With their bold red and gold sign recently embellishing a store front on Marsh Street in San Luis Obispo, Villain Bakery is one of SLO’s newest pop-ups and spot for baked goods.
Owned by Alex and Rusty Quirk, who are also the owners of the popular Linnaea’s Cafe downtown, Villain Bakery is their newest creation.
Rusty Quirk, a pastry chef who has worked in Michelin star and recommended establishments, believes Villain Bakery is an opportunity to create innovative and bright pastries.
“We want to do something that is fun and whimsical,” Quirk said. And in doing so, she loves to pair seasonal produce alongside the pastry creations that Villain Bakery comes up with for each pop-up.
Currently serving as a pop-up bakery and not a full time operation, the bakery serves to provide new and exciting bakery creations at each of their pop-ups. Some of Villain’s most popular pastries so far include matcha rice crispies, an array of seasonal cakes and the savory pastries it produces like its petit basque and prosciutto danish.
At first, Villain Bakery’s treats would be served in a limited amount at Linnaea’s Cafe. However, since Linnaea’s is a smaller coffeehouse, it required a satellite kitchen. After finding a storefront much closer to Linnaea’s than their previous satellite kitchen, the Quirks decided to invest in it and turn it into the kitchen and pop-up space for Villain Bakery on 722 Marsh Street.
“The response so far has just been really positive, it’s been a blast,” Alex Quirk said. “We’re having fun making something different.”
While Linnaea’s focuses more one creating the classic and staple recipes and trying to make gluten free alternatives, Villain Bakery gives the opportunity to get experimental with pastries and truly test out new flavors and techniques.
In terms of future plans and growth, Alex Quirk says that they still are not definitive or sure about how exactly Villain Bakery will expand.
A goal the bakery has for the near future is to be open every Saturday, with hopes to one day be open for around three days per week.
“I don’t think with our current capacity it will be able to be a full five days a week,” Alex Quirk said. “But that’s fine, we like to make it an occasion and we don’t like to waste things.”
The owners enjoy the ability of being able to create new, fun and exciting flavor pairings through Villain Bakery. And rather than focusing on the idea of a full-fledged bakery open daily, the magic in Villain Bakery for the Quirks is being able to have the limited time and menus to experiment and also have the enjoyment of a “big blowout” and customers waiting and enjoying their new creations.
Villain Bakery’s next pop-up will take place on May 30 at 10 a.m. at their location on Marsh Street. Their menu features a banana danish with vahlrohna dulcey whiskey chantilly and orange zest as well as olive oil cake with honey orange blossom mouse and italian meringue, alongside other confections.