New Bakery Coming to Lincoln Warehouse
Stephen's Breads, specializing in sourdough, is poised to open in October.
Babka from Stephen’s Bread. Photo courtesy of Stephen Blanchard.
Stephen Blanchard‘s sourdough journey was off to a promising start. Then, he killed his starter.
He could’ve stopped there, like the many bakers before him who were tripped up by the notoriously tricky craft. Instead, he tried again.
“We made a new one, and it’s been up and running ever since,” he said. “Never had an issue.”
That can-do attitude has come to define Blanchard’s business, Stephen’s Breads, throughout its evolution from hobby to home bakery, and soon-to-be standalone venture.
This fall, Blanchard and his wife, Christine Burke, are preparing to open Stephen’s Breads at Lincoln Warehouse, 2018 S. 1st St. The new location will allow the couple to streamline operations and increase production, bringing sourdough loaves, pastries, cookies and much more to visitors in its third-floor space, located in the northeast corner of the building.
The bakery would also partner with Component Brewing Company, Torzala Brewing Co., New Barons Brewing Cooperative and Twisted Path Distillery — all located in the same building — to provide pizza and other small bites to brewery-goers.
Set to open in mid-October, the new location will mark the official return of Stephen’s Breads, which went on hiatus in 2023 when Burke learned she had some big news.
“Christine and I were looking at places early last year, and then we found out she was pregnant,” Blanchard said.
The couple took a year off to focus on their growing family, then began the slow return to business in early 2024. Over the summer, with a healthy baby in tow, they resumed the search for a permanent location.
Lincoln Warehouse was “the perfect opportunity,” Blanchard said. “We couldn’t pass it up.”
Stephen’s Breads is setting up shop in a production kitchen at the multi-use building. The space also includes a small storefront for walk-up ordering. Meanwhile, the lower-level breweries and distillery will offer QR code menus for guests to pre-order and pick up.
The move is long overdue, according to Blanchard, who explained that the fast-growing operation previously took over three levels of the couple’s home — from basement to attic.
During peak selling season, Stephen’s Breads went through nearly 400 loaves each week, with 35 dozen pastries and 25 dozen baguettes for good measure.
“I can’t even count,” Blanchard said, noting that he was constantly shuttling bowls of dough and trays of bakery up and down the stairs. “[The new space] will allow us to work on one floor, one area.”
Beyond its classic sourdough loaves, the bakery plans to sell “tons of different breads” including country wheat, rustic white, cinnamon raisin, dill and cheddar, garlic cheddar, chimichurri and others on a rotating schedule.
Sweets like cookies, bars, muffins, croissants, danishes, monkey bread (made with croissant scraps), pumpkin bread and more will also be available on a daily basis.
Blanchard is working to perfect a new addition, the cruffin, for the bakery. The croissant-muffin hybrid is piped with filling and rolled in sugar for an over-the-top experience.
Although the bakery offers dozens of unique items, they all share a common element: each one is made with a sourdough base.
The addition contributes a complex flavor, said Blanchard, while also increasing the lifespan of baked goods by staving off mold and staleness.
Unlike commercial sourdough, which often ends up “all sour and no bread,” as Blanchard puts it, his mix has a mellow flavor, achieved by using a young levain (starter) that’s aged for just four to six hours.
“What that does is it gives a lot more strength to the loaf, so you get more color and openness, but you also reduce that acidity,” Blanchard said. “You get that tang and you get that aged effect, then, but you don’t get it where it overpowers everything you’re eating.”
A self-taught baker, Blanchard has spent the better part of 15 years honing his craft through trial and error, as well as research online and in books.
The enthusiasm for baking, he said, comes from a keen interest in the science behind it. In addition to fine-tuning his methods, Blanchard relies on Midwest-sourced, stone-milled, organic flour to create high-quality breads.
Alongside the bakery operation, Blanchard and Burke are working to make Stephen’s Breads available in local stores including Outpost Natural Foods, Sendik’s Food Markets, Riverwest Co-op & Cafe, Layton Fruit Market and G. Groppi Food Market.
Hours for the bakery are not yet set in stone, but Blanchard said he aims to open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until early afternoon. As the opening date approaches, updates will be available on the business’s website and Facebook page.
Stephen’s Breads is hosting a GoFundMe to raise funds for the new location. To learn more, or to make a donation, visit the website.
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