Why We’re Obsessed with Bread 41’s Tiny BLT
Why We’re Obsessed with Bread 41’s Tiny BLT
Words: Shamim de Brún
Images: Instagram
Hopping on the tiny food train, the absolute characters of Bread 41 have made a tiny BLT with a mini loaf of pastry. It’s unclear if it will be available on their lunch menu though the caption indicates it’s “coming soon.”
The internet has been obsessed with tiny food for many years. The Tiny Foods Twitter account has over half a million followers, while Miniature Space has more than one and a half million YouTube subscribers. The phenomenon, which originated in Japan, has been written up everywhere, from Vogue to The Atlantic to Mashed and BuzzFeed.
Why, exactly, are people like us so obsessed with impossibly small creations? There is no definite answer. But it likely is correlated with the growing application for Japanese culture. In Japan, tiny food exemplifies cuteness, which is widely popular throughout Japanese society. The internet loves cute things, if the proliferation of capybara videos is anything to go by.
In an interview with Mashed Boston University, anthropology professor Merry White said tiny cooking videos spur ‘a sort of affectionate excitement when we watch them. We, the internet, love seeing people make something ordinary but in an exceptional way. In the case of Bread 41, we all recognise the teeny weeny BLT but are fascinated by its exceptionally little size.
For most of us watching the Bread 41 video, what most quickly comes to mind are childhood memories of doll houses. Tiny food seems to tap into our nostalgia complex. Much in the same way, 90s-themed events and pubs do. So when we get the chance to feel that innocent childhood joy again, we jump at it. Especially if it is as tasty as literally anything, Bread 41 has ever done.
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