La Mie Bakery, Des Moines, IA

This wonderful bakery is also in a wonderful strip mall, which is very unassuming to look at, you would just drive on by rather that take a second look.  That would be a mistake, though.  The bakery makes some very delicious pastries and breads, as well as sandwiches and salads.  You can take out or dine in and either is a good option.  We were in a bit of a hurry so we ordered sandwiches to go.  All four of them were excellent.  I also bought a few desserts which were worth trying too.  I did not know this but "mie" is French for the soft part of the bread, the part that isn't the crust.  Pain la mie is a sandwich bread, and I can tell you they make an excellent version.  The thing that I loved the most though was the epi loaf that we bought there--it is the bread that looks a bit like sheafs of wheat, or like small rolls that can be broken off and eaten.  Very good.