Zak the Baker: Where Wynwood Stops for Sourdough

On a winter morning the line at the Zak the Baker counter can reach the sidewalk of NW 26th Street, and nobody in it seems to mind. The case holds babka, conchas, croissants and danishes. Behind the register, loaves of naturally leavened bread wait on the racks that built the name. The doors open at 7am Sunday through Friday and close at 5pm, and on Saturday the ovens rest. The Saturday closure follows from kosher certification that has run continuously since 2014, and it shapes everything from the morning rush to the way the menu is built. This is Zak Stern's Wynwood bakery and cafe, and it is a neighborhood counter that treats bread as the main event and lunch as its natural extension.

The loaf is the reference point for the whole menu. Zak Stern grew up in Miami, then apprenticed on organic farms in Sweden, France and Israel before coming home to bake. That grain first education explains the breads: sourdough wheat, Jewish rye and other naturally leavened loaves that anchor the display. According to the certificate, hafrashat challah is taken on each batch, a detail most customers never see and a baker's habit worth noting.