Community Loaves

Update: Now that I’ve patronized this fine bakery more times than the average person, I can say this is one of my favorite places to get fresh baked bread. After educating myself a little about the benefits of true sourdoughs and how they’re correctly made, I feel doubly lucky to live so close. Community Loaves is the real deal and if you’re looking for healthy bread that is made right, look no further. Not only are their products beautiful, they are healthy and delicious, too.
I don’t really have a «favorite» treat because it’s all so yummy (see my pics), but when the season’s right I absolutely love their fruit tarts. The croissants, of course, are delicious and buttery. And their whole baked breads (all sourdough because that’s how bread should be made) are really second to none. Definitely a quality bakery with ultra-​quality offerings.
This place still gets 5-​Stars from me.

Whatta yummy lunch I just had there. I had the egg sandwich on an everything bagel with onion jam and avocado, and fresh, local cheese (my favorite). Such a charming little spot to dine in the afternoon. Everything is wholesome and well thought of. Looking forward to visiting Meredith and her crew again!

We went to Community Loaves in Murray Hill for the first time, although I’ve been a fan of their bread for a while (buying it at RAM). Adorable inside, good smells, bright and clean. The young lady who waited on us was very pleasant and welcoming.
Such a beautiful day, we sat in the garden behind the shop. (I will admit, it was hard to sit in the garden behind the kitchen — such heavenly smells!) It was the end of January in Florida, so most of the garden was dormant but there were sweet succulents on the tables to brighten everything up. I look forward to sitting out here in springtime.
I had a French press coffee (delicious) and my daughter had the licorice/​nettle/​peppermint tea (really interesting). The tea was served in a little pot (see picture) and held enough for two servings. The brownie was great, a happy medium between cakey and fudgey.
Everything in the display case looked delicious and I took a peek at their lunch menu — impressive.
I’m definitely returning here.

Wanted to check out the new dining area and have some of their yummy brunch. The place looks great. I love the new tables and really appreciate more seating indoors on cold/​rainy days. I chose to sit outside due to the gorgeous day we were having and it was lovely. The trees and building provide great shade and they also have the cutest umbrellas at each table.
I ordered the chocolate croissant and the smoked salmon bagel sandwich. The bagel and croissant were both baked this morning and both were divine. The croissant was flaky and sweet and had the perfect amount of dark chocolate through the croissant. I only was able to eat a couple I bites because I also ordered the smoked salmon bagel which was such a large bagel that I was full after eating half of sandwich. The smoked salmon was delicious and I loved the onions… looked pickled to me… capers and salmon cheese. It came on a poppy seed bagel that was fresh and amazing.
I ordered a French press coffee which is unlimited during brunch but I just wish they had a water and French press station in the back garden so I would not need to leave my dog and food, as well as gorgeous back patio, while I refill my drinks inside.
The owner is dog friendly and she allows trained dogs to come inside while you order since you order at the front counter prior to sitting down.

I love the food at Community Loaves, but the snottiness has left me to think to turn my business to someone else who is pleasant. Today, I called for Challah bread and after she told me they only serve Challah on Fridays… I tried to ask her about other breads that would be good to make French toast. She rushed me with my questions, and acted like it was a chore to speak to me. She then told me instead of asking questions to come in for they only had an hour left. Why would I come in after I felt not taken care of over phone. This isn’t the first time this has happened either. I am a strong supporter of giving back to the locals, and shopping local, but if you do not appreciate my business than I will give my money to someone who is kind and genuine to me.

Fantastic sourdough breads. The garlic rosemary and the olive breads are especially grand. They also have a fun pizza night on occasion with a great outdoor space and live music. Highly recommended!

Do not pass this awesome place by. The service is top notch. The food is made to scratch and is delicious. Stop what you are doing and get here right now!

We live in the area and love bakeries so we stopped in to grab a couple of items. We chose a muffin and a slice of lemon meringue pie to go.
We tried them immediately upon arriving at our house. The muffin was okay but unfortunately, the eggs in the lemon pie had turned so the pie was inedible.
I assume that the pie had not been stored properly which indicated to me that there is still a learning curve in regards to non-​bread items. Since we go to bakeries for sweet baked goods, not loaves of bread, we will stick to the other bakeries in the neighborhood that excel at those.

