Tony Shalhoub is swapping detective work for dough in his new CNN Original Series Breaking Bread, a travel-food documentary that uses bread as a gateway into local culture, history, and human connection. Over six episodes, Shalhoub journeys across the globe — from his hometown in New York to cities like Tokyo, Marseille, São Paulo, and Iceland — to taste, bake, and share stories around this universal food staple.
In each episode, bread becomes a lens: whether it’s fluffy milk buns in Tokyo, baguettes in France, flatbreads in Brazil, or even volcanic oven loaves in Iceland. Shalhoub meets bakers, chefs, home cooks, and everyday people, asking not just how they make bread, but why. He explores how tradition, migration, climate, and ingredients shape the loaf and the people who make it.
The series also touches on Shalhoub’s own heritage, particularly when he visits São Paulo to trace Lebanese influences in Brazilian baking, or when he returns to New York to rediscover regional breads and immigrant food traditions. Along the way, he invites his family to join — adding emotional depth as he connects bread back to memory, roots, and legacy.
Breaking Bread reveals not just new flavors but new perspectives. Shalhoub often steps away from being the “expert” and instead plays the curious traveler, learning and listening. He emphasizes that food is inseparable from people: a bowl of dough can tell stories about identity, community, adaptation, and survival.
This series stands out because it’s not about competition or glossy cuisine. It’s about the humble loaf: how it binds people to place, memory, and to one another. As Shalhoub says, making and breaking bread is often the simplest—and most profound—form of connection.