A&J King Artisan Bakers
Contact: Andy & Jackie King
Address: 139 Boston St. Salem, MA, 01970
Email Address: andy@ajkingbakery.com
Phone: 978-364-2299
Website: www.ajkingbakery.com
About Us
Artisan bread and pastry is not about following a recipe – it’s about spending years honing technique, learning to manipulate your environment, and adjust your movements to create consistently beautiful product on a daily basis. A&J King is a place where bakers learn the hand position for slashing baguettes, proper lamination, leavening with sourdoughs, and every other aspect of the craft. Half bakery, half classroom, we believe that constantly learning is the key to great product. The basics are simple – flour, water, salt, yeast- but in a great baker’s hands, those four ingredients can be transformed into a food experience that keep customers coming back.
A&J King strives to be the best producers of the most authentic, best-tasting craft bread and pastry in the region. To that end, the bakery operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and offers fresh daily delivery to insure that our wholesale partners and retail customers are getting the best of the best. We truly view our relationships with our customers as partnerships, and are excited to begin each one.
Jackie and Andy met while attending culinary school, and have been working side-by-side ever since. From their first baking internship, to the opening of A&J King Artisan Bakers in 2006, to their 2017 expansion to a brand new 7500 sqft production facility, the couple have never stopped learning about the craft of bread and pastry. They have authored a book on home baking (Baking by Hand, Page Street Press, 2013), and are guest instructors at the King Arthur Baking Education Center (Norwich, VT) and The Bread Lab (WSU at Burlington, WA).
Practices
We work hard to source from local growers whenever possible. Our partnership with Maine Grains has allowed us to support a growing local grain economy, while adding freshly milled, superior quality whole grains to our breads. We purchase from Massachusetts dairies, New England egg producers, and farms in the North Shore of MA for almost all of our fruits and berries, which we use fresh and preserve so we can stay local all winter.
We offer all of our bakers competitive wages and salaries, health and dental plans, as well as paid vacation and additional sick days every year. Health, rest, and a positive work environment are important if you’re working as hard as they do every day and night.