The Flora Bakehouse Readies Its Long-Awaited Debut in Beacon Hill Saturday

After more than a year of planning, the bakery offshoot of celebrated vegetarian restaurant Cafe Flora is ready to officially open Saturday, January 23. Located at 1511 S Lucille Street in Beacon Hill, the Flora Bakehouse will have a selection of both sweet and savory pastries, with plenty of vegetarian and vegan options.

Among some of the featured baked goods to start: sea salt and chocolate croissants, kouign-amann, cinnamon monkey bread, unicorn horn meringues, coconut cake, and buttermilk biscuits with Jerzy Boys Farm redfield apple jam. There will also be some breakfast sandwiches and burritos, as well as a full Stumptown coffee menu, all available for takeout-only to start.

The Bakehouse used to be a production site for Cafe Flora and the Sea-Tac counter Floret, before it was transformed into full-fledged bakery. Like its siblings, there will be plenty of gluten-free and vegan options on the menu, and when the weather warms up, the shop hopes to host diners on its outdoor rooftop garden with views of Mount Rainier, and open up some sidewalk seating. There’s also room for guests inside the cafe, a bright space featuring a mural by Seattle artist Carolina Silva and lots of floral accents. As it stands, there’s still a lot of uncertainty on when indoor dining that doesn’t count as “open air” will return. Most traditional inside service is still banned indefinitely, until certain COVID-19 metrics are met by the Puget Sound region.

The bakery’s opening marks an exciting expansion for Cafe Flora’s operation during a challenging time. Housed in a space once occupied by a laundromat, the flagship restaurant has been holding down the fort in Madison Valley since the early ‘90s, building a following for its focus on sourcing organic and sustainable ingredients. Current owner Nat Stratton-Clarke — a former produce buyer and general manager for the cafe — bought the place 12 years ago, maintaining its original spirit with some aesthetic upgrades.

Expansion outside of Madison Valley has been slow, but steady. While the airport spinoff Floret was a success pre-COVID after it opened in 2018, like other businesses at Sea-Tac, the pandemic has had a major impact. The new Beacon Hill bakery may help boost revenue (and buzz) in 2021, while expanding the vegetarian favorite’s reach.

• The Flora Bakehouse [Official]
• The Flora Bakehouse [Instagram]