California has plenty of trendy bakeries, but some of the best ones have been baking the same recipes for decades. These are the small-town spots where families have kept ovens running through generations, turning out sourdough, sweet rolls, and pastries that regulars have loved for years.
They are the kind of places worth planning a road trip around, and many sit in towns you might otherwise drive right past. Here are seven long-running California bakeries where fresh bread is still a daily tradition.
1. Boudin Bakery, San Francisco, California
If you want the oldest continuously operating business in San Francisco, you start here. Boudin has been baking its signature sourdough since 1849, using a mother dough that traces back to the Gold Rush era.
The tangy flavor comes from a wild yeast strain local to the Bay Area, which is why bakers say the loaf tastes different from sourdough made anywhere else. The bakery shapes its dough into all sorts of forms, including bears, crabs, and turtles…