The Beginning Of The Beginning

The Beginning

The Only Way To Eat Carrots!

A brilliant woman once said: when one window closes, another window opens, NOT for you jump out of but for you to look out and see if its clear. The moment we chose to dive out the window and open a bakery it must have been a clear and beautiful day, we went head first. 
This blog will chronicle the up and downs, trials and tribulations of this new journey in our life.


Useful Background Info


CRAVE is an "order based" bakery. We bake and deliver to you delicious and beautiful baked goods all over Klamath Falls (and beyond). You call us, tell us what you're craving, we create and deliver. Our products will also be available at local coffee shops, gourmet markets, restaurants and of course the farmers market (where we began...more to come). What do we bake? Anything that includes butter and sugar. This includes cookies, cakes, cupcakes, pies, muffins, scones and other sweet specialties.

We are a husband (J) and wife (V) team with big dreams in the restaurant biz. CRAVE was created as a bakery/cafe concept a few years ago and premiered at the Klamath Falls Farmers Market just 7 months ago. We spend many hours talking about our future restaurant plans like what we want, where we want it and when. A bakery was always planned to be our first venture. When CRAVE was born we both were working 70 plus hours a week, managing restaurants plus, other side jobs to keep us busy. We decided one day we needed to do something for each other and together. Many would think finding a hobby like hiking, knitting or coin collecting but we decided to start a business. Good thing our plate was a more like a platter. So, we started baking at the restaurant V (The Baker) worked at when their kitchen closed. We'd get off work around midnight, bake until 3-4am and wake up at 7am to get to market. We'd get done at the market around 1pm then jet back to our "paying" jobs to finish off the week. The market was able to get us great exposure and clients (who we call friends).orders started rollin' in 250 cupcakes, a few cakes, cheesecakes and countless dozens of cookies!

The Adventure Begins

So here we are...new owners of a full fledged wholesale bakery. An opportunity we didn't dream would happen for many more years but will help from an amazing family and a determined husband and wife it begins...with cleaning...lots and lots of cleaning. The shop has been empty

Baking Zone!

for a few months, which meant everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. So with some Mr. Clean in hand we began our cleaning leg of the adventure. Scrubbing the walls, top to bottom removing all remnants of old frosting and food coloring that splattered from the 
previous tenant. 

Ya! That's A Mixer...We Call It Sir MIX Alotta Dough!

Ok...So Maybe I Overreacted!

As we worked our way to completion, our first injury! A fierce gouge on the hand. The very hand that creates some of CRAVE signature frosting designs and that stirs the batter with exact precious. But somehow, someway I (J - The Baker's Assistant) continued with my cleaning duties. Was it the look I was given by the V? I cannot say for sure but I sucked it up and continued. Fridges, shelves, tables, sinks and floors were all given a makeover and a second chance at life but there was one thing left... The Oven! We have been using the small apartment sized oven in our home for the past few months (as we left our restaurant jobs in the pursuit of happiness) and compared to that tiny thing this oven was huge and in this case size DOES matter. I pumped myself up, got my battle gear in order (oven cleaner, SOS pads and a damp cloth), rolled up my shelves and and tackled that enormous heap of greasy metal. Determined to turn it into a shiny silver cookie baking machine. It took elbow grease, shoulder grease, leg grease and every other type of grease a body can product but 5 hours, dozens cuts (I'll be honest know they weren't gouges just cuts) and one headache later the transformation was complete! There it stood so shiny and clean in its stainless steel glory...simply beautiful.

Isn't She Lovely!

Hours of cleaning and scrubbing, our finger prints dissolved by cleaners, degreasers and sanitizers, our hands dry as a desert and bodies feeling the pain in every achy joint. But now a sparkly, clean and fresh smelling bakery was reborn and we could stand back and official say...it feels like us! We're ready to bake!

- CRAVE