Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Marggraf.
Katie, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
We met working at a vegan bakery in Portland, Oregon in 2008. We baked and cooked all kinds of things between then and now, moving to a few different states, trying out different jobs, getting married. Jesse is a classically trained chef, and Katie is a self-taught baker. We complement each other’s skills.
We settled in Harbor Country and opened the Black Currant Bakehouse in 2017. We wanted to create a space in this area that we loved that focused on the things that were important to us – high-quality, scratch-made pastries, unique vegetarian food, and really good coffee.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has absolutely not! Been an easy road, but it has been an interesting road. The seasonality of Harbor Country is incredibly challenging. Finding the right staff for different parts of the year, knowing when to be open and when it’s not worth it, having to take a lot of educated guesses when it comes to how much product to make on any given day. You’d be amazed (and stressed) at what goes into each day.
We’ve also dealt with Union Pier getting an entire facelift, which included a 30ft deep hole in the ground outside the front of the bakery for half a year – during the height of COVID.
And oh yeah, running a small business during COVID has been obviously unbelievably weird. But we’re so proud of ourselves and our resilient staff for getting through all of it.
We’ve been impressed with Black Currant Bakehouse, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We specialize in high-quality scratch-made pastries and distinctive savory items. Specifically, people come to us for our donuts, cinnamon rolls, and celebration cakes. The line that stretches around the corner and down the street in the summer months is mostly for the donuts, but we also have a pretty serious fanbase for our coffee and tea. What sets us apart from others is our dedication to exacting standards when it comes to ingredients, as well as our all-vegetarian kitchen. We also have a pretty great lineup of vegan options (like most of our sandwiches and our fan-favorite Wildberry Crumb Bar). A lot of the time, when a customer finds out we’re all vegetarian, they get a little nervous. But we’ve changed a lot of hearts and minds over the years. We’re pretty proud of that.
We want people to know that we’re serious when it comes to using high-caliber ingredients. Our cocoa powder, all-purpose flour, produce, eggs, everything down to the vanilla extract. It’s all intentional.
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
Honestly, a lot of people don’t know we’re vegetarian! And most people don’t know you can place your cake order up to 3 months in advance, which you probably want to do because we book up so fast.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blackcurrantbakehouse.com
- Instagram: blackcurrantbakehouse
- Facebook: facebook.com/blackcurrantbakehouse
Image Credits
Jesse
Mike Marggraf
Katie Marggraf
