Hello, my name is Sarah Dodge. I own and solely run my company: BREAD IS GOOD in Atlanta, GA. Yes, I am a professional baker meaning I do it as my profession...professionally - like any other professional job!! All of my breads are sourdough ( ie naturally fermented) and all of my products use good ingredients, local and regional where possible, but also sourced elsewhere when I know it’s higher quality elsewhere. Ordering is available on my website each Friday at 10 am at sedodge.com. My dogs’s name is Fergus and he is a “national treasure.” He is overweight. I love running, I drink way too much coffee, and during the pandemic, I became addicted to television and eating ice cream everyday. And I LOVE when people all the instructions before asking questions!

I’ve never done one of those introduction things before because I think they’re kinda weird, but finishing up a very needed vacation has me hankering for a professional reset and it makes this all seem slightly less wretchful and more PROACTIVE, so here we are. Also, as the world opens up again, as we contemplate how to run businesses and be better consumers of the world it feels like a good time to define, redefine and recommit to being a baker in #atl and who and what I am professionally. Also, literally I don’t know most of you which is strange so an introduction seems healthy.

Instagram has become a weird pace for me over the past couple of months. I’ve felt annoyed by it (how it can feel like a popularity contest and a comparison death trap especially in ATL-have a lot of thoughts on that but I will spare you), I’ve been in awe of it (how it can spread important social messages all of the world), and I’ve also felt been dumbfounded by it (how can I watch the same DUMB TIKTOK VIDEO SO MANY TIMES IS LEGITIMATELY BEYOND ME AND LIKE IS THIS WHO WE ARE EVOLVING INTO AS A SPECIES?!). 2020 and into 2021 has been a personally transformative time. I removed and improved a lot of toxic habits and relationships, and I added so many good habits that have literally expanded the wonder and joy in my life 10 fold. As many of you know, I became a long distance runner during the pandemic and it’s true, that when you push your body to new limits, your mind and your sense of what you are capable of literally just EXPANDS. It really is amazing. I have experiences such an expansion into the world and it’s been humbling, but its also strange as I realized that I’ve grown personally, but stalled professionally and the sense that I’d outgrown a lot of parts of my business became something I can’t ignore anymore.

My work has been beginning to naw at me these past few months. For a year plus now I feel like I’ve been running a marathon that I had zero training for (yes, I know a lot of people in lots of different professions have felt this). But i think a lot of us can agree that being in the food service industry has had some very specific caveats of pain, suffering, confusion, and LOSS. I’ve realized while on this needed relaxing vacation that I’ve straight up become exhausted and maybe even finally understood what it truly means to be exhausted. And when you’re so exhausted its hard to really see that as a result my work and baking have become tired- surviving all the ups and downs and backs and forths and openings and closings and to-gos and for-theres of being a food business during covid. BUT ALSO the thriving of sourdough bread and being annoyed by that and wanting to tell everyone to please just stop and trust and buy from a professional and then feeling really bad about that but not really.

So the goal in the coming weeks is to go from tired, exhausted, and LANGUISHING to pumped up and back to baking like the enthusiastic bread freak so many of you know me to be

BREAD IS GOOD LLC started almost 4 years ago after deciding to leave restaurants and specifically after helping open 8ARM and losing someone I loved dearly, someone who was for a long time my biggest professional cheerleader (it’s come to my attention what a hole that still is and will never be filled no matter how hard I wish for it). So, here I am 4 years into Bread is Good, almost 10 years into being a BAKER (like WHATTTT?!) starting out with Rob Alexander at H&F Bread when it was a much smaller scale bread operation, moving into pastry for 2 years at Little Tart Bakeshop as their first hire which is bonkers to think about, and then onto 100 million restaurants and partnerships - some good, some not so good. And now 2021- a toddler business with room to GROW - surviving and sometimes thriving via bread subscriptions, bread and pastry pickups, teaching, and so much more potential if I just don’t get in my own way. I am a team of 1.5 looking to responsibly and sustainably expand in the coming months. I work out a commercial kitchen space in Inman Park that has a perfect little service window right off the beltline (blessing and a curse ). FYI- opening a brick and mortar bakery is really not in my list of to-dos for one hundred million reasons which maybe I’ll share one day, but yeah, some of y’all can stop asking bout that. I LOVE teaching private and am amped to return to public bread and pastry workshops hopefully soon. I am passionate, indignant, and maybe a pinch self righteous (sure whatever maybe argumentative) about food (particularly good sourdough bread) and it’s connection to the earth and how we can be better stewards of the earth in how we eat and consume. I believe community is the most important and how we grow, produce, sell, serve, SUPPORT OTHERS AND THE SYSTEM, and consume as individuals and communities is intrinsic to the health of our society and it’s economy in the world view and where we move forward from here.

I also love writing and I am LONG WINDED and here are some ways I want to incorporate that and other things moving forward:

MORE EMAIL COMMUNICATION, LESS INSTAGRAM COMMUNICATION- sign up for the email newsletters on the bottom of this page, It’ll most likely be weekly or every other week. But I want to get out of relying on instagram for sales.
INSTAGRAM USE- more courage in posting breads and pastries and things I’m working on- sometimes I think who the fuck cares about this gorgeous piece of bread when the world is suffering and also it just feels so narcissistic and self serving but I really do love what I do and sharing it with y’all is apart of that. I really don’t use instagram for my personal life because it’s my PRIVATE LIFE and I WANT TO KEEP IT PRIVATE and it makes me happier to keep those things to myself. Please note, I DO HAVE FRIENDS and they rule and I love them but idk in an effort to be present my friends and family- I’ve drawn a hard line on what I want to keep to myself in this world where so many feel they have to SHOW so much. I will post about Fergus and his weight, travel and scenery I like, animals, charities and organizations to get involved with, social issues that I find important, running, and obviously work. If those things don’t appeal to you, then see yourself out!
SUBSCRIPTIONS: May will be the last month for subscriptions (sign up will open 4/30 at 10am) before we take a summer pause. I believe there will be a lot of traveling this summer and it just doesn’t seem financially to be the best model. I will be doing more one off options and pickup options for the summer months. If all goes according to plan subscriptions will resume SEPTEMBER.
PDF MENU POSTINGS AND OPTIONS- for wholesale and catering options as well as new WEEKEND walk up pastry and bread offerings!
WEBSITE REDO!!! SOOOON
FRIDAY BAKING HOW-TO QUESTION AND ANSWER SERIES!!!!!!! I answer a baking question of y’alls each friday, I am so excited about this! More info to come!
More avenues for teaching!

Ok besos and bread, y’all. Thanks for reading and being good to me and loving bread!

Sarah