As strange as this may seem to a lot of you dear readers, I just don’t have much of a sweet tooth. I like my sweets in small amounts. A single cookie here, a piece of shortbread there, a single piece of chocolate, or sometimes even half a piece, shared with my diabetic fiance.

When I do have something sweet, I want it to be of the utmost quality. You’ll rarely find me jonesing for a Hershey bar, although they do have their place in an overly stressful day where a noonday beer is out of the question and something must momentarily distract me from the pressures of work.

But this post isn’t about Hershey bars, or even about Theo Chocolates - it’s about a bakery that I feared I’d never see again.

Two years ago, when I started shopping at the University District Farmers Market with my boyfriend, we’d occasionally pick up a rich, buttery piece of shortbread from Sugar, a local bakery run by Stephanie Crocker and her husband John. I distinctly remember a lavender shortbread that was out of this world. However, after a month or so, Sugar disappeared. We were saddened, but there are, after all, many other delicious booths at the University District marker and so we went on our merry way, occasionally purchasing a treat from Belle’s Buns.

Then a few months later, in late October of 2006, we read some distressing news. Stephanie Crocker’s husband, John, had been diagnosed with cancer and their medical bills were mounting rapidly with no insurance or relief in sight. They were holding a pie drive for Thanksgiving. We purchased a lovely cinnamon apple pie and it was a hit at our Thanksgiving dinner.

I admit, once the pie was gone, I thought little of Sugar. Every few months, I’d remember them while at the farmers market and wish for a piece of their shortbread, but the wish would pass, and I would return to my day. Just last week, however, I received an unexpected email in my Inbox. Sugar is opening a store! This fall, they will open a bakery and cafe in the First Hill area.

In the meantime, you can always visit their website and browse their product list. They don’t currently have online ordering, but you can always reach them by phone at 206-932-3572 or by email. Stephanie has started a blog to keep track of their progress opening their first retail store.

If the taste of their products wasn’t incentive enough for me to visit their new store, they make everything from scratch using fresh ingredients without additives or preservatives. So come this fall, if you’re craving possibly the best shortbread you’ll ever have, visit their new retail shop. I’ll be sure to post a review once they’ve opened.

Sugar Bakery and Cafe
1014 Madison Street
Seattle, WA 98104
206 932-3572