Local bakery flourishes on cake creation
Meredith Ciaburri doesn’t just make homemade treats: She makes edible art.
Since starting The Artisan Bake Shop in her parents’ kitchen in 2005, Ciaburri has become a staple of the bakery business in the South Coast. With four employees and an in-house bakery artist, The Artisan Bake Shop creates unique cakes, pastries and just about any other sweet treats a person can think up.
After graduating as valedictorian from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York City and graduating with honors from Johnson & Wales in Providence, Ciaburri returned to Rochester.
“I noticed no one in the area was really doing any high-end cakes that incorporated art, so I decided to start,” she says. “I didn’t grow up with an art background. I never considered myself to be artsy, but I truly believe once you find the art that belongs to you, you become an artist. It just fits to you. When I sketch cakes, it works for me”
The bakery’s artist, Jody Church, was a former elementary teacher of Ciaburri’s. Above the commercial kitchen is a studio in which Church works her magic. The bakery is currently working on a cake for the 15-year anniversary of the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park. A small model of the cake, displays hand-painted historical buildings of New Bedford and whales.
Ciaburri says the art is what makes the bakery so successful.
“People bring us invitations or pictures of their dress or color palate, which inspires the cake,” she says. “When you see a cake that looks beautiful, you want to have a taste.”
So far, the bakery has worked more than 100 weddings this year in the region and even out to Provincetown. It’s also been awarded “Best Bakery—South Shore” by Cape Cod Life Magazine and “Best Food Artisan: Local Hero” by Edible South Shore Magazine. Ciaburri says she also uses fruits, eggs and produce from local farms.
“We take pride in every thing that comes out of here, whether it’s a cake that serves eight people or 180,” she says. It’s the perfect combination of taste, style and service.”
And, The Artisan Bake Shop can take on any challenge.
“You can’t stump us,” Ciaburri says. “We love new ideas.”
The Artisan Bake Shop is located at 265 Walnut Plain Road.
Wednesday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
(508) 763-4905
