The moment one walks through the door of Quail & Condor bakery in downtown Healdsburg, a sensual feast begins. The intoxicating, yeasty aromas of just-baked breads rocket straight from nose-to-brain, and then to belly as it responds with a powerful, hungry rumble.
These are no ordinary breads. These are handmade sourdough beauties kissed with startling tang — hearty sesame-seed epis hand-rolled into classic wheat stalk shapes, and slightly sour miche that’s fluffy inside and made with fresh-milled rye, spelt, and whole wheat. The bakery’s naturally leavened baguettes are so sexy, the long, slender loaves look as though they belong tucked alongside a colorful bouquet of flowers in the basket of a bike tootling along the Champs-Élysées.
Quail & Condor caught the attention of The New York Times this past December, putting the tiny shop on the list of “22 of the Best Bakeries Across the U.S. Right Now.” Then, in January, bakery owners Melissa and Sean McGaughey were named as semifinalists for the 2025 James Beard Outstanding Bakery Award.
And yet, as wondrous as the accomplishments are, it can sometimes feel like just another day in Sonoma County — blessed with such a collection of outstanding family-owned bakeries, it might seem an embarrassment of riches…