Sugar Bakeshop will open next Tuesday

The Sugar Bakeshop got its start a few years ago at farmers' markets, where Natalie Slevin would hawk cupcakes and other pastries to weekend shoppers. From those humble beginnings, she grew her enterprise into a made-to-order bakery that made treats from "bread to wedding cakes, and everything in between," Slevin says. The wholesale and special-order operation had regular customers, including Sweet Action Ice Cream, which has been offering Slevin's baked goods since it opened.

Now Slevin herself is getting into the retail business, opening Sugar Bakeshop a few blocks up Broadway from Sweet Action.

"It's taken us forever to get here, but we're finally here," says Slevin, who explains that the business faced construction and permitting delays, and then her father -- and business partner -- was diagnosed with cancer last year. (He's doing well, she says.)

Slevin had picked up a lease on a different Broadway storefront last summer, but building code problems forced her to give that spot up. In her new location, she's filled the wide-open space with an exhibition kitchen, plenty of seating -- including some Broadway-facing window stools -- and a projector that will play social documentaries and old Julia Child cooking episodes. Patio seating will also be available on warm days. She's also installed a full espresso bar, which will pour Novo coffee "which we love," she says.

The menu -- for eat-in or take-out -- will feature a broad range of baked goods. "We're a full-service bakery," she says. "We'll do artisan-style, pre-made sandwiches, cakes, cookies, cupcakes, bars and brownies." The shop will bake everything daily, using local ingredients and seeking out products that are shipped in recyclable or biodegradable packaging.

Sugar Bakeshop is slated to open next Tuesday. Slevin says she'll hold a grand opening party sometime in the next couple of weeks.