"Kovacs Gyorgy, master baker from Târgu Mureș, born in 1896 in Sf. Gheorghe, son of Denes and Maria, learned the baker's trade and, in 1932, established his own bakery."
This is how the story of Kovacs bread begins. The testimony is written in an old monograph of the small artisans and craftsmen from Mureș.
For 85 years and four generations, the men of the Kovacs family, starting with Gyorgy, continuing with his son and grandson, and now with great-grandson Bela, have made the yeast, kneaded the dough and baked bread without interruption. "I grew up in the bakery. For me, the days always smelled of fresh dough and warm bread. I remember making my first mayo when I was only four or five years old. Dad took me in his arms, put me on a chair and together we made the mayo for the dough, here, in our bakery, the bakery that great-grandfather built".
Great-grandfather's bakery
Kovacs Gyorgy made bread with mayo and baked it in a wood-fired brick oven. Knead the dough by hand for 60 loaves of 2,5 kg at a time. And the bread came out brown and good. Mayo bread. Just water, good flour and salt. The great-grandfather also worked in the ster. That is, those who did not have an oven would come to his bakery to bake bread, with the dough made at home and ready in pots. And everyone was happy with this arrangement. Until '48, at nationalization. Then, the new regime kept only the bakeries with two ovens, which it took ownership of. He closed the ones with a single oven.
Sealed 34 years
Kovacs Bakery remained sealed for 34 years. But the craft of baking continued in the family. "The great-grandfather was then a foreman in other bakeries. Grandfather also entered the profession at an early age. He worked for the state and became a foreman baker in Târgu Mureș. But he also baked good bread in the resorts of Sovata and Borsec, where he was paid better. In the meantime, my father also learned to make bread from his father", says Kovacs Bela. He inherited from his father and grandfather not only the secret of the trade, but also the first name. And fate tied him to his great-grandfather's bakery. In 1982, the small bakery of the Kovacs family reopened. Around then, Bela was also born.
Four hands made more than 200 loaves of bread
A law had been passed by which the craft cooperatives had to have a bakery to make bread for the employees. The people from Cooperativa Metalica looked for the successor of the Kovacs bakers and that's how they reopened the bakery. "There were only two employees. Dad and someone else. They made the dough, they kneaded by hand, they baked in the old brick oven. Four hands made more than 200 loaves of bread. Good bread with mayo. This is what my family lived on. For better or for worse, we have always earned our bread by making bread".
The fourth generation, in pita
In '91, when privatization came, although everything had belonged to the family, Kovacs Bela the father had to buy from the cooperative the space where the bakery worked, even the oven. Bela son, the fourth generation of bakers in the family, was already "in the pie". He was only 15 years old in '97 when, because his father had health problems, he practically took over the reins, but also the burden of the bakery, in those years of wild economy. "I also went to school, I took care of the bakery, I also distributed bread, I did everything." It was the year that the little baker chose the right path at the crossroads of the future for Kovacs bread.
He rode his bicycle to buy a mixer
Kovacs Bela the father did not believe in modernization. He wanted to make bread with his hands, like in the old days. The son, however, had other plans. One day, young Bela heard that there was a mixer for sale in a village, about 30 kilometers from home. He got on his bike and left with the intention of buying it. "I heard that a bakery had closed and they had a mixer for sale. The owner didn't even want to talk to me. What is with this child, he said to himself. Father should come, if he wants the mixer, he told me. At home, I knew that dad didn't even want to hear it. He did not want to give up the tradition of kneading the dough by hand. I insisted, I explained to him that it was better, and I convinced him to buy it", recalls Kovacs Bela, still amused, about the first investment he made.
32 own stores
In 2000, he tore down his great-grandfather's brick oven and bought a 10 square meter hearth oven. He also made other upgrades. Especially since those were the years when Turkish bread imposed a dramatic competition. "It was hard until I opened my first store in 2001. I also sold at the bakery, at a gemulet, one hour in the morning and two after lunch".
Now, the business led by Kovacs Bela has 32 of its own stores and around 200 employees. "Recently, we celebrated the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Kovacs bakery. And I was happy to see that our first seller, from our first store, Mrs. Eva, is also with us".
Family recipes
Since 2005, Kovacs products have started to diversify. Now, there are 35 varieties of bread and 75 pastries on the shelves. The products use old, family recipes, but new or improved ones are always being invented. And again the mayo makes the difference. Used in the basic composition, it gives flavor and specific taste even to some pastries. That would be the secret of the Kovacs cake.
The future, tradition and modern technology
The future is already taking shape. A large, new hall of 3.500 square meters, outside the city, and modernly equipped, with two separate lines, will soon take over the breading and baking of the breads, and separately the patisserie. There will also be a canteen for employees. And the old bakery will be rebuilt, like in the time of the great-grandfather. A soul project. Kovacs Bakery will once again have a brick oven, like the great-grandfather's, and a small shop, with the charm of the old days. Mayo bread will come out of the oven every morning, brown and good, after almost a century, on the place where master baker Kovacs Gyorgy made the first bread in Târgu Mureș in 1932.
"The secret of good bread is mayo"
Kovacs Bela is proud of the recipes inherited from the family. And of course, they keep their secret like a precious treasure. The bakery's greatest asset is the mayo. "Because the secret of good bread is mayo", admits the baker manager. All his thoughts, all his projects, all his plans are related to the good and the future of the bakery and the people who work there. On weekends, he makes mayo with his own hands, together with the children. "At the weekend, we come here with the family. I say at home: no, are we going to make mayo? Yes, the little ones are happy." Kovacs Bela has three children. It's too early to say if, and which, of them will carry the art of baking forward.
For over 40 years, communism mutilated traditions. We woke up in 1989 without much learning passed down from generation to generation. And we had to, like the archaeologist who discovers artifacts, rediscover those fragments of tradition left here and there, bring them to light, complete them and put them back where they belonged. Because "a people without traditions is a people without a future" (Alberto L. Camargo).
