The story of Brandywine Valley Bread began with tradition. Fran and Maria, the dynamic husband-wife duo, met at Fran’s family restaurant in 2004. They have spent their life working together in the restaurant industry, but over the years, the couple has solidified their own legacy, with their bakery here in Downingtown.
One year, Fran and Maria traveled to Sicily to visit Maria’s family. It turned out to be a trip that changed their lives. While enjoying quality family time, they were able to taste naturally leavened bread. This kind of bread rises using a natural starter, instead of commercial yeast. The starter is made of active yeast, flour, and water, which then goes through a fermentation process to achieve the leavening of the bread.
With his experience in cooking and baking, Fran was fascinated by the new product. “He questioned why and how this simple loaf of bread was out-of-this-world good and how he could recreate it,” Maria explained.
After returning to the U.S., Fran immediately dove into the learning process. What started as a fun hobby has grown into a successful business. Fran made his own naturally leavened bread for their second-born child’s first birthday party and centered the other food around this star dish.
“Everyone at the party couldn’t stop raving about the bread.” Maria said. “When we told them Fran made it, they suggested we sell it.” At the time, their family’s and friend’s kind words were just a delightful compliment; something they could be proud of and have fun with.
Fran went on to feature the bread as a weekend special at the local pub he worked at. The bread didn’t just appeal to family and friends, but also patrons at the pub. After Maria got pregnant with their third child, they knew it was time for another stream of income. Fran would bake during the day to sell their bread at local farmers markets before heading into his pub gig at night. The response was explosive and Brandywine Valley Bread was officially born – right around the same time as their third bundle of joy.
A week after the birth of their third child, in July 2018, Fran and Maria got the keys to their bakery, located in Caln Village at 3941 Lincoln Highway in Downingtown. Brandywine Valley Bread opened their doors to the public on November 11, 2018.
Locally Owned and Locally Grown
The baking process always starts a day ahead. “Fran will mix, shape, and fold all the loaves to tuck them away for their fermentation overnight,” explained Maria. “Then, in the early hours of the next morning, he’ll score the loaves and bake them.”
Bread, bagels, pastries, and focaccia go through the overnight fermentation process; ready for their customers to walk through the door at 8 AM.
Not only is the bakery locally owned and operated by Fran and Maria (you’re sure to have Maria take your order at the counter most, if not all, days) but they also put an emphasis on shopping local as well.
“We use organic grain that’s grown in Halifax and we use eggs, butter, and milk from Lancaster County.” Maria said. As a business that started out at the area’s farmers markets, they still frequent them to purchase local produce.
Quality is just as important as local. Fran and Maria don’t believe in cutting costs by reducing the quality of their product. Simple, healthy, and delicious food is the backbone of their recipes. Their bread only has three ingredients; water, flour, and salt.
A Rotating Menu You Won’t Be Disappointed With
Every day, the Brandywine Valley Bread menu changes. With so much to offer, there’s no room for disappointment. Their rotating bread menu includes:
- Pane Bianco: Plain, sifted wheat sourdough
- Semolina: Semolina flour into a sourdough loaf
- Seeded Ancient Grain: Einkorn, emmer, and spelt grain which is seeded with sunflower and pumpkin seeds
“Our menu rotates because we have so many amazing products that we love and there’s not enough time or man power to make them all every day, so we rotate them to have everything available throughout the week.” Maria explained. If Fran and Maria didn’t believe in their products, it simply wouldn’t be on the menu
On Thursdays, they make a seeded caraway rye and also rotate their raisin walnut loaf. While bread may be their first love, we can’t forget about their pastries and bagels. Brandywine Valley Bread’s morning bun is always on the menu, which is their croissant dough rolled with brown sugar and cinnamon dusted off with cane sugar. Other varieties of pastries include plain butter, chocolate, and almond. There are many permanent bagel flavors on the menu, such as plain, sesame, salt, poppyseed, cheddar, and everything. Depending on the type of peppers they get from local farms, jalapeño and chili peppers bagels are available some days.
“We aren’t afraid to explore new flavors for bagels. During football season, we made long hot and copper sharp bagels.” Mari said.
Brandywine Valley Bread’s bagels and bread are always vegan, with the exception of their cheddar variety.
What pairs better with a warm, toasted bagel or sugary pastry than a cup of coffee or tea? Their drink menu is expansive; something for every season! Of course, you can find traditional lattes, cappuccinos, and macchiatos. Stop into the bakery to see some of their other offerings, such as butterfly pea tea. Fran and Maria have a great relationship, one they truly cherish, with their coffee supplier, Elixir Coffee, which is roasted in Philadelphia. They even make their own syrups – real ingredients only! You won’t find any fillers or artificial flavoring at Brandywine Valley Bread.
Alternative milks, such as oat milk, and vegan cream cheeses are available for those with dietary restrictions.
Kneading Together to Create Community
Fran and Maria are a well-oiled machine, both in their personal and professional lives.
“We met at his family’s restaurant after high school, so we don’t know anything else other than working together.” Maria said.
They blend together, falling perfectly into their designated roles. Maria works the front of the bakery, taking orders and chatting with customers. Fran is quiet and reserved, tending to the loaves in the back of the bakery. When necessary, the duo can move in silence, dancing in perfect unison to a rhythm only they can hear.
At Brandywine Valley Bread, family and community come first. If you stop in the bakery, you may get the chance to meet some of Fran and Maria’s children.
“We bring our kids to work,” Maria said. “I wore two of the babies in a baby wrap when they were younger. This is truly a family-owned business. Everyone knows our kids!” The children love to be in the bakery, snacking on baguettes, tomato pie, or an everything bagel. Fran, Maria, and their children view their customers as their extended family; always happy to see those familiar faces.
Brandywine Valley Bread strives to get the community together, connecting over a nice loaf of bread.
“We believe that what we do can weave a fabric of positive relationships and experiences that stretch from our bread ovens out into the world.” said Maria.
Fran and Maria know their guests make the conscious choice to spend their money at the bakery and they’ll never let anyone feel less than what they deserve.
Brandywine Valley Bread is open Wednesday – Sunday, 8 AM to sellout. Keep up with this local business here.
*All article photos belong to Brandywine Valley Bread.
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