By Kyla Woodard, kyla@claytodayonline.com
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS— Everything at the Bakery II is made with customers in mind.
That means it's baked with love, cooked to perfection and served to the people that they call their neighbors. Just how Teri and Chris Gibbs like it.
After relocating to their new home at 7415 State Road 21, they will soon celebrate the grand reopening of the community-based bakehouse where food meets family.
Whether it be made from scratch breakfast favorites, custom cakes, pies, breads and warm, gigantic cinnamon rolls or even homemade soups and salads, the Bakery II knows what it takes to satisfy a sweet tooth and any grumbling tummy.
Teri said the two first began the business on a whim in 2018. They were nestled into a small location on Commercial Circle. Growing up, watching her father cook molded her passion for food, she said.
"I started cooking when I was 7, 8 years old."
On opening day, she said they only sold a small assortment of bakery delicacies and special decorative orders. And during the pandemic, their business escalated when they began selling bread at a time when their community couldn't get it anywhere else. That, Teri said, spiraled into something more.
"We stumbled across making some sandwiches. So, that's where our breakfast and lunch items came from."
But, four years later their booming business came to a halt. After Teri's brother, Francis Glenn Mielkey II, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer, she became his primary caretaker. With a lot on their plates, Teri said she and Chris had no other choice but to close the doors.
“Out of all the siblings, I was the one able to close up shop and go help take care of him. And I was able to spend his final days with him,” she said.
After her brother passed away, Teri and her husband decided to jump back into the business. And in honor of her brother, they named it the Bakery II.
Teri said relocating has been the perfect way to take their business to the next level. And the bakery has since transitioned from to-go only orders, to a full dining experience.
"It's been the best move we've ever made," she said.
Their menu has also doubled in size. In addition to soups and salads, they also carry weekly specialty sandwiches, like the Camel Rider, stuffed with salami, ham, bologna, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions and vinaigrette dressing. Or the staple Big Daddy and Little Mama sandwiches.
Each one, she said, is customized by the specific desires of the people they serve—making community involvement an important aspect of their business.
"We have a blackboard in the back [with] a question: What do you miss from us? What would you like to see us do? So, we're always up for suggestions," she said.
With the help of staff members, Teri said each dish is cooked with nostalgia in mind and derived from old family recipes, like their famous pie crust. That, Teri said, is what makes the Bakery II unique.
"The pie crust recipe itself was my grandmother's, which I never met her," Teri said.
The store will usher in its grand reopening with a week-long celebration beginning Sept. 22, which will include daily giveaways, sponsored sweet treats, a ribbon cutting ceremony by the Clay County Chamber of Commerce on Sept. 23 and a special flag dedication to honor Mielkey II, who was a U.S. veteran.
Already having won the Best of Clay award for Best Bakery, Teri said there's a lot more down the pipeline to keep the bakery on an upward trajectory. That includes eventually opening a drive-thru.
"We're always up for growing, but there comes a time where you don't want to take shortcuts. So, we're not going to grow as big, but we're going to try to continue doing what we're doing."
