Hello again from Great Harvest PDX, your downtown Portland bakery. Right off
the Yamhill MAX stop, we’re just a hop and a skip from both Pioneer Square and
the Waterfront. Our scones and muffins, fresh bread, cookies, and sandwiches are
ready for you to come pick up!
It’s been a while since our last post and while we’re still baking from
scratch daily (and milling our flour fresh on-site!), the past month and a half
has brought some challenges behind the scenes. We wanted to take a moment to
check in and share what’s been happening at the bakery.
Right after our first post, we were feeling a real surge of momentum. Sales
were up and, for the first time since before the pandemic, it felt like we were
finally turning a corner. The joy in the bakery was real. We were dreaming big.
Our ovens, though, had other plans…
Our big oven has been acting up for years but
we’ve been working on it. Our reliable small convection oven – the oven we use
for sourdough and pretzels – broke down entirely. For weeks we’ve been without
some of your favorite breads and pastries (we’ve missed them, too).
On top of that, we had a tough stretch with
staffing. We hired a few people that just didn’t show up – something we are not
used to. Our team has been doing their absolute best under the weight of it all
and we appreciate any patience given to them.
But we’re still here and we’re not giving up!
We’ve finally welcomed a new member of our
team! Our big oven is finally running as close to 100% as it can. The small
oven is... well, we’re still working on it, but we might just take matters into
our own hands. And the moment pretzels
and sourdough are back, trust us: you’ll be the first to know.
This isn’t the push we hoped for back in May.
But it’s where we are. And if you’re reading this, thank you for sticking with
us and for believing in small businesses trying to make it in downtown Portland.
We still believe in this place. We still
believe in our bakery. And we still believe in our comeback.
Feel free to leave some feedback on our survey
up at the top of our website! What keeps
you coming back to our bakery?
We’ll be back soon with brighter updates – and pretzels/sourdough!
Thanks all,
~ Your GH PDX Crew