Bubble and Brown Morning Shop
The process of making caramel involves carefully heating sugar and water together until it bubbles and then browns. Done right, it is complex and deep and rich. (Done wrong, it’s a sweet, black enamel lining your saucepan.) The same care goes into Chef Andrew Scott Young’s Bubble & Brown Bakery, which borrows its name directly from the artistry that goes into a good batch of caramel. And like caramel, Young’s flavors are complex and deep and rich. Young has made a name for himself at the local markets with his scones and tarts since 2014. In late spring of this year, Bubble & Brown Bakery opened a new morning shop in the lower level of Church & State in downtown Salt Lake City.
The concept of a morning shop is new to Utah, but the idea is obvious. Morning is the most popular time for pastries and baked goods. “Though the convenience of all-day bakeries is nice, we don’t bake stuff all day long,” Young says. “We bake once in the morning for our entire day (which ends at 1 p.m.) and we close when we consider it to be too old to enjoy or when we sell out—I’m not here to sell you day-old, or even later-that-day-old pastries.”
Young’s use of fresh, seasonal, non-GMO, pesticide-free, local-whenever-possible produce also sets Bubble & Brown apart from the Utah pastry pack. He partners with local growers, so you’ll find fruit and vegetables from Riley’s Farm Fresh, 3 Squares Produce and Larsen’s Farms in everything from savory scones and tarts to rustic cakes and crumbles.
The menu shifts according to what produce is at its peak. “If I’m not happy with a strawberry’s natural sweetness then I’m not going to serve it. Others may dress it up with sugar and other flavors, but we don’t use extra sugar as a flavor. Never have. Never will,” says Young.
Bubble & Brown is a pastry frontrunner because natural flavors do all the talking. One tart starts with local peaches, halved and roasted at a high temperature to concentrate their natural sugars and caramelize their edges. Peeled, sliced, tossed with fresh thyme, sea salt and cardamom, they are nestled in a buttery tart shell. Simple. No extra sugar needed. “It’s about making something I know someone will enjoy, without guilt, because it tastes good, and it’s okay to eat things that taste good,” says Young. “I’ve been baking since around the age of 11. My grandmother Jean is an amazing baker and my grandfather Raul was a fantastic cook—I grew up surrounded by food made from the heart, and it’s their passion that drives me.”
370 S. 300 East, SLC
385-212-4998
