Just a few miles from the seat of American democracy, a new republic has been formed: Baguette Republic. This Falls Church bakery changed its name from the Bread House in February, when Dahmane Benabane, executive chef of Marvelous Market for 15 years, landed here as a new partner.
Inside the tiny shop, which has two al fresco tables out front, a display of a dozen or so types of fragrant breads may include baguette ($1.95), striatta ($3) and Palladin ($3.50), the last an olive oil and yogurt bread named for the late chef Jean-Louis Palladin. The striatta is "an Italian yogurt bread, kind of a ciabatta without olive oil," says Benabane, who was born in Algiers. "Very airy inside; it's not dense."
As for the star of the show, Benabane's baguette is, he says, a cross between sourdough and Parisian baguette whose creation requires 36 hours from start to finish. "It's one of the biggest sellers," he says.
Different flavors of muffins ($1.80), croissants ($1.85 to $2.75) and scones ($2) are also available. Among them recently was a cinnamon-raisin scone that was both tender and tasty.
A refrigerated case is filled with tempting desserts cut into individual portions. The lemon almond bar ($3.75) is a not-too-sweet, not-too-tart layering of flourless almond cake and lemon custard topped with powdered sugar and a candied violet. Try the stellar two-layer chocolate truffle cake ($3.75), ostensibly for one but so rich it could be shared. Another hit was the marjolaine ($3.75), rich layers of chocolate, light-as-air hazelnut creme and flourless hazelnut sponge with a slather of dark chocolate icing on top.
Benabane and his Serbian partner, Mirjana Varga, also have more substantial fare on the menu of their little republic. The shop offers a selection of sandwiches, including a fresh and satisfying chicken sandwich ($5.50): house-roasted chicken, romaine lettuce and roasted red peppers on soft striatta.
And Benabane expects to be selling Sicilian-style pizzas and calzones to customers in the next few weeks, once he gets his pizza oven up and running.
"In Algeria, there is Sicilian pizza, too," Benabane says. "If it's Mediterranean, I consider it my food. Whenever it's Mediterranean, I'm there, and I'm proud of it."
--Rina Rapuano (Sept. 27, 2006)
