A bakery and café that specializes in sourdough breads, cookies, sandwiches, and soups has leased space at 1113 Central Avenue, formerly the home of Karma Juice Bar & Eatery.

The Sourdough Co. has been selling its baked goods online via an e-commerce site but owner Ariana Duksa said she’ll be setting up shop in the prime EDGE District space in November. She’s hiring bakers, kitchen staff, and counter help and encourages job seekers to email their resumes to Jobs@thesourdough.co.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, every baked good sold at The Sourdough Co. will be made with sourdough, including round loaves, sandwich loaves, and baguettes, in addition to cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls, and scones. 

“Baking with sourdough has become one of my favorite things to do,” said Duksa in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. “Sourdough gives desserts and other bread forms unique flavors but it has a variety of health benefits as well.”

When Sourdough Co. opens in November, its menu will include a wide variety of breads and baked goods, with flavors such as plain, garlic, garlic cheddar, cheddar, cinnamon sugar, jalapeño cheddar, garlic and herbs, parm and herbs, blueberry lemon, chocolate chip, and double chocolate.

The menu will also feature breakfast sandwiches on sourdough English muffins or large slices of sourdough loaves and lunch sandwiches, such as a BLT, grilled cheese, and a spicy jalapeño sandwich on the bakery’s popular jalapeño cheddar sourdough bread. 

The bakery and café will also offer soups, including broccoli cheddar and tomato, which will be served in freshly baked sourdough bread bowls or cups.

The Sourdough Co. is planning to partner with other small, local businesses to provide olive oils, vinegars, and prepackaged juices and coffee.

“Our breads have three ingredients (plus inclusions): flour, water, salt,” said Duksa. “We use flour that is unbleached, never bromated. We keep bread healthy using quality flour that contains all the vitamins and minerals.”

According to Duksa, some sourdough bread and baked goods that are sold in stores are not labeled and marketed correctly, because they don’t have the correct ingredients or have too many complicated ingredients.

“If you ever looked at the ingredients list on a sourdough bread, it contains yeast and sometimes even says ‘sourdough flavoring,’ or the loaf is flavored with vinegar,” said Duksa. “This is not real sourdough!” 

Duksa, a native St. Petian, began baking sourdough at home after she and her husband noticed how bad they felt after eating certain types of breads and pastas.

“We felt like crap,” said Duksa. “The doctors couldn’t find anything wrong besides a little inflammation.”

However, after trying a homemade sourdough recipe, Duksa and her husband felt much better. Now, she uses sourdough to make just about everything, from sourdough pasta to sourdough pizza dough.

“Sourdough was such a savior for us,” said Duksa. “I decided to start selling it online and the response has been incredible. We can make around 90 loaves a week in my little kitchen and we usually always sell out.”

Demand for The Sourdough Co.’s products convinced the couple to lease a brick-and-mortar space.

Although Duksa and her husband live in Seminole, and her customers come from all over Tampa Bay, her main demographic is people who live in downtown St. Pete.

“I've been here my whole life,” said Duksa. “And I don't plan on leaving. St. Pete is amazing.”

The Sourdough Co. hopes to open at 1113 Central Avenue in the EDGE District next month. Be sure to follow them on Instagram and Facebook to stay up-to-date on grand opening plans.