House of Bread gets the taste test

The hook for Salt Lake City resident Andrea Paulsen to participate in House of Bread's Bread Bowl Taste Challenge was simple: the prospect of a free loaf of bread.

Paulsen had been into the store at 2005 E. 2700 South a few times before she decided it was worth it to get the loaf of bread for simply comparing two brands of store bread to House of Bread's products. "It's a challenge to see how good your taster is," she said. "Your taste buds get used to lesser-quality grade foods. It's fun to see how refined your taste buds are."

A steady stream of customers such as Paulsen came through the doors at House of Bread to try their hand at the Bread Bowl Challenge Feb. 4. Participants were asked to sample three types of white and wheat bread and comment on each. They were then asked to circle which one was their favorite. After turning their ballots in, they received a free loaf of bread for their trouble as well as a paper about the bread they had just tasted.

Lynne Aoyama, owner of House of Bread, said the reason she chose to have this event was to help teach her customers about bread.

"I really want to try to educate the customers to tell them they don't need artificial colors and flavors," she said. "We mill our wheat in the bakery. Our bread is actually a better value and tastes better. Customers don't need all the artificial flavors in bread. I want to give a healthy product to our customers."

Participants in the challenge came for various reasons. Erica Lake of Salt Lake City came with her son while out on errands, partially because of how much her son likes bread.

"My son is the ultimate carbo. He is the bread king. Anything with bread (he loves)," she said. "I like supporting local businesses, and this is right on my errands."

The challenge became a family affair for both the Coles of Sandy and the Kaelins of Salt Lake City. Michael Kaelin, 10, said he came because he wanted to taste the bread, and his sister Catherine, 14, was interested in the prospect of free food as well as seeing what the event was all about.

Diane Coles came with her husband and son out of curiosity and found she enjoyed the event.

"I picked their (bread) for both, so it was good (to be at the event)," she said. "The white was easy, but the wheat was more difficult. In the wheat, I did notice that it had a moister texture."

Aoyama said, above all, she wanted her customers to know the importance of more healthful breads.