Everything is perfect every time we go. The ambiance is relaxing, the staff are sweet, and the food is perfect. I highly recommend their breads and pastries.

The Sourdough bread these ladies bake is delicious. My country white did not survive 5 minutes with my kids. They devoured it. My nephews wanted to know where I obtained this manna from heaven. My middle one pouted that he did not get more than two slices. I think the best way to review this place is simply to relay the reaction of my carb loving family when they ate it.
Perhaps I should give it 5 stars now, but I’m reserving that for when I return and try their other offerings. This was our first experience with one type of loaf so I didn’t want to jump the gun and mete out 5 stars from the get go.
We are definitely going back and when I do I’m pretty sure I’ll be cheating on my low carb diet that day.

One of my favorite spots. Excellent baked goods and brunch is always fantastic. A great contributor to the community and the ambiance is truly unique. Highly recommend!!!

Not enough good can be said about this place. My wife and I were traveling through Jax for our anniversary and decided to swing by after hearing so much about this place. The atmosphere was very unique and comfortable. Everything we tried was delicious and we tried a little of everything. Their coffee is served by French press which is a nice touch. We own a bakery in Central Florida and always love to try new stuff… with that comes a lot of scrutiny. There isn’t a negative thing I can say and actually left with a crazy craving to come back. I’d like to mention that the owner was super friendly and when we said that we were from out of town she asked what our plans were and helped us with some great suggestions! Best in Jax by far!

I am impressed. Great food. Thanks God there were no community organizers while I was enjoying my heavenly slice of quiche and French press coffee.

Community Loaves is awesome! Their fresh breads are top notch. One unique thing is their backyard brunch on the weekends! Everything is delicious & it’s all vegetarian. Meat-​eaters will still be satisfied with the choices. This is somewhere you definitely need to check out!

When I saw Community Loaves on Groupon I knew I had to get one (or two…). I had tried various goodies from Community Loaves at events (a farm tour, RAM, etc) but hadn’t made it to their store front until this past weekend. Since the groupons can only be used for baked goods, I got two loaves to take home (one of the classic white and one of the rosemary and garlic). I also got the butternut and brie toast from their brunch menu.
The butternut and brie toast was incredible. First off, it’s a very large portion (two big slices of bread covered in pureed butternut squash and brie) which I couldn’t even finish. I wasn’t sure how butternut and brie would go together but the woman working up front mentioned it was really good and she was right on. It wasn’t overly sweet or salty, the flavors complimented each other perfectly. As soon as I got the bread home I made a big slice of avocado toast on the white bread and it was wonderful. A great breakfast, brunch, or any time stop.

I love this place. Sara and Meredith are just wonderful! I have taken their sourdough bread making class and know how important their craft is to them. I have tried almost everything and have not found anything I dont like. Although the chocolate rye cookies are too die for, and so are the chocolate chip My hubby tells me. Their bread is incredible. Finding artisan, real artisan bread is not easy. They use a starter that is from Sara’s Mom, and probably back and back through generations, if you dont know what I mean, take the class, you will learn a lot and be very well feed.
I have gone for brunch and brought my family, being in the garden threw them, along with the fact that I would eat everything and anything on the menu because it is all clean (non processed commercial sysco food)…Local stuff is on the menu.
Plus they sell handmade mugs, really cool mugs… but back to the bread… Today for the first time, I said forget the sandwich when I came to the butt of my awesome Rosemery bread and I went at it with some organic (from happy cows) butter and cherry jam, I try to refrain from doing this, because it is like haven in your mouth and you use up all your normal fat allowance in one meal, well worth it! Their bread is what bread should be tasty, crusty, hand made with love, and totally amazing with butter and jam. I get a full week storage on a loave in its paper bag in a bread box. If I cant eat it all, I slice and freeze. Use freezer friendly wrap and it lasts.
I have tried most of their tarts and pastry’s delicious.
They use more intense flours than what a lot of people are use to. My husband likes the bagal, and chic chip cookie but not the bread, or the pastry’s they are to intense for him. He loves wonderbread, so, if you are a wonderbread person this might be too intense for you… This is a far better way to eat and I am glad I only have to drive 16 miles to get there.

