Birmingham Breadworks

I adore this place and often walk from the office for lunch. Co-​workers love it too because I always return with amazing sweets to share. Just last week I had a slice of their hummingbird cake. Heavenly!
The only thing I wish they had was a great cup of espresso to go with the baked treats.
I also ADORE the space there. Beautiful muted earthy colors, brick and wood paired with strong WiFi make a perfect second office.
I’m so glad to have a place like this close to work.

Hands down best bread in Birmingham! The pastries are delicious. If eating lunch — try the Alabama Bird — delicious.

Wow! Even at the end of a baking day the French Bread was among the best I have ever eaten. Great crust, chewy interior and amazing taste. Can’t wait to go back to taste more of the menu.

Amazing food, and I’m so excited they’ve extended their hours. The location and design are great, and there’s always a sandwich and pizza special.
And a bonus for the tunes and service. They ran out of cookies while we were eating and offered to bake us more.

Delicious breads, salads and soup… Crimson and Orange pimento cheese is wonderful as is the B Ham sandwich with Ham and gruyère. Tomato cream soup is rich in flavor.

Sad that as Birmingham catches up to bigger and better cities in terms of quality food establishments, the staff at these new places seem to put most of their effort into setting new heights of snobbery and rudeness. The type of customer treatment which, ironically enough, successful businesses in more successful cities have gone out of their way to eliminate. We should be in the position to blend the best of sustainable, artisanal food with the kindness and attention to detail that the south is known for. These days you can’t swing a cat without hitting two or three chalkboard-​menu, reclaimed wood interior joints using b.s. terms like «aioli» and «farm-​fresh egg» to justify exorbitant pricing for standard fare. What sets Birmingham Breadworks apart from the rest? As it turns out, it’s that they just don’t need your business! Adding a bonus star to the review because maybe I’m the crazy one for wanting a sandwich at a bread shop at 10am, and maybe there’s more to a turkey sandwich here than getting the ingredients out of the fridge and placing them on any of the many breads clearly available. But I doubt that, and would think an independent restaurant would not need to be a slave to predetermined breakfast/​lunch hours.
All of that aside, this was our first visit, and when we asked if sandwiches were available (since all menus in sight showed what appeared to be lunch-​type options) the young lady behind the counter said gruffly «not until 11» and immediately turned around and walked away. Not even the slightest attempt at softening the blow, no counter-​offers of «we do have pastries and coffee now», or «what were you hoping to get?», or even silently indicating a list of breakfast options. Straight up walked away with a look like we’d asked her to lick the bottoms of our shoes rather than inquire about how we might spend our money at the place that cuts her paycheck. We were the only people at the counter. The giant kitchen was visible through glass and had several happy fellows leaning their asses on the prep table, shooting the breeze, no evidence of any prep or baking going on at all. I can’t imagine this place is already so far in the black that the hour between 10 and 11 can just be set aside as employee break time. There’s nothing here that looks special enough to ever get my money after making such a poor first impression. Anybody can bake bread and brew coffee, if you can’t even manage a few moments of attention or a patient smile for new customers, you’re not going to last long.

The Birmingham Breadworks is a great bakery! The fresh made croissants will melt in your mouth. I had a ham & cheese croissant that was good as I’ve ever had. The French baguettes are exquisite! The pastries and farm bread is also delicious.
It’s my understanding they provide the French Baguettes for all of Frank Stitt’s restaurants Chez Fon Fon, Bottega’s and Highlands.
I would strongly suggest The Birmingham Breadworks!

The best bread in town is found here. It is like eating at a Parisian café. My kids– 4 and 9 love it.

I think Birmingham Breadworks has some of the best bread in the area and it is affordable too! Their pastries are wonderful and their cookies are so delicious it’s upsetting. I have been there twice now: once for breakfast and lunch (I got caught up in a good book) and the second time just for lunch.
Their pain au chocolat reminded me of the ones I had when I went to Europe and they offer to warm it (a service that you will not regret). Their Vulcan Veggie sandwich (I had it twice) is delicious and extremely reasonable in price. The only thing about the sandwich is they changed the breads from brioche to sourdough without letting the customers know. For the type of sandwich it was, the type of bread matters and I probably wouldn’t have ordered the sandwich again if I had known.
They offer coffee, but be warned, they make it very strong (with visible dregs at the bottom). When I ordered coffee the first time, I was informed that they would need to make some more. That wouldn’t have bothered me if I hadn’t seen one of the employees pour out the last of the coffee into his own mug 3 minutes previous. He then preceded to grab a cookie and eat it in front of the line of customers. They forgot that I had ordered coffee so I had to go back up to the register and remind them.
When I ordered my sandwich (both times), the cashier never informed me, nor did the menu, that chips are included in the price of a lunch item. When my sandwich was delivered the first time, the man who delivered it did let me know, but the second time, no one told me. All that goes to say that the service is inconsistent and a bit confusing.

