreet charms of Secret Sister
The South Park sourdough bakery dabbles in the unfamiliar
A breakfast sandwich of fried egg, arugula, and ham, made on a gougére roll
San Diego appears to be experiencing a golden age of baked goods. At least, I’ve had trouble keeping up with all the capable bakeries doing business around the county. Every other week seems to find me nodding my head as I chew on a fresh loaf of bread, or sweet pastry, thinking “this place is really on to something.” It feels like I’m writing about baked goods as often as hot chicken or birria.
This week found me visiting my beloved former community, South Park, where the now institutional Rose Wine Bar has spawned a sister business next door. Make that a Secret Sister business. The so-called “sourdough bakery and tea house” opened a year ago, adding a modest yet compelling assortment of loaves, buns, and pastries to what was already a food-rich neighborhood.
I’ve yet to try the counter shop’s popular, glazed sourdough donuts, but only because I’d already spent my budget loading up on too good to pass up items, including a nourishing boule (round loaf) of sourdough wheat encrusted with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, and pepitas ($10).
Grab and go baguette sandwich topped with turkey, brie, and sliced apples
I would take that home, along with a ready-made baguette sandwich, the sort of grab and go treat that make Parisian boulangeries so valuable to meandering tourists. This one featured turkey, brie, sliced apple, and arugula ($11), which made for a nice, change of pace lunch. I’ve heard that, as a sort of secret menu item, you can get a similar “sandwich” that simply features butter. Which doesn’t sound like much, but the more I think about it, is all that’s truly necessary to make the most of the perfect crust and chew in those baguettes — might want to bring one of those home with you, too.
Baguettes baked fresh daily
Of course, much of the charm of Secret Sister’s location on 30th Street is the chance to grab a seat on the dog-friendly patio and enjoy its ambling street scene. The tree-lined street on a lovely, late-autumn day made all the more an impression thanks to one of the shop’s breakfast sandwiches ($11 with ham). Made with fried egg and arugula, it’s unique in that it puts the cheese inside the bread: specifically a cheddar and garlic chive gougere.
The small buns are what’s known as choux pastries, meaning they’re made without yeast, relying instead on steam to puff them up in the baking process, resulting in airy, savory bites that keep the breakfast sandwich from feeling too heavy. They’re a far cry from the greasy breakfast croissants more commonly found at local cafés, and feel very South Park appropriate. Would that I still lived down the way so I could conveniently eat these several times per week.
A babka-like chocolate and yuzu morning bun
Finally, I may have bypassed the donut, but the biggest reason was the tantalizing presence of a chocolate and yuzu morning bun ($6). The babka styled bun, marbled with chocolate and sprinkled with citrusy sugar, pulls apart easily to render satisfying pastry bites that, in flavor, remind me of Terry’s candies: those foil-wrapped chocolate-orange treats that break apart into what resemble orange slices.
Compared to many other local bakeries, Secret Sister sports a rather small menu, and a shuffling baking schedule means you may find different items available on different days, or different times of day. I suppose it’s telling that, whenever you happen to show up, you’ll still find plenty of not-so-secret options to tempt you.
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