Austrian bakery sells $60 bread loaf in New York, calls it fair

The Austrian family bakery Martin Auer has opened its first shop in the United States — and instantly found itself at the centre of American media attention thanks to a loaf of rye bread priced at 60 dollars, or almost 1,300 crowns.

The bread, called “Paradise,” is made to a recipe with just four ingredients: water, flour, salt and time. A whole loaf weighs around a kilogram and a half, but customers can also buy half a loaf for 30 dollars, or a quarter for 15. The menu also includes an “On Paradise” sandwich with both sweet and savoury fillings.

Co-owner Tim Auer explains the high price with several factors at once: the loaf's substantial weight, the long process of making it, and the shop's location — it sits in New York's SoHo neighbourhood, one of the most expensive districts in the US.

According to Auer, customers are paying not just for the bread but for the experience: the entire process, from kneading the dough to the finished product, can be watched right there in the shop on Lafayette Street, and the interior looks more like a luxury boutique than a bakery. “Beautiful packaging and a personal approach from the staff go without saying,” the entrepreneur points out.

Behind the project are a father and son, Martin and Tim Auer. The family brand's original bakeries operate in Graz and Vienna. The company was founded by Tim's great-grandfather in 1936, and the family has specialised in quality rye sourdough for more than fifty years.