If you’ve visited London recently, you may have stopped by a cute little artisanal bakery called GAIL’s – offering fresh bread, handmade pastries and speciality coffee. Where is it? Oh, just on pretty much every street corner! An almost cult-like following has seen this artisanal bakery/chain cafe conquer the capital.
The first bakery opened in Hampstead in 2005, but it boasts over 100 branches across the UK – most of which are in London. If you wanted to find out what all the fuss is about in the South West, you’d have to travel to Oxford (where you’d find three GAIL’s). Well, until today (May 2) anyway.
Bristol can now experience GAIL’s for itself. Opening in Clifton Village on Regent Street, between The Clifton and Shelter Charity Shop, you can get your hands on sourdough bread, sweet and savoury bakes, freshly made sandwiches and house-blend speciality coffee.
Jacqueline Lotter-Raines, Bakery Manager at GAIL’s Clifton Village said: “The team and I are really looking forward to welcoming everyone through our bakery doors very soon. You can expect freshly baked sourdough, sweet and savoury bakes, sandwiches and house-blend speciality coffee made with the very best ingredients, some of which are sourced just a few miles away.
“Whilst baking is important to us, we’re also committed to supporting our local community, so we’ve chosen Loaves and Fishes and Feed The Homeless as our nominated charities. Through our partnerships, we want to champion the work that these incredible organisations do, so we really are making positive impacts wherever we bake.”
Feed the Homeless is a grassroots charity that has provided frontline homelessness support in Bristol through hot nutritious meals. Meanwhile, The Five Loaves and Two Fishes Project (‘Loaves and Fishes‘) is run by the Sisters of the Church in St Paul’s Bristol – which gives out around 250-300 food parcels per week, as well as hot drinks and sandwiches at its base in Montpelier. The bakery in Clifton will also champion several south-west producers, such as Shipton Mill flour, Quicke’s dairy and biodiversity champions, Wildpress.
Only one question remains: Will it be able to compete with the best bakeries in Bristol? Only time will tell. But when places like Farro in St Pauls are regularly name-dropped as among the best in the country, and Wilson’s Bread Shop can serve koji-cured bacon rolls and mezcal bloody mary – Gail’s has a mountain to climb.
To learn more about Gail’s head here.