About this project

Greetings all ye farinaphiles!

For the uninitiated, my name is Davey, I am vegan, and I'm going to bring you a bakery. But not just any bakery, I'm building the brick oven with my bare hands, and let me tell you, having built one of these before, mortar absolutely ravages bare hands, and I have lady-like hands. I'm willing to sacrifice my dainty digits to temporarily become Sandy Claws.

But that's not what makes this unlike any bakery. What does is the fact that this fire beast doesn't get itself mixed up in the animal product fare. But do not groan and roll your eyes, I know what you're thinking, and I bet it pertains to use and/or absence of the churned saturated fat of bovine mammary juice or the oft unfertilized ova of domesticated fowl. You are not alone. And you know what? The notion that baked products from those that have eschewed animal products aren't good is probably deserved. In fact there are still bakeries in existence today that perpetuate such unfortunate standards. But I'm going to dispel that.

Enter A Fire Inside Forno. The first vegan gourmet artisan bakery storefront in the bay area with a wood burning brick oven. Where the bread is always and only naturally leavened (to some of us that means sourdough), the cinnamon rolls will devastate your diet, the croissants are vegan, the ingredient sourcing is guided by Alice Waters principles, and if you have a better brownie somewhere else, we have done something terribly amiss. Because dammit, we care!

Alas, I must beg for your assistance. I won't be brandishing a suspect cardboard sign or the telltale tongue of Thunder Bird, but I will be attempting to entice participation with the tantalizing tease of warm combinations of flour and fat and sugar and spice at non-stop guerilla bake sales during the thirty day pledge period. Or alluring alliteration, we won't judge.

Here is how your contribution will help:

-Our oven will cost somewhere in the range of $18k to finish, I'll show you pictures if you would rather not have an escorted tour when it's finished. I'm aiming for you all to be awe-struck.

-Other bakery tools and supplies: peels, dough bins, baskets, linens (the real stuff!), bench(es), speed racks, cooling racks, display racks, scale, pans, and flour bins.

-Legal hullabaloo

-Pastry case I hope!

And that will be the minimum to getting started. The more we can raise, the better fitted we'll be; I'm sure I could interest any of you into adding doughnuts to the menu (sourdough of course, who the hell do you think I am?) which of course necessitates a deep fryer (and hood, those things ain't cheap!), espresso with an espresso machine, ranges, ice cream machine, and many luxuries well equipped kitchens have.

(In the longshot we can raise $500k, I will open the finest vegan pizzeria, bakery, gelateria, cafe, and restaurant this world has seen (I am certainly not a promise breaker), which is the natural evolution of this project, and will hopefully change some lives. But I don't think anyone's ever raised THAT much on kickstarter, doesn't mean we can't be the first ^,^ and if we get there, tell you what, all backers will eat for a dollar on their first visit)

Let us feed you. I know of no purer expression of love or gratitude.

PS: Those rewards, let me speak a bit more about them.

The shirts will be hand printed, hand numbered, limited run design tees exclusive to the backers of this project. These are the only of their kind. They're special. They are literally symbolic of your crucial support. And they're gonna be hot. These can be shipped to anywhere in the contiguous US, and with a little toss back for shipping, Hawaii and Alaska too.

For those NOT local, since bread does not travel particularly well, we can work something out to satisfy, maybe I can interest some of you in chocolate? Perhaps some cookies?

I still don't high five. I just don't.

The sandwich. You could get it three times a day for 365 consecutive calendar days and that would be alright. But I draw the line at three, guys.

The baking education. Ten hands-on intensive days should be foundational, but, most certainly, I'll be available for consulting even after you open your own bakery or just want a recipe.
Update 8/31

A Fire Inside: Wildfire Passion

My hesitation in being explicit is overcome. Why was I not before? Well, I like pleasant surprises. But I'll do away with those for the moment.

A Fire Inside dogma and mission:

Transparency. All guests are welcome in all parts of the establishment. Even during construction, as long as the construction team is not politely asking you to keep clear of the hard hat zone. I keep no secrets in operating my business. Would you care for the recipe to the brownies? I'm more than happy to share that. Would you like to see the bread being loaded in the oven? Anytime. Of course I can share some of my starter, no charge. You are our guest, and as a guest, we will do all in our power to to create a pocket of the world you may feel truly welcome.

Commitment to philanthropy. You should know that one of my life's objectives is to absolve mediocrity, to perhaps inculcate greatness, to perhaps prove that heaven is indeed a place on Earth, and that we are responsible for realizing that. In Oakland, one would not be terribly challenged to find those on the fringe, struggling to get by, and youth I'm sure some folks would not find issue in deeming not privileged. And they are a part of the greater community that supports us. I think I would be remiss in not recognizing this and not giving back. There's a lot to be done to make the world a better place, and I'm committed to do what I can, one neighbor at a time.

Commitment to excellence. I do believe I have touched on this in my updates (which I invite you all to read, they may be very... something), but I will iterate it once again. We will aim high, as those that have sampled some of the creations of my kitchen can attest, the food does not slack, and it never will. Assuming a role in the service industry, me and the A Fire Inside crew dedicate ourselves to the finest service all around. It's not just enough to say it, and it's not enough to be it, we push ourselves to be better than we were the day before. It's my hope this example is followed and emulated and spreads like a dirty rumor.

Charity dinners, recycled mill wood, green practices, organic and local as a given, live music, and more. I can't let all of the cats out of the bag just yet!

UPDATE 8/16

I saw this picture.

And I knew I had to answer to it.

At the $50 reward level, in addition to hugs, the first 40 to be backers at that level will receive a WEEK OBLITERATOR. It'll likely become the new standard at eating competitions. It's quite possible it could be your undoing. And now you can make it yours.

For the good cause!

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