Beth Biundo opened her namesake bakery after spending a decade as the pastry chef at Lilette. She's a four-time semi-finalist for the James Beard Outstanding Pastry Chef and has dabbled in art history and interior design.
The bakery uses high quality ingredients and carefully tested recipes to create the best versions of favorites from the past. Beth Biundo Sweets handles a large amount of special orders, including wedding and occasion cakes, decorated sugar cookies, and ice cream, and is the perfect spot for a post-lunch treat, or when you need to grab a hostess gift (their pound cakes are the perfect choice!). With a slew of regular customers and constant newcomers, life at the bakery is far from boring.
While Biundo might not work traditional baker's hours, but she still begins her mornings on the earlier side. "I’ve worked in restaurants for most of my career and that was much more of a crazy schedule, sometimes with early mornings or late nights," she told Adore. "We have a more set schedule at the bakery, but as a small business owner I am responsible for everything. Some days are in front of the computer, some are nonstop putting out fires, and on rare days I get to just bake and decorate cakes."
Below, a typical start to Biundo's day...that is if she did not go out or stay up late the night before!
6:00 a.m. My first alarm on my iPhone goes off. I set multiple alarms just in case, but the first usually gets me up. My bedroom is a little oasis with a pool and garden off of it. I like to immediately open the big glass doors to the garden when the weather is nice.
Beth's view from bed
6:10 a.m. I make an iced coffee every morning, from the great Congregation Coffee cold brew we serve in the bakery, grab my computer, and get back in bed. I don’t like hot drinks, so it’s iced coffee no matter how cold it is. I drink coffee in bed while I scan the news and whatever else I’m thinking about that morning, or text friends who I know are up. I like an easy transition in the morning. I’ve never been a breakfast eater, so coffee is it.
6:30 a.m. I always take a few minutes to make the bed, put away clothes, and tidy. I like coming home to a perfectly clean house. Then I throw on clothes and take my dalmatian Sally for a walk down Magazine Street. She is pretty lazy, so I usually have to force her out of bed, but once we are out she enjoys the walk and I enjoy the window shopping.
Beth's Magazine Street walk with Sally
7:00 a.m. A quick shower and I get dressed for the day. I take a longer shower and wash my hair when I get home from work in the evening because I tend to be a bit sugar coated by then. I have very sensitive skin so I don’t change up my products. I’ve used Mario Badescu seaweed cleanser and moisturizer forever. My outfit is always some variation of jeans, top, and Converse sneakers. I am cooking all day so my clothes have to be washable, but I do add some jewelry and makeup so I’m a little more presentable when meeting with people.
Backyard views
7:20 a.m. I head to the bakery; luckily my commute is only a few minutes.
7:25 a.m. I’m the first person in, and I like to have at least an hour to just bake uninterrupted. Once we open I have distractions all day. I put on music or the news depending on my mood, and I get all of the cookies, tarts, and pound cakes for the day in the oven.
8:30 a.m. The first employee arrives and we go over the items for the day and the orders that need to be boxed or packaged.
Wall of cookie cutters
9:00 a.m. The bakery opens and is set up for the day. I photograph and Instagram anything we want to feature or that looks particularly pretty that day. Social media is a great promotion tool for small businesses, but I have to discipline myself to do it everyday. I have a real love/hate relationship with Instagram and its influence.
9:30 a.m. My assistant arrives and we go over her list for the day. At this point I run out on any errands I have for the day: the farmers’ market, Restaurant Depot, cake decorating supplies, etc.
Floral cake
10:30 a.m. Back at the bakery and I make sure to take time to handle emails, orders, and the website. The volume of emails can be overwhelming and since I’m not in front of the computer all day they can quickly stack up. I add new orders to the calendar, correspond about weddings and other special orders, and update the website as needed. We added online ordering about six months ago and that has been a big help with reducing my computer time. Luckily, my web designer Britton Stewart of Thinka Design works upstairs from the bakery so if I need help troubleshooting I can usually take care of it quickly.
"A rare look at lunch!"
11:30 a.m. I’m back in the kitchen for the rest of the day, baking, decorating cakes, making ice cream, and whatever is on the agenda for the day. It’s easy to get distracted when I’m cooking, so lunch is maybe a once a week thing, usually picking up something from Stein's or The Daily Beet. The length of the day really varies depending on how busy we are, but at least once or twice a week I try to get out a little earlier and take a yoga or barre class, get a pedicure, or just run errands.
Beth Biundo Sweets is located at 3917 Baronne Street.