Hazelhurst Street hides baby boulangerie

If you avoid dead-end streets on your neighbourhood strolls, you might want to reconsider your route on Fridays — especially if you’re hungry.

Tucked into Hazelhurst Street is The Sourdough Stand. The stand, which is really a tiny, walk-in shed, houses the home-baked sourdough goods of Tina Bierbach. On its tidy shelves you’ll find items like country loaf, savoury focaccia, raspberry custard buns, pesto asiago knots, and tahini chocolate chunk cookies.

“I do lot of experimenting at home,” Bierbach told The Post. “I try to keep a variety of things.”

Bierbach, a trained and professional baker who began working in kitchens 13 years ago, started the stand after the birth of her first child, during the pandemic. Having just returned after eight years in B.C., and home with the baby, she started to miss baking. “We moved here during COVID, and it got me talking to my neighbours,” she said. “I was shy to talk, others were shy to talk, and so it got us talking.”

The first stand was an old kitchen cupboard modified by her carpenter partner, Joe, who also built the new shed. Bierbach requires no permit or kitchen licensing for her “microbakery,” as she sells low-risk products directly to consumers.

Unmanned, the stand operates on the honour system. Bierbach realizes there is risk, but it is important to her that it remains this way.

“Having it based in the honour system allows it to show the good in people,” she said.

To get a loaf or a pastry, stop by on Fridays between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Inside the stand you’ll find tongs and bags to help yourself, and instructions for making payment. Expect to spend about $8 on a loaf, $4 for a pastry, and $2.50 on a cookie. She also sells pizza dough for $5/lb. bag. To ensure you get what you want, email to place a pre-order.

Bierbach and her partner are currently pregnant with their second child, due in June. She tentatively plans to close the stand for about two months. To receive updates and a weekly list of available items, subscribe to the stand’s newsletter by emailing sourdoughstand@protonmail.com.