This place is my favorite new indulgence in town. The prices are unbeatable for the high quality of food that they serve (the beau and I usually split a sandwich+salad+soup). I haven’t tasted anything that I didn’t *love* and we’ve been several times. The salads are huge and fresh, the sandwiches constantly changing and very inventive, and the soups are comfort-​inducing yum. While I’m not a huge bread person, their pastries are delicious, particularly the cinnamon roll which is the perfect post-​Pepperplace Market Saturday morning indulgence. Pair all of this with kind staff and an interesting location and you get the coolest new kid on the restaurant block :)

This. Place. Is. Seriously. Good.
I’m not joking in case you didn’t get it. I’ve been a fan of their bread ever since I found out they supply the sourdough for «Melt Birmingham». It’s seriously the best sourdough bread I’ve ever had and it’s all homemade baby.
I finally got to go for lunch and had a pimento cheese sandwich. Their pimento cheese is one of the two best in town (the other being crestwood coffee’s). It had a nice chipotle flavor and it wasn’t too creamy (I know it’s a personal taste, so if you like super soft and creamy pimento cheese be warned.) They served it on fantastic bread, however they chose a very bitter type of green to go on the sandwich. Luckily there’s a little thing known as «picking it off»
It would have been great with a tomato on the sandwich, but I was informed that they didn’t have any. I begged the manager to start adding this to his pimento cheese sandwich now that heirloom tomato season is upon us!
The Thai Curry Soup had a great flavor, however, it seemed a little grainy — as if there was an emulsion that broke from using a dairy product without enough fat content or at too high of a heat level. It didn’t affect the flavor — it was so delicious i damned my manners and drank the last bit straight out of the bowl.
Their pizza uses fresh ingredients, however it’s served on a thicker California or Focaccia style crust which I’m not a fan of, just personal preference. If you like this style crust you’ll love their pizza.
Overall great food! Three stars for lunch and eleventy billion stars for their bread. I had a sad though because they were out of sourdough because it takes time to prepare the dough. Call ahead first!

I have only had pastries from Birmingham Breadworks and I can’t wait to try the sandwiches and pizza! The monkey bread is amazing and the chocolate croissant is perfection! I am so glad they have a storefront!

Stopped in to enjoy white bean chili, marguerite pizza, house salad & roast beef & Swiss on sourdough. Excellent bakery! I can see UAB from here.

Was happy to see a local bread business to move into Birmingham and was excited for lunch today but left in deep disappointment. For $ 11 I got two slices of bread, a piece of ham, a small side salad of greens tossed in vinaigrette, and a bag of Lays chips (which at a bakery I would home you could make your own but besides the point). I left very hungry. Never got a drink because I was never asked if I’d like one. Which leads to my second point.
The service was super weak. With enough staff that could run a Waffle House, I expected a tiny bit of service. Thanks for bringing my plate and walking right past the silverware and napkins I need… Oh I do get a bag of chips… I guess I’ll get up and walk across the room for the forth time to get them myself. I’ll bus my own table and refills. For $ 11 I could of had the exact same meal with 5 star table service at Chez Fonfon. I’m not kidding, see for your self –Croque Madame — French for «ham AND cheese» — 11.50.
My final point. I would have liked to purchase some bread, your signature product. But after paying $ 11 for lunch and terrible service, forget about it. You should be giving lunch practically away for free and hope people buy the bread. Instead you rob the customer on lunch discouraging them to never come back again. I had hopes of buying more bread locally but for now I guess I’ll stick with the store bought brand.
I really hate to be that guy but I feel like it’s the truth. This is what happens when you leave your customer hungry and with no money. I do realize this is a new business and may have some quirks to work out. The quality of the food was very good and I hope you can take this review as constructive criticism to make your dining experience just a little bit better.

Great local bakery in a new storefront
Used to get bread from them at Pepper’s Place and even asked if they had a storefront 2 years ago. Glad they made the move to get their own store. Their sourdough is outstanding. Perfectly tart with a great crust. I’ve used it with just about anything — my favorite being a grilled cheese, but it works well with a hearty tomato soup as a crusty bread to soak up the soup. Their french baguette is also great and stays pretty fresh over the course of 2 – 3 days. Perfect with cheese.
I haven’t tried any of their sandwiches, salads or pizza at their store but the great thing is each one has a meaty version and a vegetarian option, which I’m a big fan of. Also looks like a good place to study with espresso-​based drinks.
I’ll be coming back here often.

