Bread Ahead Bakery

Picked up a small loaf of white sourdough for £2.50 which seemed a reasonable price to me, but then I love bread so would pay a lot of money for it.
I’m not ashamed to say I ate four slices of it in one day, toasted with butter. It’s really delicious. Nice crispy crusts and slightly chewy bread with a good texture for the butter to sink into. I think it might be as good as my current favourite sourdough in Manchester (Uprising Bakehouse) and if I were London-​based I would definitely be going back for more.

On an early Saturday morning (say around 7 AM), I made the 20 minute trek in the freezing rain, like actual snow was falling from the sky, to Borough Market just for bread ahead’s donuts. I had previously extensively looked through all the Instagram photos and drooled at the looks at all the carbs, and decided to go get a donut the next morning. I was the very first customer that day and I tried a hazelnut and almond praline one. The filling to dough ratio was great, and I only wish that the donut was warm and freshly out of the oven. Regardless, worth.

Mmmm. This was my first stop at Borough Market because this place’s doughnuts are no secret — every Borough Market guide/​advice I’ve looked at seems to mention Bread Ahead and, in particular, their doughnuts. I actually visited their stall a couple weeks ago, but was too full to get a doughnut and opted for one of their almond balls instead (which I might add was pretty amazing too).
Now, I’m normally not a huge fan of doughnuts, but because of how hyped this place is I decided to try one of their Vanilla Crème ones (2.50 pounds). And… the first bite was AMAZING. The vanilla custard was phenomenal — creamy thick (but not too heavy) texture, perfect flavor, and just the right amount of sweetness. The actual doughnut surrounding was good too, but nothing special in my opinion (or maybe that’s just because I’m not usually a fan of doughnuts). The custard was definitely the star. If I ever were to get a doughnut again, it will have to be from here!

Probably some of the best doughnuts I’ve ever had.
I’d heard about Bread Ahead before coming to London, and so when we stopped at Borough Market, my friend and I split a salted caramel + honeycomb doughnut.
It was delicious. Not oversweet, but sweet enough to feel like you’re having a dessert. The filling to doughnut ratio was on point and the custard was flavorful. The doughnut itself is light but chewy — the perfect combination.
What was even better, however, was the bite of my friend’s vanilla custard doughnut I had. Classics do shine, apparently. It’s perfect in its simplicity.
The guys at the stand were nice and all the food looked amazing; if I’m ever in Borough Market again, I’ll definitely try some of the other things and maybe another doughnut.
Check out an in-​depth review & other London eats here:

Perhaps the best thing about Bread Ahead is that they are consistently trustworthy (read: they’re there on any day of the week in Borough Market).
The next best thing is that, because of this, I can go and get one of their incredible doughnuts everyday (really, I try not to). Their salted caramel honeycomb doughnut was the first I tried, and also my favorite (honeycomb fan here!!!). Don’t worry, they’re not too salty, and neither are they too sweet — just perfect.
Secondly, their bread is always fresh and moist. One day, I had a very quick lunch with a friend during which we had bought cheese from Neal’s Yard Dairy. We needed bread, and Bread Ahead saved the day! They didn’t have baguettes that day, but we grabbed one of their ciabattas and was surprised by its perfect crumb to crust ratio, especially considering its cost at 2 quid (a steal, duh!).
There are a lot of bread options to choose from at Borough during the weekends, but if you’re having trouble making up your mind… steer ahead to Bread Ahead.

Les meilleurs donuts du monde, sans exagérer du tout. J’ai opté pour le classique à la vanille et je né regrette absolument pas mon choix. Ce n’est pas trop gras, la pâte est fraîche, la crème hyper fraîche et bien parfumée à la vanille, bref un délice. J’ai tellement aimé que j’en ai rêvé haha (la folle ^^). Bref, foncez-​y !!

Great doughnuts, soft, fluffy and full of rich vanilla custard. The guy who served me was a twat.

Got the salted caramel doughnuts. Was nut disappointed! Love the honeycomb popping out of one end. One day I want to go to their bread school and learn to bake something.

Obscene. This is how one lady referred to these donuts when I almost about tripped over her as I saw this amazing piece of dough in her hands at Borough market. She told me they came from Bread Ahead and they were amazing and again, obscene. Something with that label had to be worth trying so I scoured the market and found them.
They had a few flavors to choose from so I picked up 3 as any normal person would. I opted for the salted caramel, hazelnut, and vanilla cream. The absolute favorite was the vanilla cream. When I bit into it I realized why this woman described these donuts as obscene. The filling was well, obscene. It was oozing out of it in so many ways it was hard to eat– in a good way of course! The vanilla filling almost tasted the vanilla custard you eat in a crème brûlée. Silky, slightly sweet, and the perfect touch of vanilla bean. The dough was complete perfection. Not cakey like some others but doughy and springy! With every bite I was, well looking a little obscene myself. It was one of the best donuts I’ve ever had and for being a donut fiend myself, that’s a lot to say.
Make sure you check them out at Borough market next time you’re in town!

Not the best doughnuts but really good ones, I tried the classic vanilla and it was full of cream. I have never eaten a doughnut with that much cream in and I loved it. However they use too much oil on the bakery, may be some people like it but I don’t.

