Demetra Bread in Appleton

Demetra Bread started as a pandemic experiment and quickly became something much bigger. Angelo Popolare, who trained at Italy’s top culinary school and worked in Michelin-starred kitchens all over Europe and the U.S., had spent years cooking at the highest levels—but it was sourdough that brought him back to the basics. During lockdown, he began baking bread in his home kitchen in New York. What began as a way to pass the time quickly became a passion, and when Angelo and his wife Amanda moved to rural Appleton, Maine, they decided to turn that passion into a business.

The bakery lives in what used to be their garage, and while the space may be humble, the bread is anything but. Everything is handmade in small batches, with just flour, water, salt, and time. The sourdough rotates with the seasons—past flavors have included apple, roasted garlic and onion, cranberry walnut, and olive. He also makes baguettes and focaccia, which have become fast favorites. “We’re not salespeople,” Amanda says. “We just show up with bread, and usually once someone tastes it, that’s all it takes.”

Angelo bakes up to 600 loaves a week in the busy season, and supplies about 15 shops and restaurants around the Midcoast. Some customers have taken to timing their grocery runs around when Demetra delivers. (Amanda says they’ve gotten more than a few emails from people asking why the baguettes are always gone so fast.) At this point, the bakery goes through more than a ton of flour every month—and somehow, there’s still flour on everything they own.

Someday, they hope to open a retail bakery where people can walk in and buy bread straight from the oven. For now, they’re grateful to be doing something meaningful from home, and happy that what Angelo bakes with so much care is finding its way onto tables all over the Midcoast.

FAMOUS FOR:
Perfecting old-world sourdough with nothing but flour, water, and salt—plus a little magic. Their baguettes and focaccia fly off the shelves, with some customers timing their visits to snag a fresh loaf before it’s gone.

ADDRESS:
755 Peabody Rd in Appleton, ME

WEBSITE:
demetrabread.com

photos: Aaron Snow