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The grain, the whole grain, and nothing but the grain

The Shift’s Michael Geilen ‘kneaded’ to learn more about one of his favourite DTES shop, so he sat down with Tommy Aird to get grist for the mill on all things baking

August 7, 2025

About 18 months ago, Tommy’s Whole Grain Bakery opened in the Downtown Eastside, and after a few months, I felt an urge to check it out.  

Along with my coffee, I had what I believe was one of the most spectacular oatmeal raisin cookies, and I have since tried several of their other baked treasures.  

One day, I asked Tommy Aird why he decided to open his own bakery. Here’s how the conversation went. 

Michael Geilen: Why did you decide to open your own bakery? 

Tommy Aird: The start of the idea was wanting any bakery — it didn’t have to be mine — but wanting a bakery that was whole grain, that made flour out of all the components of the grain, and not just one part of it. I think if I was able to find somewhere that was already doing that, I could happily work for them. But in baking, there’s still not enough whole grain being used, so I set off to open my own bakery that had whole grain as its foundation. That’s where it all started.  

Is it just you, or is there a team? 

There are, I think, six or seven of us who make up the workforce at the bakery. Each of them plays an important part and I’m lucky to work with them. 

Even though it was me who incorporated a business and got a loan to do this, it was always comforting knowing there was an existing team who’s going to be part of it. 

And the bakery is very much defined by those people. Even though it’s called Tommy’s, I’ve always felt as if it’s very much a group effort, and then in the future, we do have a profit-sharing model, even though we’re not profitable yet. But it’s kind of like a commitment to the goal. And I like to think that the team really believes in what we do.  

How long have you been baking? 

Probably around 10 years. I’ve worked in restaurants for more than 20 or so. I did a lot of jobs as a youngster, so even though I worked in restaurants in my early 20s, for instance, I didn’t know if that’s what I wanted to do for the rest of my working life.  

I was in my mid-20s when I decided to go to college in Toronto for culinary management, thinking that there’s a lot of good jobs in hospitality, or in restaurants.  

It took me a minute to get into the baking or pastry department area of the industry, because it’s easiest to get a job as a cook. That’s what you did as a teenager, you know, you worked at a Cactus Club, and before that, in the mall food court.  

After culinary school, I worked in some really nice restaurants in Toronto, which was very influential on me. And eventually I made it into the baking department of the restaurants. And I guess in some sense, I’ve never turned back. It was all white flour, though, so I think there were still major revelations to take place, but that was the start of it, being able to work closer with desserts and breads and cakes and all those things that I always wanted to work with so much — get away from the grill or the deep fryer.  

But, yeah, that’s a long answer for baking. About 10 years. 

Right on. Was there a turning point for you in Toronto? 

I think it was 2016 when I went to my first grain conference in Montreal, and it was a conference for bakers and millers and farmers or growers and plant breeders and kind of all people, brewers or maltsters, all people who work in grain. So there were a lot of different kinds of conversations, and a lot of it was brand new to me. I’m talking about plant breeding, which I really hadn’t thought much about and didn’t know anything about. And so I went to that same conference two years in a row. After that, I went to a conference that was specifically about soil, which I found really interesting. Later on, I went to the UK to actually participate, where I demonstrated my whole grain baguette. And again, it wasn’t just a group of bakers, we’re just one piece of the puzzle. I found it really engaging and stimulating.  

What’s been something you’ve learned on your whole grain journey? 

I think something I’ve come to understand is my responsibility or opportunity or influence — or all those things — as a baker. What I do has influence or impact over you, and my decisions impact the flavour of your food, or the health of your food, or the impact it has on the environment.  

Working with non-commodity grains, grains that are heirloom varieties or new hybrid varieties, are not industrialized, are not genetically modified, are not grown with petrochemicals and all that stuff… I feel like there’s so many people who are part of that being able to exist, right? So it’s not just land breeders coming up with these varieties and farmers committing to take a risk and grow out something that’s a little more, maybe higher risk, but it’s also millers and bakers committed to work with that, which is usually more expensive, and then it’s consumers choosing to seek that out. And again, a lot of time it’s slightly more expensive, but it’s because it’s real food, and we’re not cutting corners, and we’re not sacrificing the quality of life for farm workers, or the environment. This made me feel as If there’s so much more purpose for my bakery. 

Why did you choose the Downtown Eastside to open your bakery?  

I didn’t specifically choose the Downtown Eastside, I was open to all neighbourhoods in the city. It was the seventh location I looked at, and was the one most suited to becoming a bakery.  

Each location requires research into the economic area and the demographic. When I took a closer look at the Downtown Eastside, at our location on Powell Street, it was easy for me to imagine a bright future. The challenges of the area are clear, but the potential is enormous. I’m half-a-block up from the 60-plus-year institution, Sunrise Market, and half-a-block away from Oppenheimer Park.  

Even if it was risky, the support we get from the community makes it hard to remember ever having doubts.  Week after week we are reminded that this neighbourhood has some of the strongest community fabric in Vancouver, and we are privileged to be here serving them.   

I hope more people choose to come visit us.   

Tommy’s Whole Grain Bakery is located at 338 Powell St. Find out more at tommyswholegrain.com 

Community Treasures is an occasional feature that spotlights good people doing good things. 

Michael Geilen has been with Megaphone for about seven years and is known for his big grin, great attitude and cringe-worthy “dad” jokes. Michael, who lives with a degenerative neurological disease, believes helping others is the key to connection. He backs that up with pedal power, cycling hundreds of kilometres each summer in the Ride to Conquer Cancer to raise money for the BC Cancer Foundation. He is a member of The Shift peer newsroom. 

Published in Megaphone magazine on August 8, 2025