Taste the Grain

For over a year I’ve been tossing my two young kids in the car for a 35+-minute drive to the outskirts of Lakewood Ranch for some of my favorite caffeinated bevvies and the best sourdough in the city. Anyone who’s ever ridden in a car with small kids for over six minutes can attest that it better be some damn good carbs and coffee to justify a ride that extends, well, past six minutes.

And it is. If Edible had a curated list of its “Worth the Trip” columns, no doubt Atria would take a top spot.

What makes this place worth any “are we there yets?” Well, it’s their sourdough for starters (bread pun!), which they turn into traditional rustic loaves, pastries, increasingly popular pizzas that are deservedly gaining fan-favorite status countywide, and an impeccably fluffy hokkaido milk bread—a practically impossible find that I’d gladly drive 17 hours for, regardless of the millions of “mama mama mamas” I’d have to endure.

You can buy the breads and pastries as is or see how Atria puts them to good use in their scrumptious menu, which boasts one of the tastiest Reubens around, tres leches French toast, beet cured salmon toast, and preserved mushroom pizzas cooked down with shallots for extra aromatics and flavor.

“Our sourdough is so good because we use freshly milled grain,” says co-owner and fellow mom of littles Weyli Angus. “We buy the actual unmilled wheat berries and grind them into flour ourselves with our grain mill.”

Now, that practice isn’t uncommon in some bigger cities but it’s pretty hard to come by in a little town like ours. It gives the sourdough much more oomph and just makes sense for Atria as Weyli and her husband/co-owner, Jim, both come from extensive culinary backgrounds and wanted to model their business after the famed Tartine bakery.

“Apart from laying the eggs and milking the cows, we make almost every single item in-house, including our pastries, sauces, and syrups,” says Weyli, whose love and passion for her business shine through when she speaks. “Our focus is on high-quality ingredients and unique elements of surprise. There’s just always something different to get excited about.”

One quick convo and I can tell this isn’t “just a business” for Weyli and her family. This is their dedicated passion and desire to create strong roots in the community they intend to call home for quite a time to come.

Those elements of surprise may be bite-sized but they’re bold and oh-so-palatable and even extend to the coffee service, which offers seasonal updates and specialty options like smoked maple syrup, caramel rosemary lattes, coconut ube lattes flaunting the ube yam’s signature purple flair, and a ginger paradise latte that is finished with a flame on top. Of course you can also get the basic brews, but, uh, why?

Atria: 4120 Lakewood Ranch Blvd, Lakewood Ranch; atria.cafe