The bread board at Rustica. Star Tribune file photo.
Rustica fans, take note: Sunday is the last day that customers can stop in for bittersweet chocolate cookies and canadas de Azucar at the bakery's 46th-and-Bryant home.
Next week is going to be a busy one for co-owners Steve Horton and Tammy Hoyt and their crew. They're going to take a few days to clear out their old space and get up to speed in their new -- and much roomier-- address, located in the Calhoun Village shopping center. Along with the goodies we've come to adore, Horton and Hoyt are adding a coffee component from Bull Run Roasting.
The new space -- it's roughly twice as large as the bakery's current home -- means that Horton and Hoyt will be able to expand their product line, including savory tarts. Just not right away. They've got to spend a few weeks working out the kinks of their new digs, as well as navigate a small event called Thanksgiving. "We've got a few balls up in the air," said Horton with a laugh.
The bakery's sandwich collaboration with Corner Table restaurant will continue, with a slight alteration. In the new place, Corner Table chef Scott Pampuch will provide the ingredients and Rustica will build the sandwiches; right now, Rustica ships its breads to the restaurant, Pampuch assembles them and delivers them back to the bakery.
"We're looking forward to continuing and extending our relationship with Corner Table," said Horton. "We're going to be talking about adding things like soups and nosh plates. We'll be relying upon Scott's expertise to create a savory line for us."
Chocolate-ey goodness from Rustica. Star Tribune file photo.
Thursday (Nov. 19th) is the scheduled opening day. Few strip malls have this kind of culinary critical mass: Rustica 2.0 joins Punch Neapolitan Pizza, Burger Jones and Little Tel Aviv. Not bad, right?
