Zak The Baker
Vegan Pear Upside Down Cake
Pecan Pie
Flourless Chocolate Sea Salt Cookie
House Toast – Cashew Butter and Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam / Paradise Toast – Farm Honey and Butter
Located in Wynwood and closed on Saturdays in observation of Shabbat, Zak The Baker was an easy decision for early morning pastries on Sunday and arriving at the sizable bakery to find it almost entirely full a mere thirty minutes after opening the rumors of some of the city’s best pastries were quickly confirmed, the ever changing menu featuring several savories and baked breads alongside the sweets which we ordered – all of them seemingly finding resounding praise from a diverse crowd ranging from secular Jewish families to hipster couples happy to indulge in trendy avocado-topped toast.
Every bit the ‘working bakery’ with teams in the open kitchen readily visible mixing, kneading, arranging, and toasting as the front of house staff amicably answered questions and brought out orders it was with a trio of countertop-ready items that our meal began and with the pecan pie featuring a sort of praline surface overlaying a gooey base and pure butter pastry the flavors immediately wowed, an entirely vegan upside down cake only slightly less impressive due to an overly spongy texture beneath heavily spiced fruits while the flourless chocolate cookie proved to be amongst the best bites in all of Miami, the barely set center dark and rich with just enough salinity added to keep it from being one-note.
Acknowledging the fact that there were several meals to follow it was with some remorse that the table passed on additional baked goods but instead turning attention to a duo of toasted breads the results were again impressive, the nine-grain and sunflower selections topped plentifully with locally sourced and/or house-made accoutrements including intensely creamy butter beneath a drizzle of honey and freshly ground cashews topped with a dollop of housemade jam – the former a significant upgrade on any typical ‘side of toast’ and the later the sort of $5 indulgence that makes one question whether to accept plain ol’ PB&J ever again.
