Bankers Hill bakery Michi Michi rises from a collective approach 

The streets of Bankers Hill were still quiet on a recent Friday morning, but a line had already begun to form at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Olive Street in front of Michi Michi before it opened its doors for the day. These early crowds have become a common sight at the bakery, says its grateful owner Vanessa Corrales, who established the storefront last fall after a series of local pop-ups.

Among those stopping in to shop or say hello were Juliett Preson and her 2-1/2-year-old son Julian Hernandez, who comes by several times a week to pick up a treat, and Sam Zien, also known as Sam the Cooking Guy, who is both a neighbor and fan of the café.

Jomelynn Lim and her family travel regularl to Michi Michi from Chula Vista, drawn to the global flavors represented in the house pastries from resident baker Arely Chavez, an alum of restaurants like Ironside, Born & Raised, and The Fishery. From spam musubi croissants and Oaxacan mole babka to shakshuka za’atar brioche and mango-matcha cruffins, the assortment inside the pastry case is ever-changing thanks to seasonal produce from farms like Escondido’s JR Organics.

But part of Michi Michi’s appeal is discovered through its rotating cast of guest bakers who share in not just its counter space, but in its profits, as well.

Operating as a collective, with 70 percent of sales going directly to the individual baker, Michi Michi provides support and infrastructure to home cooks and pop-up owners looking to get a leg up and find a  regular customer base.

With applicants and their creations vetted before being put on the shelf, Corrales says they try to add at least one new vendor every week.

Popular guest treats include Kimochi’s fruit-filled mochi, macarons from Cafe Daph, Korean cream puffs from Mon Chourie, and sourdough bagels from New Wave Bagel, a pop-up that’s gearing up to open its own brick-and-mortar in North County.

A native of Bonita, Corrales says she wishes this kind of community model had existed back in 2017 when she was first launching Split Bakehouse, the wholesale vegan bakery that she founded after a career on the food-and-beverage operations side for hotels and restaurants like the Fairmont Grand Del Mar and Stone Brewing’s airport outpost.

Naming Michi Michi after a colloquial expression that means “half and half” or to split equally in Spanish, Corrales says that beyond transparency in business practices she’s willing to share resources with other independent owners like herself, from giving advice on obtaining insurance to providing use of their facility, as a baker visiting from Korea will do in August.

“It’s about helping like-minded producers and creators to level up their game,” Corrales said.

Besides bringing on a savory chef to expand the menu to include breakfast and lunch dishes that can be enjoyed at its sidewalk tables, Corrales says she hopes to open more Michi Michi locations that can feed their neighbors and be a platform for more area chefs and businesses.

She would also like to share the Bankers Hill space in even more tangible ways. The bakery operates just until the early afternoon Thursdays through Sundays, so she wants to find another aspiring business or pop-up that could activate the location on off-days and evenings.

Michi Michi Baking Collective

Hours: 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursdays-Sundays

Where: 2800 Fifth Ave., San Diego

Info: 619-750-0121

Online: michimichibakery.com