If you want to bake your own bread in these scorching desert climes, be our guest. If and when you recover from the heatstroke, consider a trip to Beyond Bread, where loaves have been baked since 1998. Craving some feta, spinach and onion bread? No problem. Need a loaf of babka, ciabatta or challah? Triple no problem. Many enter this shop/restaurant with a specific doughy desire, only to find themselves in the throes of a bread-buying frenzy after a few free samples and the perusal of the expansive selection. It's actually worth a trip to one of the two Beyond Bread locations just for a whiff of the delicious scents wafting from the ovens. Even heaven isn't going to smell that good.
Runners up:
2. La Baguette Bakery
1797 E. Prince Road
322-6297
3. Village Bakehouse
7882 N. Oracle Road
531-0977, villagebakehouse.com
