A must-see for baguette fans! Popular for its delicious bread and warm service

A very popular bakery that closes when sold out

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(The sign reads "Ends when sold out.")

The shop is about a 5-minute walk from Shin-Nakano Station along Ome-kaido towards Higashi-Koenji. It opens at 10:00 a.m., but popular breads can be sold out by around 11:00 a.m. I try to go as early as possible when there is a specific bread I want to buy.

The store is filled with delicious-looking breads.

Among them, "Tokachi Mash" (pictured above) and "Milk France" (pictured below) are said to sell out quickly.

Melon bread and brioche are popular breads among children. My own children love them too.

My number one recommendation is the "Baguette" (photo left). Both my husband and children love baguettes (the children probably started eating them before they were 2 years old...), and we used to buy them from other bakeries, but now we almost only buy them from this bakery. When it's been a while, my husband even says, "I'd love to eat that baguette soon." When it comes to baguettes, my husband may be a bigger fan than I am.

Why is there so much hard bread?

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(They also have rare products such as "Iburi-gakko" and "Fig Walnut")

Looking at the lineup, there are a lot of so-called "hard" breads. The previously introduced "Melon Bread" and "Brioche" are not too fluffy, and the texture and mouthfeel are a little different from breads at other stores.

We asked boulanger Kazutoshi Aoyagi about the store's particularities. - Is there any particular reason or particularity that you have for having a lot of "hard" breads? Aoyagi: The main reason is that I personally like hard bread. I want to offer my customers what I like. Another reason is that the bakery I worked at before opening the store specialized in hard breads.

- My husband boasts that "Our bread is different from other bakeries!" Please tell us the secret of its deliciousness. Aoyagi-san: I think that the ingredient mix, fermentation time, and temperature are relatively standard, but I think that each store has its own unique characteristics. The amount of ingredients and processing time change slightly depending on the season and temperature, so there is no right answer, but I would like to continue exploring.

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(Mr. Aoyagi's favorite is the "Baguette." It's difficult to make because it's simple, but he has a strong attachment to it.)

The homely customer service is also one of the attractions

There's another reason why I'm such a fan of COMPTER SUR. It's no exaggeration to say that the face of the store is its customer service representative, Yuko Aoyagi. She runs the store together with her husband, Kazutoshi, and is loved by customers. From the first time I came to the store, I was so enthralled by Yuko's cheerful personality and attention to detail that I decided to come back even before I'd tried the bread.

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(Yuko's recommendation: "Tomato Fougasse" made with semi-dried tomatoes wrapped in baguette dough)

If you want to get the bread you want, rainy days are the best time to go.

(On Saturdays, there is a line to get in from mid-morning.)

The store is busiest on Saturdays, and there is very little bread left between 12:00 and 13:00. On weekdays, depending on the weather, sales end around 16:00 or 17:00, so if you have a specific bread in mind or want to choose from a wide variety, we recommend going in the morning. Many customers come with their children, and strollers are allowed inside the store.

Once you try it, you'll want to eat it again...be sure to give COMPTER SUR bread a try.

COMPTER SUR

Address: 6-27-11 Honmachi, Nakano-ku, Tokyo

Access: 5 minutes walk from Shin-Nakano Station on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line

Business hours: 10:00-18:00 (ends when sold out)

Closed: Sundays and Mondays

Phone: 03-5385-9271