Emilee Phillips, Staff Writer
July marks one year since the grand opening of Delucia’s Bake Shop in West End. Every morning, the kitchen comes to life at 4 a.m. when owners Dena Delucia or Chelsea Huggins begin prep for the day. Here, the bread often rises before the sun.
It’s normal to hear laughter echoing out of the kitchen from the two bakers. “We’re a good yin and yang,” says Huggins, “It’s a lot of fun.”
A piece of parchment paper on the wall lists everything to make for the day, and the list is never small.
“It’s really important to both of us to maintain variety,” says Delucia, “We want to keep people interested. We have to really be a destination because people say (West End) is so far away.”
The bakery is a melting pot in itself. It sports an old school New York vibe with lots of Italian and Jewish products as well as classic, sweet Southern favorites. Offerings include bagels, danishes, cookies, sticky buns, macarons, rugelach, apple fritters, challah bread, pies, cannolis and more.
The walls hold various military flags, alluding to Delucia’s time serving, and there is also a sign that reads, “Shalom, Y’all,” welcoming guests of all backgrounds.
Huggins and Delucia enjoy seeing people try new things, even if they can’t pronounce them.
“I don’t mind explaining items people have never heard of. It’s an education factor that other things exist,” says Delucia.
Delucia’s Bake Shop also accepts custom orders for cakes whether it’s a holiday, baby shower, birthday, divorce, graduation. They can also do special orders for gluten free.
Some regulars come every day. They’ve had customers help fold boxes, or bring in presents.
“We have some of the best people,” says Huggins.
“God really put us here. Our customers really are fantastic,” adds Delucia.
They’ve even had other bakers in the area help out during busy days when they ran out of something like boxes or deli paper. The last year “has been a rollercoaster,” says Chelsea. But, it all balances with surviving the slow months, like in the summer.
“We know it’s going to be slow sometimes but that doesn’t make it easier to pay rent,” says Delucia.
Community is important to the duo and although they aren’t yet in a place to financially give back, they try and show up in other ways. Monday nights, when they’re usually closed, a local Girl Scout troop uses the space for meetings. The business also donates leftovers to a church food bank. Delucia eventually wants to do a scholarship program for the Sandhills Community College culinary program as well.
“Nothing makes me tear up more than seeing a line outside the door on a Sunday morning,” says Delucia, “It’s cheesy but people supporting us are helping our dreams come true.
Hours are Tuesday through Friday 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Contact Emilee Phillips at emilee@thepilot.com.
