Lit at 4:40. Gone by noon.
Four Forty Bakehouse is a neighbourhood bakery and coffee counter. The oven is lit before five every morning, and most of it sells out by lunch.
Tuesday to Sunday, 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Closed Mondays. (Sample hours.)
Fresh today
The board by the till changes every day. Pick a day and see what comes out of the oven, and what's already gone.
Country sourdough$9.00Two-day ferment, dark crust, an open crumb that holds butter.
Butter croissant$4.25Three days from dough to oven, shatters when you bite.
Pain au chocolat$4.75Two bars of dark chocolate in croissant dough.
Brown-butter cookie$3.00Chocolate chunks, flaky salt, crisp edge and soft middle.
Latte$4.75Whole milk or oat, the same price.
Three we're known for
Laminated over three days with 81 layers of butter, then baked dark so the outside shatters.$4.25 · every open day
Butter browned until it smells like toffee, rested overnight, salted the second it leaves the oven.$3.00 · every open day
Folded by hand so the berries stay whole, with a sugar crust that cracks like ice on a puddle.$3.50 · Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday
Out of the oven
Two bakes a morning: bread first while the oven is fierce, then pastry as it settles. Whatever fits on the racks is what there is.
Small batches, early hours
Why 4:40
A loaf needs about two hours in a hot oven and an hour on the rack before it slices well. Lighting up at 4:40 is the latest we can start and still have bread on the counter when the door opens at 6:30.
Why it sells out
There is one oven and two bakes. We'd rather run out at noon than throw bread away at two, so the order-ahead shelf by the door is the surest way to get a morning bun on a Saturday.
What regulars say (sample)
Sample reviews written for this concept site. They are not from real customers.
"I set an alarm for the Saturday morning buns. Ordering ahead the night before changed my weekends."
"The sourdough lasts all week, if it makes it past Tuesday. The cortado is the best on the street."
"They wrote my son's name on his paper bag in big letters. Weeks later, he still brings it up at breakfast."
Order ahead, skip the line
Fill the bag, pick a time, and it waits on the shelf by the door with your name on it. Pay when you collect. Orders close at 8 p.m. the night before.
Concept form: it checks what you type and shows the confirmation, but nothing is sent anywhere.
It's on the shelf
Concept site: nothing was sent, and no one is baking it. This is how the real confirmation would look.
Find us on the corner
Where Larch Street meets Mill Row, two minutes from the footbridge. Look for the steamed-up window and the line on Saturdays.
| Tuesday to Friday | 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. |
|---|---|
| Saturday | 7:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. |
| Sunday | 7:00 a.m. to 1 p.m. |
| Monday | Closed, oven day off |
Sample phone, email and hours for this concept site.