Gangnam Style. Arsenio Hall haircuts. Lawn darts. Recognize some of those trends? A quick burst of popularity, followed by a moment of head-scratching reflection, then rapid decline. And that type of “flash in the pan” seems somehow related to situations where dues must be paid and lumps taken before respect comes.
Like a greenhorn cowboy who gets kicked by a clever mule or a teenager scorching ribs on a grill, earning your stripes and creating long-lasting goodness ain’t easy for the lazy or for the faint of heart. It takes time, persistence and talent.
Enter Jennifer Bush who just opened Lucky’s Bakehouse and Creamery, 20 paces from Lucky’s Market on North Broadway in Boulder. Jennifer, spunky and energetic in her chef whites, has served her time in the business. Starting 15 years ago as a culinary student, she quickly became the pastry chef (following a stint washing dishes) at Leftbank in Marin County, followed that by heading a crew of 16 pastry chefs at Scala’s in San Francisco and then landing back in Colorado, where for the last several years she’s worked with Dave Query at Big Red F and founded an all-natural slice-and-bake frozen cookie company, Icebox Bakery. Wheew, so much for the dues paying.
About a year ago, she met Bo Sharon, owner of Lucky’s Market and a fan of Jen’s work. They bonded over baked goods and…Bing-Bang-Boom, here she is, chunks of flour-dusted blond hair piled high on her head, proudly standing amongst her sweet glistening art. She has dry cases overflowing with sticky buns, croissants, tarts and muffins, and refrigerated cases stacked with big cakes and small cakes, flourless cakes and multi-layered fancy cakes, even cakes swaddled in blankets of toasty meringue. Which brings us back to the fad ideas, like AMC Pacers, that can’t hack the test of time. By contrast, these baked goods are timeless and beautifully crafted from things we know and love: sugar, flour, salt, eggs, cream. Lucky’s baked goods are staying put.
Tasty goods? Sure. While the lemon glazed donut could’ve been lemonier, I am a huge sour-monger and it’s hard to get food tart enough for me. We thought the crumbly, crunchy-topped coffee cake was amazing, as was the 5-layer Rainbow Icebox Cake: carrot, zucchini orange marmalade, red velvet, chocolate and white almond cake with cream cheese buttercream. Also, what sounds better than a banana cake with coffee buttercream frosting? Few things come to mind.
If you find yourself within a few miles of Lucky’s Bakehouse, do yourself a favor and check it out. If you believe that a passion for baking, plus years wielding rolling pins, mixers and crusty sheet pans tend to result in sublime pastries and gooey treats, you sir, are correct. So come visit Lucky’s: it’s the kind of flash in the pan that will leave a great lasting impression.
Allan, thanks for The Word on the bakehouse! In my opinion a town can’t have too many bakeries…we sweet fiends are particular about what we like! Yummmmm can’t wait to go.
Thanks Elizabeth,
Yeah we sweet fiends have to share the goods!