By: Nia Bowers

On a late July morning, the scent of fresh sourdough filled the air as customers stepped into the newly opened Loaf Sourdough Panadería, formerly known as Concha Style. For owner Julie Contreras, it marked the next stage in a journey that began years ago at local farmers’ markets and has now grown into a permanent bakery and café in the heart of the San Antonia community.

For Contreras, the bakery has always been more than a business. Instead, it has embodied a natural extension of her lifelong love for baking. “My very first memory ever is making pancakes with my dad,” she recalls. “It’s just always been a part of my life.” That deep-rooted connection to the kitchen, paired with a scientist’s precision, has guided her journey from experimenting with sourdough at home to creating a thriving, full-scale bakery.

The story of Loaf Sourdough began amid the pandemic, when Contreras decided to bake something special for her best friend of over a decade. Inspired by a desire to make a truly unique gift, she crafted her first sourdough conchas, a Mexican sweet bread, merging tradition with the tangy complexity of sourdough. The response from friends and her local community was immediate and enthusiastic. Soon, she was selling her delicacies through a local indoor farmers market that emphasized reducing waste by producing only what was pre-ordered, a sentiment she values greatly.

From there, her weekends became a whirl of farmers’ markets and expanding menus. What began as sourdough conchas quickly grew to include classic sourdough boules, sandwich loaves, focaccia, and a rotating array of pastries. As demand swelled, she realized her original business name, Conchas Style, no longer captured the heart of what she was creating. “I first started with conchas, that’s why I named it that,” she says. “But now I do so much more, all sourdough-based. I thought Loaf Sourdough was a better representation of the brand.”

In full, the name now reads Loaf Sourdough Panadería, a nod to her Mexican heritage and a declaration that this is, at its heart, a bakery in the traditional sense. While her menu has evolved, some things have remained constant from the start: a commitment to organic ingredients, locally sourced products, and thoughtful options for customers with dietary needs. As someone who is lactose intolerant, Contreras originally crafted her recipes using oat milk and dairy-free alternatives, giving many of her offerings a naturally inclusive appeal.

When the doors to Loaf Sourdough’s brick-and-mortar location officially opened on July 25th, Contreras carried that ethos into the café space. The coffee menu, for example, features only organic beans, sourced from What’s Brewing, a family-run roaster less than a mile away.

Serving Kombucha, made with all organic ingredients and alkaline water, syrups are made in-house too with organic ingredients, and the matcha is sourced from another local business. Even small details, from the pastries in the case to the milk in a latte, reflect her commitment to quality and community.

The new storefront, open Thursday through Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., has allowed Contreras to connect with customers in a way the market circuit never could. It’s also a foundation for what she envisions next: longer hours, an expanded café menu with sandwiches, and, eventually, wholesale partnerships and multiple locations. “I want to be able to step back from daily production so I can focus on growing the business,” she explains. “This is just the first step, and it’s already been a fulfilling one.”

Behind that growth, there’s also an unshakable support system. Contreras speaks with immense gratitude and pride when she talks about her family’s role in the bakery’s success. Her younger brother, just 19, has been with her since the beginning. “He knows the ins and outs of everything,” she says. “He can troubleshoot if I’m not there; he’s so smart and excellent at what he does.”

Her parents, too, have been deeply involved, helping with transportation, deliveries, and countless behind-the-scenes tasks that keep operations running smoothly, being the pillar of support she’s needed.

For customers, Loaf Sourdough is more than a place to pick up bread. It’s an experience carrying the comfort of a warm loaf tucked under one arm, the smell of coffee in the air, and the simple joy of food made with care. And for Contreras, it’s a symbol of resilience, craft, and community.  

Every slice of bread and every pastry on the counter she sells today carries the same care and intention as that very first concha she made for her best friend, proof that sometimes the most beautiful ventures begin with a single act of love.