Senior Aliisa Rantanen enjoys her lunch at The Bread Company. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)

THE BREAD COMPANY ON GOODWIN

• Location: 706 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana
• Lunch hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Sunday
• Dinner hours: 5 to 9 p.m. Monday thru Wednesday & Sunday; 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday thru Saturday
• Lunch prices: $5 to $10
• Dinner prices: $7 to $18
• Recommended: Cheese fondue; the many varieties of pizza; chocolate fondue with fresh fruit
• Rating: 7/10
• Phone: (217) 383-1007

SLOSHING THROUGH THE flooded street on the half-day before Thanksgiving break, my friends and I hurried to find a warm, dry place to obtain lunch.

At long last, we rapidly piled one after the other into our destination: The Bread Company on Goodwin, located at 706 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana.

The Bread Company, advertised as "an authentic Swiss bakery," is a deli during lunch and a gourmet restaurant in the evening. Its dinner specialty is classic Swiss fondue. Other evening favorites include the many varieties of Mediterranean pizzas.

For lunch we gathered around an empty table, taking stock of the water damage to our clothing and momentarily forgetting about the menu as we took off our coats.

It took me a while to orient myself with the various menus, seeing as there were several chalkboards on the wall, a small chalkboard on the desk, and several paper menus.

There was a long, curved counter with two sides at the front of the restaurant. The smaller one had a variety of bread, offered quick drinks, and displayed appetizing deserts for those wanting a quick bite to go; the other was for those wanting a hot lunch.

The longer counter was divided into a few stations — one to take your order, then a long display case of menus, cookies, wines, and other miscellaneous foods, and finally a place to pay and receive your food. A nearby stand held necessary utensils, such as spoons and napkins, which I completely missed and had to run back to later.

Right next to the silverware stand was an entrance to even more dining space. There was a counter, another floor, beautiful architecture, chairs, and tables. However, it seemed to be closed, at least until the front dining area was filled.

I ordered a Nutella mocha and two-dish combination of grilled turkey pesto sandwich and portobello soup, shelling out $2.50 and $8.15 respectively. It was slightly on the pricey side, but not nearly as much as the items on the dinner menu, which features a larger variety of dishes and wines.

Almost 10 minutes passed before I picked up my lunch, trying my best not to spill my soup. With my lunch mostly intact, save for some turkey pieces coming out of my sandwich, I finally sat down to try it out.

The first thing I noticed about my meal was the distinctive mushroom smell. It wasn’t overpowering, but it was definitely there and very recognizable. A good sign, because in my experience, mushrooms are either scrumptious or unappetizing, depending on the dish.

Unfortunately, the soup was too hot to try out, so I started with the sandwich. There were a couple places where the bread and turkey were overtoasted, but it looked crunchy enough.

The first bite surprised me. Instead of the crispness that I expected, my teeth had to wrestle with the crust for the better part of a minute before my molars could finish it off. In the end, I tore off the crust to dip in the soup so I could enjoy my sandwich in edible pieces.

The sandwich had an overall slightly sour tang to it. The bread, apart from the crust, was rather toasty and crunchy. The grilled turkey pieces provided the needed moisture and flavor so that the sandwich wasn’t too dry or empty.

But the pesto was the most noticeable flavor once it had touched my tongue. It had a strong, clear taste of basil. The pesto almost overwhelmed the other tastes, so it was a good thing that the pesto wasn’t spread evenly. On the whole, I was quite pleased with the unusual combination.

By the time I finished my sandwich, the soup was finally cool enough to taste without burning my tongue. It was quite a bit more sour than the sandwich, but not quite as acidic as a lemon. The mushroom flavor was as distinct and pleasant in taste as it was in smell.

The best part of the soup was its minimal amount of spice. I could see small dots of orange oil, possibly chili, floating on the top. It pleasantly stimulated my tongue just enough that I could tell it was there, but not enough for me to run for the cold water. To put it into perspective, I can’t even stand mild salsa without a bucket of water on hand.

My only complaints about the soup concerned the sliced mushrooms and the barley. Personally, I do not like having barley in soups, seeing that I’m used to having rice instead. Moreover, the sliced mushrooms were on the tasteless and chewy side, more of a soup filler and aromatic attraction than anything else.

Last but not least, my eyes shifted in the direction of the Nutella mocha. I was disappointed with the size of it, barely the amount of a cup. Did it have some secret ingredient that made it so costly?

As it turned out, I couldn’t even taste the Nutella in the drink — it was more of a simple coffee than the hazelnut-coffee-milk mixture that I was expecting. Since I’m not a big coffee drinker, the subtle flavors of the mocha were lost to me, even after I put in three packets of sugar.

Walking back to Uni, I was satisfied with my lunch at The Bread Company. It wasn’t as filling as a McDonald’s meal, but I had the energy to survive until dinner.

By and large, this restaurant is on the pricey and far-from-Green-Street side, but you will get the satisfaction of eating a healthful and unusual lunch. But personally, I’ll come here only when I get a large paycheck and a desire for a nongeneric sandwich.

More Photos from The Bread Company on Goodwin

A long counter greets the incoming customer. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)

A sample of the various artwork in the main dining area. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)

Customers can watch their lunches being prepared in an impressive kitchen. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)

A closer look at the to-go counter. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)

From left, seniors Emily Chu, Beth Peregrine, and Jennifer Roloff, alums Christine Cheng and Katie Easley, and senior Aliisa Rantanen enjoy their meals at The Bread Company. Gargoyle photo by Jie Han (click to enlarge)