Rebel Bread has revolutionized the baking scene in Denver since its inception in 2018. Founder Zach Martinucci shows his expertise in San Francisco sourdough, ensuring each loaf is airy and chewy. Martinucci’s Denver danishes forgo the typically laminated crust and instead opt for a sweet or savory filling in double-baked brioche. But regardless of what is on the menu, Martinucci believes in the community that breaking bread leads to, and this is what has led him to his next venture called the Bread Club.
Martinucci is forging relationships between customers and an entire web of micro-bakeries around town through this subscription service. He sparked this idea through his podcast ”Against the Grain.” In its episodes, discussion points are meant to spark conversation between community members about their relationship with food.
Subscriptions to the gym decreased with the pandemic, while food deliveries increased, and this laid the foundation for Bread Club. It is a delivery service that brings artisanally-crafted bread and pastries to your front porch for an extra $4 added to the order. This ensures that the grocery-sliced bread provided by Instacart is not Denver’s only option when looking for an alternative to shopping.
Both delivery and pick-up take place every Thursday. Deliveries will run between 7:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. MDT. Their production lab is their designated pick-up location at 675 S Broadway just off I-25 from 9 a.m to 2 p.m. Orders must be placed at least 3 days prior to delivery or pickup.
The club subscription is flexible. You can skip weeks when off on vacation, have a one-time run, or continue for years on end. They are baking all the time, waiting for any and all to order a box.
Rebel Bread suggests a box of 1 loaf and four pastries–because pastries come in sets of two–but it is customizable to fit any household. The maximum order would include 4 loaves of bread and 8 pastries.
Sadly, Rebel Bread’s entire menu is not able to make its way into a weekly box, but it creates excitement surrounding which ones received the lucky call-up. Their tried-and-true specialties like the San Francisco sour will always make an appearance and the same goes for the chocolate croissant. Fans will get to know their creative flavors after being subscribers for long enough or by heading to their weekend counter for an extra fix.
The cacio e pepe croissants have speckles of black pepper and an extra finish of grated Parmigiano. Monkey bread goes savory with their everything bagel puff. Little brioche balls are rolled in everything bagel seasoning, and the entire puff gets a cream cheese dijon filling. The olive fougasse is a derivative of their ciabatta bread. It has been uniquely shaped to encourage ripping rather than being kindly sliced.
Mantinucci is not just excited to bring Rebel Bread into the homes of many; the club is meant to highlight his baker friends as well.
“Rebel Bread has always been rooted in community, so this was our next step in expanding that,” says Mantinucci. The club is growing into an outlet that more local bakeries can use to effortlessly get their products to customers.
Free Bake is one of the first members to join alongside Rebel Bread. This Boulder and Denver-based baker brings a refreshing mix of both sweet treats and a swell-risen loaf. Her rotating menu at her current order site includes: iced pop tarts with in-season fruit, babka using a sourdough starter and pierogies. Free Bake will be open for delivery in June.
There is nothing exclusive about this club–any bakers are encouraged to reach out to Rebel and ask about getting their goods into the queue. Get in touch with the team here. As communities reunite and a state of normalcy emerges, Bread Club will surely be a business that lasts.
