A 93-year-old Oakland bakery served its last cashew curls, Danish fruit pies, German chocolate cakes and other confections on Sunday.
A Taste of Denmark, which opened as Neldam’s Bakery in 1929, was considered a cornerstone of the East Bay and the source of countless childhood memories. Now, it’s closed for good due to rising rent and operational costs, co-owner Ramon Luna told KPIX on Saturday. The bakery attempted to raise the prices of its baked goods to combat the effects of inflation, but was ultimately unable to make ends meet.
“You know, a lot of the customers didn’t complain about the price increase. It’s not so much that,” Luna told KPIX. “It’s just the price increases didn’t really help us, because the ingredients kept going up and up and up.”
Employees were just informed of the closure Friday.
“Going out of business,” a sign read in the window of the bakery on Telegraph Avenue. “Last Day Sunday Oct. 23rd.”
A fruit boat served at A Taste of Denmark.
Shao-Lon Y./YelpDanish immigrant George Neldam opened the bakery in its original iteration just before the Great Depression began, but the family-run business stood the test of time and developed a steadfast following of sweet tooths.
“The butter pound cake is about the best-tasting thing in the world,” Johnnie Butler, 83, told the Chronicle during the bakery’s 75th anniversary party in 2004. Butler said she grew up a few blocks away and became a regular at Neldam’s when it first opened. “You can taste the butter in each bite. I’ve been eating it since I was just [a] little girl. If all that butter was really bad for you, I’d be dead by now.”
When Neldam’s Bakery closed in 2010, three former employees, including Luna, decided to take the helm, preserving the familiar recipes and renaming the bakery A Taste of Denmark. Over the years, the bakery has made thousands of wedding and birthday cakes, according to its website, and scores of customers lamented the loss.
“A Taste of Denmark is closing today and id be lying if i said i don’t feel like crying,” wrote one Twitter user.
“Oakland is losing all the staples,” wrote another.