Features 0

Midnight Rising

By Southern Grit · On September 5, 2016

Article & photography by Fitz

(Lead photo of Baker Emily Oyer at The Bakehouse at Chelsea)

The next time some jaded Hampton Roads resident in your general vicinity spouts off about how behind the times our local food scene is, tell them to visit The Bakehouse at Chelsea. Ironically enough, it’s located next to The Birch in Chelsea which was ranked the number 5 best bar in America by USA Today. Over the last two years, The Bakehouse at Chelsea has risen to prominence among serious eaters for its lovingly made leaven-based assortments of bread, its rustic plethora of delectable pastries, and simply the best, legitimate, wood-fired brick oven pizzas. It stands firmly for what is uniquely available to eaters in Hampton Roads despite recently finding itself more in flux in terms of its internal workings than ever before.

(Oyer after midnight in front of the Vermont made wood fired brick oven at The Bakehouse)

At present, it’s a night shift of young millennial female bakers led by Emily Oyer that meticulously produce the bread which sets the standard for baking in our area. Above them, and ultimately calling the shots, is owner John McCormick who, from the beginning, has distinguished The Bakehouse at Chelsea by putting his energy into ensuring a superior product rather than a large profit margin via mass production. It was a bold move, no question about it, but one rooted in experience. As he explained to me, “I took a beating at Rowena’s”, his former bakery. “Rowena’s was more a mass production operation. We often did large QVC promoted orders. I was trying to get a solid pipeline in place but it just wasn’t there.” This would not be his approach at The Bakehouse. It would be about attention to detail and producing the best quality bread possible, even if that meant throwing away batches of bread not up to snuff.

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To set his new plan in motion, McCormick began by securing head baker Jonathan Highfield and two Vermont artisan made brick ovens. It can’t be overstated how intrinsic these two components were to making The Bakehouse into what it is today. Highfield brought to the table the formulas that would broaden the palates of those that love quality bread, while the ovens McCormick secured served as the perfect tools for bread production of a quality unmatched locally. As Oyer explained to me, “Jonathan [Highfield] had the formulas and John [McCormick] had the vision.” In the first two years at the Bakehouse, the combination of McCormick’s new approach to business and Highfield’s refined baking, elevated our food scene substantially. The bread at The Bakehouse wasn’t just good locally, it was good period!

(Jonathan Highfield- Former Head Baker at The Bakehouse and former instructor of Emily Oyer)

Recently, however, Highfield left the Bakehouse at Chelsea to work in Richmond and have more time with his family. Had someone other than Oyer taken the baking reins in his departure, there may have been grounds for concern of quality waning. Oyer, however, was a student at The Culinary Institute of Virginia under Highfield who used to teach there. Further, Highfield brought Oyer on to The Bakehouse after her departure from Hearth. Couple that with Oyer’s confident assertion that she saw her mentors departure less as a concern and more that it was “[…] my time now”, and it’s likely safe to say Highfield’s’ ambitious former student is quite focused on maintaining the standard her mentor set.

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In fact, Oyer sees the present as an opportunity to build on the legacy Highfield started. As she explained, “It’s an opportunity for me to experiment. The focaccia bread for example used to be two set favors. I have completely blown that up. Now it rotates. It can go from bacon cheddar, to sun dried tomato with Kalamata olive and fontina, to mushroom with onion Parmesan and mozzarella. We are now doing garlic Parmesan demi baguettes and jalapeño cheddar bread. I’ve also started using the focaccia for the Summer Solstice pizza. It’s really about how I’m feeling that day.”

(Left to Right- Challah, seeded Bakehouse, Bakehouse pan loaf)

Before Oyer was experienced enough as a baker to play with flavor profiles and experiment, she first found her passion for bread and baking when, as she put it, “[…] I walked in a real kitchen at school and smelled fresh bread baking.” As she further explained to me, “It may sound funny but it’s the smell… The first time I smelled bread baking in class, I knew this was what I was suppose to be doing.”

(Oyer baking bread in the Vermont made wood fired brick oven)

Oyer has come a long way to now head up the bakers at The Bakehouse at Chelsea. A year ago when she left Hearth in Virginia Beach, she did so disgruntled. As she bluntly put it, “It was a learning experience for the type of environment I didn’t want to work in. While I did feel like I learned there, and I am friends with them, I just felt they didn’t take me very serious.” At The Bakehouse on the other hand, McCormick has by all accounts been more supportive to Oyer’s desire to expand her craft and experiment.

(Pastry Chef Stacy Warber after midnight at The Bakehouse in Chelsea)

It’s compelling watching Oyer and her crew, Stacey Warber and Lexy Garland, work through the night. Among the aromas of fresh bread baking and pastries firing, when others their age may be out dancing and drinking the night away, these Millennials are elbow deep in dough. At a pace restrained enough to put real love into the execution of their craft, they’re kneading, shaping, mixing and prepping bread and pastries better than anywhere else locally. Besides the Beiber pumping through the speakers, it’s a wonderland in there for the senses of any serious eater.

(Pastry Chef Lexy Garland after midnight at The Bakehouse)

It should be noted that in the grand scheme of things, The Bakehouse at Chelsea is quite young. They have only been around a little over two years. However, in that short time, they have produced bread, pastries, and pizzas that are undeniably amazing. I say this not just in a local sense but country wide. From the trans-formative baker who brought the formulas, to his confident student that’s now eager to take the reins, as long as owner McCormick sees fit to continue to put true quality first, The Bakehouse at Chelsea will remain one of the most important food destinations locally. Don’t believe me? Then you haven’t had their bread yet.