All Things in Moderation but for Truth, Adventure, and Goodwill. -Alimentaire Motto
This week Noms on the Run is featuring Alimentaire Wholesome Breads, a wholesome and nourishing bakery in my hometown of Tarboro, NC.
Tarboro’s History
Tarboro, the 9th oldest town in the state, is a growing, quaint town in Eastern North Carolina. Sitting 30 minutes from Greenville, NC, home of the ECU Pirates, Tarboro is rich in history. It holds one of two remaining town commons in the nation. It is home to a 45 block historic district (the largest in the state), a Veterans’ Military Museum, the Blount Bridgers House, North Carolina’s last original cotton press and so much more. I don’t mean to brag but we are also home of NFL player Todd Gurley.
In addition to gaining local dining sensation On the Square several years back, Tarboro’s downtown area has also gained a coffee house and Alimentaire, a fresh artisanal bread shop is located at 600 Trade Street. Alimentaire , which is French for alimental, means nourishment. This bakery focuses their baked goods on locally sourced ingredients that nourish the body. They strive to educate customers to live healthier lives and a more “resilient future for themselves, one another, and our planet.” Can’t argue with that.
Owners Steve and Franca Gilbert recognize that all places big and small need baked goods that focus on “nourishment over convenience, flavor over cost, and goodwill over profits.” That’s just love right there. They care about the big picture.
One of the times I visited, I quietly sat in the corner eating my croissant and drinking coffee. The owners and their family members (or friends perhaps) sat around the long farmhouse like table. Some eating but all chatting with each other about that days events. Good food and quality time with loved ones is what I witnessed. That’s one of the awesome things about Alimentaire.
The Real Deal
Consequently, when you bake with love the product is bound to be awesome. Alimentaire is the real deal bread. This ain’t bunny bread.
Instead of using preservatives and commercial yeast, they use levain. If you like big baking words like levain, then click here to find out more and how its used in their baked goods.
Menu
Every day breads
Baguette
Ciabatta
Whole wheat
White sandwich
Daily Breads
Tuesday-Seeded Multigrain
Wednesday-Rustic Farmer’s Loaf
Thursday-Asiago Cheese
Friday-Rosemary and Olive Oil
Now, about those pastries…
If you know me and follow this blog you will see that this is my favorite part of the job. Mrs. Gilbert’s pastries are used with a sourdough starter. Their pastry menu consists of waffles, cookies, bear claw croissants, chocolate/cheese and praline croissants, quiche like muffins (my 12 year old loved these), cinnamon wheels, scones and more. I’ve had their waffle, croissant, whole wheat bread and pinches of what my kids would share so I could taste test and everything is yummy. I highly recommend the croissants.
Want to see owner Franca Gilbert in action? Watch this short clip of the love and effort she puts into her delectable baked goods.
The Russian novelist, Fyodor Dostoevsky, wrote that “humanity can live without science, it can live without bread, but it cannot live without beauty. Without beauty, there would be nothing left to do in this life. Here the secret lies. Here lies the entire story.” But don’t take his word for it, see for yourself. See for yourself as you watch her move through her day, table to table, task to task, tending to her creation as if it were a child. And in a sense that is what it is, a child, a living, organic thing to nurture and shape, to raise to its full self. So much so that when you think of Alimentaire, it’s not the bread or baked goods that remind you of its meaning—to nourish and provide sustenance—but she. See for yourself when you step through the door and she greets you smiling, her hands covered in flour, her apron slightly askew, her eyes tired but attentive. She lives in the world in which she works, a world of measurement and weight, of thoughtfulness and also of findings. Where the journey is the purpose and the purpose, indeed, is beautiful, even when it seems not.To see for yourself the entire story is to rest knowing that while humanity might well live on without science or bread—or any number of things—it won’t have to because she and people like her are doing their very best, day in and day out, living their beautiful working lives so that you might walk in the door one day and stepping up to the counter with a wide, wishful grin exclaim, “It all looks so beautiful!”. Don’t believe me? Come in. See for yourself.
Posted by Alimentaire Wholesome Breads on Wednesday, November 6, 2019
In conclusion, Alimentaire’s family owned bakery bakes from the heart therefore making it a truly enjoyable place to visit. Above all, I know I will be nourished from a product that incorporates healthier and local products that seriously deliver in taste. Follow them on Facebook at Alimentaire Wholesome Breads. Most importantly, go there and enjoy!
Casey
Because, they said it so perfectly and I couldn’t possibly replicate their verbage, words in quotations were taken straight from their website.
Speaking of pastries, did you see last week’s post on Blueberry Cookies with Lemon Glaze? They can also pass for a scone. Click here to make them today!
The post Alimentaire: A Bakery of Wholesome Breads appeared first on The Considerable Cookie.
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