I’ve tried their breads at Riverside Arts Market, Jaxsons Night Market, and the Slow Food First Coast slow down but I hadn’t been to their shop, until tonight. I was invited my a friend of mine to come to their Pizza Night event that they have every Wednesday night. Hmmm sounds good.
The shop is easy to miss if you don’t know where you’re going and what you’re looking for. It’s a cute little store off Edgewood Avenue not far from Roosevelt Blvd. Parking was easy, right out in front and in front of empty stores. Walking in the store took me back because it was setup like a rustic, wooden home. I loved it. We placed our orders inside and went around back to the garden.
The garden! Despite the cold, we stayed out there listening to the live music, seeing smiling faces anticipating the warm pizza and just taking in the atmosphere. I loved the beautiful flowering tree that they had that stood over the garden. I should’ve asked what kind it was. Our pizza came maybe 10 mins later. It was about a 10 inch pizza cut into four slices. Two kinds were offered tonight: a white bean paste, chanterelle mushroom, caramelized onion, and garlic oil pizza and a red sauce, roasted eggplant, and romano cheese pizza. I opted for the mushroom pizza and I’m glad I did because it was delicious. I love mushrooms and I’d never had that kind before. My friends said both kinds were very good. One ordered a slice of carrot cake and while it’s not my favorite, he offered a taste and I took it. That was a carrot cake like no other I’d tasted before! That was awesome!
By that time we tolerated all of the cold weather we could and departed. I’ll have to come back to buy some loaves and desserts.

First off you have to know that this place exists. It is inconspicuous in location, but worth it to seek out and find. It is in Murray Hill. It is a small and quiet place, with a mission that speaks to the very heart of those who are trying to go back to the simple basics of making good quality foods in small hand made batches. They use all organic ingredients. We went towards the middle of the day and a lot of their stuff was sold out apparently, but we tried some rye chocolate cookies that were really delicious. They also told us about their pizza nights in the garden. Now that fall is here, we will be back to try that out. It looks like a wonderful event with live music. They are scheduled on Wednesday evenings each week!

Places like this, make me happy about local businesses in Jacksonville. Located in the Murray Hill area of Jacksonville. This small and quaint bakery is what is great about the revitalization of Murray Hill. If you every want to know their back story, just ask. They are willing to tell you while you munch away on some great sourdough or maybe some good muffins. I can just sit on their couch all day, as long as they keep feeding me bread.
My first trip I bought a loaf of their Garlic & Rosemary Sourdough Bread. I also got some Banana Bread and Orange Muffin. I was nice enough to share the Sourdough with my fellow chefs. They loved it and so did I. The banana bread was very very flavorful. Not to sweet and had that good taste Banana Bread should have. These girls have some serious baking skills.
My second visit was a farm to table event that was held at the bakery. Behind the store is a cute little garden which made for a great setting. A lot of the ingredients were from local farms around the Jacksonville and St Augustine areas. The absolute favorites for me was the Rosemary Garlic Cornbread and the Blueberry Peach Cobbler. The shortbread crust for the cobbler was insanely good. The cornbread was very flavorful and went well with their house churned butter. What made the event special was the local ingredients and it was all vegetarian. In a million years I would have never thought that I would do a full dinner without meat. But the whole meat was great and I would gladly do it again.
If you ever have time to attend one of their events or to just stop in and get some great bread. Please go ahead and do it. You will not leave disappointed. They also hold Pizza Night events in their garden too. I have not checked that out but I plan on doing so.

Some sweet breads here to be had. There is something special when you walk into a place for the first time and a young lady walks out with flour all over her apron. Then the other young comes out to say Hi and she too is adorned in flour. Now I have been eating with these two girls for a long time now. They just opened their shop last week. If it’s new you know I’m there. The loaves that they make are probably the best bread for you healthy wise. They even taste really good also. Today I got the savory bun filled with some broccoli and kale. It was pretty darn good to. Cooked perfectly with a crunchy exterior and a soft and juicy interior. The ferment soda was pretty yummy also. The flavor was a mint and chia tea with (get this) a flower in the ice cubes. Killer ha.