Studio Estepan Has Serious Bread Game in the East Bay

[Studio Estepan shares a space with pastry chef Melissa Chou’s bakery, Grand Opening. Read about their pastry offerings to get the most out of your visit to O2.]

What to order

• Okay, yes, Korean salt bread is everywhere at trendy bakeries, and yes, I nearly recommend all the salt bread I have come across this year, but this time I mean it: order all the salt bread here. There were just two options during my visit — nori ($5) and plain ($4) — but both were captivating in their own ways. The addition of nori added an umami undertone to the bread, while the plain demonstrates the blueprint of what salt bread should be: a soft, pillowy interior encased in a taut, glossy crust that yields an incredible bite with each mouthful.
• The blue corn concha ($4.50) is one of the oft-mentioned, go-to items in Silva’s repertoire with good reason. It’s not exactly a surprise that the bready interior is excellent, just like much of everything else I tried here, but it’s the blue corn topping that makes it stand out. The sweet, but not-too-sweet, concha topping hits a distinct, earthy note that is unmistakably blue corn. It’s a standout.
• Perhaps controversial, but I’m telling all the pretzel fiends (and sausage fiends!) to get both the cheddar sausage pretzel ($8) and the salted pretzel ($5). I say this because, phew, I’m not sure where the sausage is from, but it is really good (especially for a post-line nibble) with lots of cheddar packed in. The downside is that the cheddar overwhelms the pretzel exterior, which is where the salted pretzel comes in handy, as a standalone example of what Silva can do with a Bavarian soft pretzel.
• Of the breads, the shokupan was my favorite of the selections, which included pain au levain, fruit nut bread, baguette, and shokupan. Both the shokupan and baguette come in half-sizes. I snagged a demi-baguette ($4, $6 for full size), a half-loaf of shokupan ($8, $15 for full size), and fruit nut bread ($8); there’s nothing technically wrong with any of these options, I just found the shokupan infinitely more useful for my weekend purposes (a breakfast sandwich and a leftover meatloaf sandwich). For anyone with a nostalgic love for Sun-Maid cinnamon swirl raisin bread like me, you will like the fruit nut bread, although it is a much denser version than the grocery store brand.

The vibe

The first thing that will strike you about Studio Estepan is the line. It’s an unfortunate byproduct of any bakery’s popularity, but it’s how you’ll know you’re in the right place. On a recent Saturday, I was among those queueing ahead of Studio Estepan’s announced 10 a.m. opening, determined to get a shot at the full lineup of goods, lest something sell out (which things do). The crowd waited outside the gates of the O2 Artisans Aggregate, before being let into the inner parking lot. The line snaked out of the building, a hodgepodge of groups pleasantly chatting, solo adventurers reading books on their Kindles, and folks caught up on their podcasts (Me).

It’s easy to zone out until you reach the door. It took about 45 minutes for me to reach the front of the line. Arriving, I was immediately reminded of why I was here: delicious bread, whose smell wafts throughout the tiny space, luring in customers like cartoon characters floating toward pie. It’s there you’ll see Silva tending to the ovens by the door early in the day, and it’s where I first saw pans of salt bread pulled fresh from the oven. The smell was everything, and it’s the first indicator that you’re in for a treat.

The takeaway

Look, listen: I know I’m here to guide you through an order at Studio Estepan. And I know I’ve mostly failed, seeing as how I recommended nearly everything I’ve bought — about 85 percent of the menu — even with a few items that were good but fell to the cutting room floor (I haven’t forgotten about you, olive ficelle!). But if I can win you over to my side, I’ll say to take this as a glowing endorsement of Studio Estepan, in that it’s nearly impossible to put together a bad order. And as a seasoned professional line-waiter, I take my duties seriously and am loath to recommend a line that isn’t worth it — and believe me, there’s substance behind the hype. This is one line to wait in, if you take your carbs as seriously as I do. I’m sorry, but also, you’re welcome.