Pandemic bakery graduates to full storefront
Ontario transplant and Rocky Lemon proprietor Nada Wiltshire enjoying sweet success and opportunity to connect more closely with customers and supportive community
The path to bakery success has proven to be anything but rocky, and her relationship with customers hasn’t been sour at all, so don’t let the name fool you.
The Rocky Lemon is emerging from its cocoon this weekend, transforming from a pickup/delivery bakery business to a bakery/café with a full-fledged storefront on Lincoln Road in Fredericton.
Owner and pastry chef Nada Wiltshire was giddy with excitement Friday afternoon as she spoke with the Fredericton Independent about the new café’s pending grand opening Saturday afternoon.
She established the bakery in August 2020 - the height of the pandemic - and while COVID-19 proved to be the bane of many businesses, she said, things really took off with her focus on pickup and delivery orders of sweet treats.
Wiltshire said she believes people wanted to indulge themselves on lockdown in small ways, and that allowed her to develop a customer base.
“I think people were just really keen on supporting local,” she said.
Previously, she had a location in the Vanier Industrial Park where she and a small staff handled productions and where customers could pick up orders.
Business was booming, because now she’s opening a new storefront where people can gather, eat in and spend some time.
‘It was because of the community’
So what prompted Wiltshire to step things up and open a full bakery and café?
“Honestly, it was because of the community,” she said.
“I really wanted to give them a nicer space.”
Wiltshire exuded enthusiasm throughout the conversation, and when prodded, she admitted expanding the business to accommodate dining in was also about something she enjoys: connecting with customers.
“I wanted to hang out with people,” she said.
In keeping with the community-oriented atmosphere, Wiltshire is decorating the space in a local and personal way.
Tyler and Luke Randall, owners of art-supply store Endeavours in downtown Fredericton, gave Wiltshire an idea with which she’s forging ahead. She’s inviting artists from the community to display lemon-themed arts and crafts in the café.
“We’re calling it our Rocky Lemon Wall,” she said. “I really like that connection.”
Just before the pandemic, Wiltshire said, she and her husband were living in the Kitchener/Waterloo, Ont. area, but moved to the Fredericton area.
“My parents had been here for a little bit already,” she said.
The closeness of community that’s so much a part of life in the Maritimes really suits her personality, and she’s thrilled they decided to move to New Brunswick.
“We love it,” she said.
Summertime launch
Wiltshire and her small staff will host the new spot’s grand opening Saturday from 2-5 p.m. at 1853 Lincoln Rd., just past the Irving station.
It’s a soft opening, she said.
Following that, the Rocky Lemon will open for its regular hours beginning Thursday, she said.
At first, it’ll operate three days a week - Thursdays to Saturdays - as she establishes the new incarnation of the business, Wiltshire said, and as she slowly grows the staff. Eventually, it’ll operate seven days a week.
In addition to the usual sweet treats for which it’s known, the Rocky Lemon will offer lunch service and breakfast on the weekends.
But how does a pastry chef go from cookies and cakes to more savoury fare?
“I started off in fine dining,” Wiltshire said, noting she’s worked in a variety of restaurants and picked up a wide array of culinary skills over the years.
She wants to offer quality food at fast-food prices, she said, noting there will be an emphasis on freshness. Bread will be baked fresh and meats will be smoked and cured on site, Wiltshire said.
“Food for me is so much more than sustenance,” she said.
What’s in a name?
Wiltshire said she named her business after her signature dessert: a lemon square dubbed the Rocky Lemon.
It boasts a butter shortbread crust covered in what she describes as her “secret lemon curd.”
“It gets topped with what I call the rock,” Wiltshire said.
The rock is a white chocolate cookie crumble, she said, but like her lemon curd recipe, she keeps the details of the “rock” to herself.
So what else can the Rocky Lemon become? How much bigger can it get?
Wiltshire said if the Lincoln Road location flourishes, she would like to look at adding a spot on the capital’s north side.
But she doesn’t picture a Martha Stewart-esque empire in her future, nor does she want one. With the new bakery and café, she said, she’s achieved her vision. She wants to keep things small and personal – and fun.
For more about the Rocky Lemon and updates on hours of operation, visit its Facebook page.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.
Tabernac. :-)