Spring Mill Bakery Company Offers Sweet Treats, Savory Soups and Sandwiches

Spring Mill Bread Co., 701 8th Street SE

The hill has many options to satisfy one’s sweet tooth—from Eastern Market to H Street—but has been missing a quality, one-stop bakery featuring a variety of breads and pastries, sandwiches and desserts, until now! Welcome Spring Mill Bread Co. to Barracks Row and say goodbye to the quick-to-stale bread bought at Safeway and the often uninspiring options at Eastern Market. At Spring Mill, one can get everything from pumpkin bread and sugar cookies to very berry muffins and apple strudel bread. Also on the menu are a variety of soups and sandwiches, all sure to satisfy a very hungry belly.

When I heard that Spring Mill was open, I was quick to stop by and sample a bit of the menu.  After all, I am a bit of a Panera Bread addict who just so happens to be tiring of her regular trips to the suburbs for bread and sweet tea. I couldn’t be happier to have a local option for bread, pastries and lunch here on the Hill.

In what I truly expect to be the first of many visits to Spring Mill, I ordered a chicken salad sandwich on the store’s best selling bread: honey wheat. (The store has four other locations in the Maryland area.) The thick slices of bread, toasted upon request, were warm and crisp, but still soft in the center. The chicken salad was moist and had a lovely peppery kick to it. Sadly, the chicken salad had a hint of celery in it, a no-no in my book. The lettuce was crisp, the tomatoes were a bright red, and did I mention the bread was delicious?

My dinner companions—Spring Mill is open until 7pm daily–ordered a chicken breast sandwich on white bread and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on wheat. While the chicken in the sandwich was moist and full of flavor, the serving of chicken was exceptionally thin. And while a thin piece of chicken is fine with me, it might leave those with a bigger appetite wanting more. The peanut butter and jelly looked fine for the toddler it was meant for, and it came without crust, making it an instant crowd pleaser.

What puts Spring Mill ahead of the competition were the extras that accompanied our meal. The sugar cookies, shaped like pumpkins and with just the right amount of sugar-sweet crystals on top, were delicious—sweet and crisp, but not past their prime well after they were purchased. The muffins were moist, though the very berry was a bit of berry overload for this picky crowd. The apple strudel bread—I’m not even sure where to begin—it made me regret my quest to give up carbs for the good of my waistline. After sampling a piece in the store, we took a loaf home. It was as sweet as a piece of pastry, but as substantial as a piece of bread should be, making it a great companion to the greatest thing ever churned: butter! The streusel topping was sweet and buttery and covered the majority of the bread, ensuring you enjoyed the sweetness with every bite. The apples were a tart surprise when found in the middle of a slice and the bread stayed fresh until the last bit was had four days later. (If you have tried it already, I’m just as surprised as you that it lasted four days!)

While Spring Mill certainly has some kinks to work out, like the staggered delivery of our sandwiches and the shortage of bottled water, I think their offerings will make them a welcome addition to the Hill. Stop in for lunch and try to grab a seat at one of the four tables, or order some soup and a sandwich to go. Oh, and don’t forget the dessert!