One of the smallest bakeries in Colorado Springs is only open a few days a week, but business is booming. Tucked away on a quiet street in the Shooks Run neighborhood, the Bakery Depot has been serving homemade cookies and biscotti since 2020. This year marks its fifth anniversary.
Owner Susan Schenk said the bakery is as much about people as it is about pastries.
“It’s all about friendships, connecting with people and bringing food and people together. I’ve made so many friends from opening the bakery,” said Susan Schenk, owner of the Bakery Depot.
From Temple Kitchen to Bakery Owner
Schenk bakes out of the Temple Shalom commissary kitchen, where she also serves as the house chef. She began her culinary journey preparing buffets for luncheons and formal events at the temple, an experience that allowed her to build confidence and creativity.
“Anything I dreamed up, I was able to bake,” Schenk said.
As she gained experience, Schenk began hosting baking workshops, teaching community members how to make rugelach, mandelbrot and other traditional Jewish baked goods.
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced her to shift the temple’s lunches to a takeout format, she began considering how to expand her baking beyond the temple kitchen.
The small building on N Institute St. that now houses the Bakery Depot is shared by several other local businesses, including one owned by Schenk’s husband. With his encouragement, she decided to turn her passion for baking into a business.
Even with limited hours and weekend-only operations, the bakery has made a mark on the community. There are a lot of larger bakeries that have opened up in the area over the past couple of years, but Schenk’s baked goods stand apart.
“It’s a one-woman company. There’s no one else who helps me…I’m not a bakery like Boonzaaijer’s or Nightingale. I don’t do that kind of volume at all,” Schenk said.
Inspired by a British Favorite
Schenk credits the wildly popular Great British Bake Off TV show as an ongoing source of inspiration. Each weekend she offers six different baked goods, typically including biscotti, cookies, coffee cakes and other rotating specialties.
Her menu changes with the seasons. During the summer months, she bakes peach and plum coffee cakes. In the fall, she transitions to pear cakes along with peach and apple hand pies. Schenk also continues to honor her roots by baking authentic Jewish treats such as rugelach filled with raspberry or apricot jam and honey cakes for the Jewish New Year.
“I listen to my customers. They might say ‘You haven’t had your poppy seed cake or cinnamon streusel coffee cake in quite a while.’ Now, I’m trying to do gluten-free baked goods every weekend. They’ve come out very nicely,” Schenk said.
Schenk’s small-batch, homemade baked goods continue to make a distinctive impact on the Colorado Springs community.
The Bakery Depot is located at 830 N. Institute St. and open on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.