Yuma's Best 2012: Kneaders

If you're holding down a job while raising children, you may not have a lot of hours left over to prepare three squares a day for the family – especially if those meals are to be made from scratch.

That’s where the Kneaders bakeries in Yuma can help.

"We offer fresh food, made daily from scratch," says Dr. Todd Runyan, who with his wife, Blanca, own the two Yuma restaurants. "And we strive to provide customer satisfaction."

The restaurants – one located at 28th Street and Avenue B and the other in the Yuma Palms Regional Shopping Center – serve the kind of homemade fare customers might not have time to fix for themselves, he says.

The Runyans want area residents to take a break, take a breath and sit down to a homestyle meal at either restaurant, both of which are decorated in schemes that call to mind the comforts of one’s home.

The Kneaders bakeries captured first-place honors in the category of serving the area’s Best Dessert and earned second-place in Best Bakery and Best Sub/Sandwich in Yuma’s Best, the Yuma Sun’s poll of readers’ favorite restaurants and businesses.

Dr. Runyan attributes Kneaders’ strong showing in the poll to the restaurants’ insistence on making food from scratch with fresh, high-quality ingredients. Indeed, the recipes they use were handed down through the generations of his family, then slightly adjusted in the course of preparing them for customers, he said.

In the category for which it won top honors, the bakeries serve up a variety of fruit tarts, cookies, pastries, eclairs, pies, cakes, muffins and brownies, Runyan said.

"My favorite is the key lime tart. The German chocolate brownies are really good, too. They’re all made on site and made daily."

For sandwiches, customers can choose from a variety of breads and meats and other fillings. The customer favorite, he said, seems to be one made from slow-cooked turkey.

The salads have evolved into another favorite. Originally served as sides, Runyan said, they have been modified over the years in response to customers’ response for specific ingredients and toppings. Now a Kneaders salad represents a meal in itself.

"My wife and I will sometimes get one," Runyan said, "and we usually split it because it’s usually enough for two people."

The Kneaders typically have their biggest crowds at midday as workers stop by on their lunch breaks, he said, but many people also come for breakfast, especially on weekends when menu favorites include sourdough pancakes and cinnamon french toast.

Other popular menu items throughout the week include soups and smoothies.

Kneaders was started in Utah by Runyan’s aunt and uncle, Colleen and Gary Collingsworth, and has grown into a chain consisting of numerous restaurants in that state, plus the restaurants in Yuma and in Oregon, Idaho and Colorado.

The first Kneaders in Yuma opened about five years ago on Avenue B. The Yuma Palms restaurant opened about three years ago.

They are open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 to 8 p.m. on Sunday. Phone numbers are 726-9700 at the Avenue B location and 783-4099 in Yuma Palms. Visit www.kneadersbakery.com.