I personally do not like donuts. Anyone who knows me knows I’m not a big fan of them. My boyfriend had heard about this place and when we passed by the stall, it just smelled divine so we ended up getting one. Turns out it was the best decision ever! They don’t skimp on the custard and there was so much flavor packed into it. Well worth a try! So yummy!

Best doughnuts around. Go there or be square!
Also I didn’t get to try any of their various delicious looking breads but my eyes nearly fell out of their sockets at the sight of them! So many different flavours!
Mmmmmmmm…

I bought one of the fabled doughnuts. I was amazed how heavy it was, until I bit into it and realised just how much vanilla cream was on there (maybe, should I dare say, a little too much?). I’m pretty sure my teeth are going to rot as a direct result of this doughnut, but it what they would’ve wanted

I first came across Bread Ahead when I ate one of their doughnuts at a food festival. It was oh-​my-​god good. Vanilla custard inside a beautifully fluffy shell, perfectly crisp on the outside. It’s meant to be very similar to the well received St John’s doughnut.
On the basis of that, the wife and I booked ourselves into an Eastern European baking class at their school in Borough Market. So following a quick share of another vanilla doughnut that morning, we went into the school on Saturday having done a couple of different cooking classes before so we knew what to expect.
It was said to be the first time that they’ve run this particular course, so of course they will change things over time but I thought what they had planned was really good. Not only did we learn how to make rye bread (which was surprisingly easy!!) but also babka dough which we made into cinnamon buns with a strudel topping and raspberry jam. Yum!
Our tutor Aiden Chapman was very engaging, and I’m keen to go back for another course as I enjoyed it so much. In fact, a couple of those in our class had been to other classes earlier in the week. The major plus points was that they obviously know what they’re doing — you’re literally being taught next to the bakery, and everyone makes their own stuff — none of this sharing with a partner. It wouldn’t have been a problem as we went as a couple, but I’ve been on my own to a class at other places and had to share everything with a total stranger. So none of that here. I’d recommend the classes here — among the best I’ve done.

Items Selected:
Bread Pudding
Almond Croissant
Ginger Molasses Cake
Salted Caramel and Honeycomb Donut
Located within the Borough market as both a small stall and a sizable school with classes offered to aspiring chefs as well as the general public it was actually my server at St. John that made me aware of Bread Ahead Bakery and with the skills of former pastry chef Justin Gellatly shaping the retail side of the operation I’m happy to say that little has changed since the young chef left to join partner Matt Jones and chase a dream. Surprisingly flying under my radar despite a reputation cemented by stints baking for the likes of The Royal Family it was just moments before the bustling market’s official 9 o’clock opening that I approached the small stall and with a team of three still laying out the day’s goods I took my time to peruse, the only limitation a cash-​only policy and my reticence to withdraw more pounds given my pending departure in just two days. Every bit the artisan experience with friendly servers and an awaiting line of locals in need of crusty baguettes and golden rolls of whole-​grains it was in far sweeter things that my intentions lied and with the croissant and donut easily identified necessities it was not until I read the menu that I realized there was so much more, a few pence left in my pocket as I walked away with a densely packed bag. Limited in seating even in the early morning hours but with plenty of space to relax in the parks nearby it was after a short walk that I sat down and unpacked my bounty and in an attempt to start ‘light’ I bit into the croissant, a great crunch belied by too much filling proving a slight disappointment with only good things to come — the following bites some of the best of my trip as a pillowy pocket of dough gave way to intensely salted caramel speckled with crunchy bits of honeycomb. Inexplicably eschewing the brownie, perhaps a mistake given Gellatly’s St. John pedigree, and instead investing in a duo of cakes to round out my morning sampling it was next the spicy complexity of a dense cake moist with molasses that I partook and with a sticky mess now made of my hands I turned to the pudding — a nearly half-​pound block of buttery bread and raisins dripping with golden syrup beneath a saturated sugar-​streusel top.

OH MY GOODNESS GO IMMEDIATELY AND GET A DOUGHNUT.
I’ll wait.
Bring me one?
…
See, told you! It’s literally the best custard doughnut I have ever had or could ever imagine. It’s big enough to share (or scoff and feel slightly ill) and at £2.50, it might seem a bit pricey but for the amount of vanilla-​bean-​flecked custard jammed inside (and oozing out), it’s really not.
The rest of their offering all looks beautiful, but it’s no surprise with the experience of the two men who set it up (one from Flour Power, and the other from St John’s… hence the doughnuts).

5 stars for the honeycomb doughnut with custard inside. Although packed with generous amount of custard, it was never too sweet or overwhelming. Also had a good brownie.

Although I am a keen amateur cook, I have several glaring deficiencies in my knowledge and experience. I’ve never tried to bake bread and rely on the shop-​bought variety
I needed some brioche to pair with chicken liver parfait that I had cooked for a dinner party. Bread Ahead Bakery came to my rescue yesterday at Borough Market when I nabbed the last brioche on sale for £3.50
Looking forward to toasting thick slices and serving it to my friends to eat with the parfait and homemade apricot chutney