Bakery brings European touch to Vacaville

VACAVILLE - Pure Grain Bakery opened a second location Jan. 4 and hopes to bring a European flare to downtown Vacaville.

The bakery/cafe is the first business to open in the city's nearly finished Town Square development.

Co-owner Michael Meithe said downtown needed a nice cafe and called the new location a dream come true as he sat under the sun at an outside table drinking a cappuccino from the cafe's full service coffee bar.

"It reminds us very much of Europe with the outside dining and town squares," Meithe said of the location.

Miethe and his business partner Holger Seibert began filling a niche for German baked goods in Vacaville 15 years ago. Running a bakery began as a childhood dream growing up in Germany. They both completed apprenticeships at Seibert's father's baker and earned master's degrees in business.

Miethe visited California in 1989 and identified Vacaville as an ideal location to open a German-style bakery because of the many Europeans Travis Airforce Base has brought here. By 1991, Miethe and Seibert opened their first bakery on Eubanks Street.

The bakery specializes in German-inspired products such as Black Forest Cake and European breads. The all-natural breads and rolls are the most popular items, Miethe said.

"Everyone who visits Europe they will definitely say, yeah that bread is the way it's made in Europe," he said.

Pure Grain will operate from both locations - baking and distributing from the Eubanks location.

Until now, Pure Grain has mainly concentrated on its wholesale clientele. They supply baked goods for the University of California, Davis campus, and German restaurants around the Bay Area. Their breads can also be found in the Natural Food grocery stores in San Francisco, Davis and Sacramento.

Meithe said he feels lucky to have found Vacaville. For 15 years, customers have welcomed and supported the bakery, and the Town Square concept is very exciting, he said.

"It's totally a European flair."

Reach Sarah Arnquist at 427-6953 or sarnquist@dailyrepublic.net.

Pure Grain Bakery
Owners: Michael Miethe and Holger Seibert
Date opened: Jan. 4
Address: 11 Town Square, Vacaville
Phone: 447-4121
Web: www.puregrainbakery.com