Stopped on my way to work at 7:55am, and the craisin bread I wanted to try was still in the oven. They did offer me a slice of the sourdough, which was good, but there just wasn’t much variety and no samples of anything else. The main disappointment is that they don’t have a day old rack like other bakeries so that you can try things out at a discount. Attractive spacious interior, though. I admit that maybe I’m more frugal than most, but a new establishment needs to offer more little samples. I think I’ll stick with Continental Bakery or Trattoria Centrale for a morning scone or biscuit because Breadworks doesn’t offer anything they don’t and far less variety, alas. Also, how about posting your daily specials and specialty breads on social media somewhere?

Been twice now for lunch – both times were fantastic. Overview: Pleasant, clean atmosphere in a revitalizing area of Southside. Lunch is affordable and very very tasty. Haven’t tried the pastries, but they look great.
First time I ordered a pizza (I think it was pepperoni with broccollini and ricotta) with side salad. Pizza was incredible. Whatever pepperoni they used was top notch – so good. The side salad was just dressed greens with homemade croutons (large, toasted crumbles of baguette). Salad was nothing special, but got the job done. (Don’t remember the price, but today slices of pizza were about $ 3 – 4).
Today, I ordered the Italian sausage sandwich with beer-​brown sugar mustard and caramelized onions. It all came on a baguette and the Italian sausage was served sliced. Wow. Truly spectacular. I liked that the sausage was sliced, as the sandwich really held together well. Also, the sandwich came with a bag of chips for $ 8 (they have options from Lays and Clancy’s – I opted for Clancy’s ranch-​flavored chips). Thought that was good value for the quality of food.
While I was waiting on my sausage, I perused the baked goods. They had some delicious looking hamburger buns (I’ll be back those – love using freshly-​baked buns). They also brought out a platter of humongous chocolate chip cookies that were all melty (I’ll be back for those, too). Cinnamon buns, almond cake, croissants, and other pastries are available.

FINALLY! Good things come to those that wait. And this was so worth the wait. Cory’s breads and pastries have always been some of the best around and they are all here and now available everyday. He just started serving lunch and all I can say is wow! We had the pizza and soup special with cauliflower pesto and pastachio pizza and carrot curry soup. Soup was rustic style with little bits of carrot still floating around and topped with creame freche. So wonderful.
Pizza was off the chain good. Great pesto with roasted cauliflower and bits of pistachio nuts. I could’ve eaten a whole pie.
So glad this has opened. Get here soon and try it. U will not b disappointed.

I’ve been eating their excellent croissants Saturdays at Pepper Place Market and it’s good to see them inside, presenting a wider range of breads. They’ve just opened so I expect more of them soon. The sourdough is good, the croissants remain wonderful, and I do prefer the ham and cheese, good cheese and proscuitto are hard to beat. Their cinnamon rolls are perfect, to my taste at least. We bought a loaf of wheat bread today and it’s good solid bread. They also have baguettes, multi-​grain and rye bread, and several other types of pastries.
There’s parking off the alley in the rear with an entrance off the parking, good to know since the new VA clinic is still under construction and has fouled up most of the parking on that strip of seventh avenue.
Breadworks is serving lunch 11:00 — 2:00. The menu varies daily, so check the website/​facebook page for the current menu. Generally there are two soups, 2 sandwiches, two pizza by the slice. Each of these will be one with meat, one vegie, and there is always a good salad to be had.

Heck yes! These folks know their way around some bread. This is mainly a bread and pastries bakery — as of now I don’t imagine cupcakes and brownies are gonna be on the menu. They do have several tables to sit down at, and they offer coffee and tea. The pastry case is modest, but everything in it is equally tantalizing!
So far I’ve tried the cinnamon bun, which was simple and delicious, and the ham and cheese croissant. They actually use proscuitto, a huge plus for this charcuterie fan, and a sharp white cheese. The outside in flaky while the inside is tender. Could have used a second or two in the microwave, but I won’t fault them for that! My dude got a cream cheese danish and he said it was fantastic as well.
The coffee is decent, though I might be a little preferential toward Octane’s vanilla lattes. Supposedly they are extending their hours in the future — I’m hopeful that this means some soup and sandwiches offerings! Fingers crossed, but if not, the pastries alone are worth the trip.