Breads Bakery Brings Its Babka to the Upper East Side

Gradually, Breads Bakery has been expanding beyond its original 2013 flagship near Union Square, with locations near Lincoln Center and a kiosk in Bryant Park. Its latest addition is on the Upper East Side, opening Friday, in the space that was occupied by Maison Kayser on Third Avenue, with an airy, open floor plan and the baking in full view. Opening just before Thanksgiving, with several new items for the holiday like sweet potato rolls and a lemon ricotta pie, this new Breads will also be selling its pecan tart, savory squash tart and harvest babka (made with roasted sweet potatoes, onions and cheese). Nodding to some neighborhood specialties, the bakery has added an excellent marble rye bread made with upstate winter rye, and created its own version of a black and white cookie, often credited to Glaser’s, now gone from Yorkville, with a veneer of puff pastry enclosing a caky filling that’s both chocolate and vanilla. Salads and soups are sold, and sandwiches and spreads are coming soon. There is outdoor seating. In the spring the company will add a branch in Rockefeller Center.

Breads Bakery, 1294 Third Avenue (75th Street), 212-633-2253, breadsbakery.com.

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