San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
These A-list offerings worthy of spotlight
Turkey sandwich is the star, but others shine, too
In the 10 years since TV personality and San Antonio native Elizabeth Chambers and her then-husband, actor Armie Hammer, opened Bird Bakery in Alamo Heights, it’s been in the news for a lot more than cupcakes, pies and sandwiches.
First it was the thrill ride of having a celebrity cafe in town. Then it was the speed bump of having an employee rip them off. Then it was the split between Chambers and Hammer as a sex scandal torpedoed his career.
But for now, the news out of Bird Bakery revolves around red velvet cupcakes, grilled cheese sandwiches and salted caramel lattes. And the news is good enough that Bird Bakery has added locations in Dallas and near Denver to round out the business inspired in part by Chambers’ late grandmother, Maureen Carnathan, who owned a catering company in San Antonio.
In 2012, Chambers described Bird Bakery’s country-chic decor of picnic tables, distressed counters and rustic wooden ceiling beams as a “fancy barn party.” That still applies, even if that barn is parked next to a gaggle of tony boutiques in Alamo Heights.
Best sandwich: I suppose it’s a cliché to say that something’s gone all Hollywood when the avocado and arugula show up. But they worked their magic for Bird’s California turkey sandwich ($10.59 with chips), with a cast that included deli-style roasted turkey, havarti
cheese, bacon and raspberrychipotle mayo.
Built on light-grained, seeded bread, the sandwich directed all those players in balanced bites that let the peppery arugula, the creamy avocado and the mellow turkey act out their parts, punched up by the low-key razzmatazz of spicy-sweet mayo.
Sandwiches at Bird come with ridged potato chips and a pickle. But a sweet and chunky chowder made with corn and yellow squash and a dusky red tomato soup were solid substitutions for a $2.75 upcharge.
Other sandwiches: I love a B-list grilled cheese on white bread with American cheese. But I also love a grilled cheese with A-list ambitions. At Bird, a spinach-artichoke grilled cheese
($9.29 with chips) met the challenge with a blend of havarti and Parmesan cheeses that brought the smoothness of a leading man and the quirky funk of a good character actor on buttery toasted brioche.
When you say, “Lights, camera, tarragon!” I want action. I mean Oscar-level tarragon. What I got from Bird’s tarragon chicken salad sandwich ($9.79 with chips) was maybe a People’s Choice nominee, a mellow blend of chicken and mayo guaranteed to offend no one, with its tarragon character development stepped on by Dijon mustard in full overacting mode.
Bird’s skimpy, bland pimento cheese sandwich ($9 with chips) was like scrolling through Netflix after you’ve already binged “Stranger Things.” Just a dry lunchbox documentary.
Instead, I switched to something nostalgic and sweet: cupcakes ($3.50 each). Bird’s red velvet cupcake did what all red velvet cakes should do: let the creamy frosting do the talking. And they threw the whole special effects team at the Elvis, stuffed with chocolate chips and wearing a frosted peanut butter pompadour with a chunk of dried banana.
Bird Bakery’s story might not be a romance anymore, but there’s still plenty of sweet scenes in the script.