All Good Bakers has closed
Official word via the Facebook page of All Good Bakers today that the bakery/cafe has closed. The announcement isn't a surprise -- the bakery's Delaware Ave location has been closed for a few weeks now.
From the Facebook message:
We are very sad to inform you that we are indeed closed. Nick and Britin have split. Nick is handling all questions through allgoodbakers@gmail.com.
Sincere apologies for not informing you sooner, it has been a difficult and emotional time for us. Wish we could carry on, but it's just not possible now given the circumstances. We will miss you all greatly and are VERY grateful for your amazing support and patronage as we attempted to realize our dreams.
AOA confirmed the bakery's closing today with Nick Foster, who said All Good Bakers is closed for good. "We appreciate all the business from our regular customers," he told us. "We wish we had more of them." Foster said there could be other projects in the future.
This is a sad outcome -- for personal reasons, of course. But also because All Good had been trying to do something different -- they touted themselves as "Farm to Bakery~Cafe" -- and they had won fans in the process of working their way from a stand at the Delmar Farmers' Market and a CSA-style arrangement for baked goods, to a shared space on Quail Street, to their own spot on Delaware. And while the bakery could be idiosyncratic at times, it was apparent that Nick and Britin cared about what they were doing and were trying to go about their business with purpose.
Small, local businesses are fragile.
All Good Bakers had advertised on AOA.
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Comments
No!
I was a regular at All good bakers and it was one of my favorite restaurants in the area. I will miss it dearly.
... said Hock4 on Sep 30, 2013 at 1:24 PM | link
That is sad!
I kept meaning to go there.
Where there is life there is hope, though!
Maybe things will work out, and sweet nothings will be whispered,and angel food cake baked again from this couple!
... said mg on Sep 30, 2013 at 1:49 PM | link
I loved going here. it's disappointing news, to say the least, but understandable. I hope they both find success in the future.
... said Justin on Sep 30, 2013 at 3:30 PM | link
Sad news, too - we were rooting for you!
ps we miss you in pine hills....
... said daleyplanit on Sep 30, 2013 at 3:34 PM | link
Well that sucks. I hope they both stick around and continue food-making.
... said Ryan on Sep 30, 2013 at 6:08 PM | link
I have to admit that I am frustrated. I feel guilty about it, but I am annoyed. While obviously the split is more important in the scheme of things than my inconvenience, I still can't understand why the message took so long to come out. Many people made trips to the shop, driving or walking from wherever and wasted their time and/or had to make back up plans. I don't think it is unreasonable to think that a message should have come out fairly quickly saying that the shop is temporarily closed and we would get another update. I care about Britin and Nick, but I expect a little bit of caring about us even at this awful time..
... said AlbanyLandlord on Oct 1, 2013 at 10:58 AM | link
Albany Landlord, I apologize for you being inconvenienced. There was some question between me and nick about what was happening with shop due to lack of communication. I won't go into further detail about that (personal) other than to say please know I tried to find out what was going on after I had to leave so that we could inform people. AS SOON as I was SURE what was happening, I updated social media. Again, please accept my apologies and thank you so much for your patronage and support. I'll miss our customers most of all.
... said Britin Foster on Oct 1, 2013 at 12:58 PM | link
Dissolving a marriage alone is devastating, pile on the dissolution of the family business and it's more so. Nick and Britin put in 80-100 hour work weeks in that place, I'd cut them a little slack for not announcing everything sooner. Sometimes you need to do what's right by you and take care of yourself first; that's exactly what these guys did. Kudos to them for taking the time to sleep on it.
... said Madeline on Oct 1, 2013 at 1:28 PM | link
@AlbanyLandlord Congrats! You've just secured the "Most Insensitive, It's Not About Me, But I'll Make It About Me" award of 2013.
... said Cincinnatus on Oct 1, 2013 at 9:04 PM | link
I'll certainly miss this place, but am wishing all the best in the next adventures on the horizon - may there be many.
... said Laura on Oct 2, 2013 at 9:44 AM | link
Unfortunately All Good Bakers was a boutique bakery. There is not much mark up in baked goods unless you sell fancy pastries and that was not their line. There is only so much you can charge for a scone or a bialy or you'll drive away your customers. Most bakeries make it through selling volume. AGB didn't do volume sales -- maybe couldn't being mom & pop (and those limited hours weren't doing them any favors) and the "slow food" nature of their baked goods. But when I'd stop by, there often was not a lot of goods in the case to choose from. Expanding to a café might have helped them in the long run if the family situation hadn't necessitated closing the business.
That spot has had several food businesses (a caterer, two iterations of a bakery) open and close in several years. Now what? Presumably something food related since the commercial kitchen is in place, and there is reasonable (though limited) parking.
I guess my final question is how does a small food business make that transition from farmers market scale to bricks and mortar scale? I'm hoping another neighborhood business, La Empanada Llama, can do it successfully. Is there business assistance (advice, mentoring) for these small businesses, who are often family owned and operated, that are courageous in taking their operation to the next level? Where's the Capital District equivalent of "Shark Tank"?
... said chrisck on Oct 2, 2013 at 11:23 AM | link
So sorry to hear about this.Your DELSO neighbors will miss you. Britin, All the best to you. New and greater things will come.
... said Jamie on Oct 2, 2013 at 2:16 PM | link
Divorce sucks. I can only imagine how much more it sucks when it involves a family business that you poured your heart and soul into.
I wish Nick & Britin the best in this transition. Hope they can have an as amicable divorce as is possible.
... said Jennifer on Oct 4, 2013 at 7:09 AM | link