After more than 12 years in business, Gracious Bakery is under new ownership, and the new owners are looking to take the prolific local bakery to the next level. The bakery currently has two cafe locations, one in the Lower Garden District on Saint Charles Avenue and one Uptown on Prytania Street. Gracious Bakery also has a large commercial kitchen on Earhart Boulevard, which supplies baked goods to various restaurants and retailers around the city. The bakery was also recently certified to produce commercial baked goods that will be available at large operations like the Caesars Superdome and Tulane University.
New co-owner Justin Callais recently told What Now New Orleans that his ownership group is looking to build on the robust retail and wholesale foundations established by previous owners Jay and Megan Foreman.
“I think Jay and Megan have done a fantastic job of building a really great brand with fantastic products and a loyal customer base,” Callais said. “That attracted us to this acquisition, as well as an opportunity to bring the business to the next chapter. We believe that there’s still a lot of potential and unseen opportunities at Gracious that I think we can help bring to fruition.”
Callais said there will be noticeable changes to the cafes under the new ownership. These will include more robust coffee, tea, and lunch offerings. He added that the bakery will step up its production of seasonal baked goods, leaning into the various celebrations and event seasons in New Orleans.
“The chefs and pastry chefs inside of the commissary kitchen, where we make all of our goods, are top-notch and they have a lot of great ideas,” Callais said. “I think there’s an opportunity to support them and build out the visions that they have for other products.”
Callais said his group plans to make incremental changes but largely keep the same customer experience through next year’s Jazz Fest. Then, Callais said, ownership will look into the next steps and potential business opportunities.
