After the closure of Ruffino’s Pasta Bar & Grill last September, Ryan Crawford and his family are still keeping things going in Niagara-on-the-Lake with their daily farm stand, selling fresh sourdough bread and vegetables.
Ryan Crawford and family’s Itty Bitty Farm Stand offers all-Canadian daily sourdough bread sales and larger Saturday bakes following their restaurant Ruffino’s closure last September.
The week after COVID began in March 2020, Crawford launched Itty Bitty Farm Co., selling leftover vegetables from his restaurant he didn’t want to go to waste.
“Now that we’ve changed gears since closing the restaurant we started, I decided on Saturdays let’s put out a bunch of different varieties,” said Crawford.
On “Sourdough Saturday,” the micro-bakery expands its offerings to include sourdough, rye and whole wheat loaves and bagels, along with specialty items such as pasta, sauces, preserves and seasonal fresh vegetables.
Crawford recommends arriving between noon and 1 p.m. on Saturdays because many popular varieties sell out fast.
A smaller selection is available daily at the stand including their specialty sourdough loaf, “La Roxanne.”
The bread starter, named “Roxanne,” was developed by Crawford as a chef school assignment in 1999. He’s been using it for more than 25 years.
According to Crawford, he sings “Roxanne” by The Police every time he bakes bread.
Baking at Itty Bitty Farm Co. is very much a family affair. Crawford works closely with his wife and two-year-old daughter, who “helps make bread once in a while.”
The Itty Bitty Farm stand is located at 104 Niagara St.
Everything’s Ontario. Everything’s Canadian. It’s as local as possible — nothing is American on the stand and it’s baked fresh every day,” Crawford said.
