It’s been a goal of mine for several months to interview the owner of Blue Spruce Bakery and General Store, a beautiful little business in downtown Davenport.
A local independent shop, the Blue Spruce Bakery was started by a QC guy who began baking sourdough bread during the COVID-19 shutdown. (It also happens to be where an East Coast-native friend of mine said she’d had the best pastrami sandwich outside New York.)
I’d been waiting to write about this business until the owner, Brandon Carleton, has time to talk, but he’s a busy guy — he’s got his hands in the dough, yo! — so I’ve decided to put a post out anyway in the hopes that maybe it’ll prompt some readers to check it out if they haven’t already, or to make a last-minute-Christmas-gift stop into the shop. He needs the customers, as you’ll learn below.
I first learned about Blue Spruce the product (some baked bread) a couple of years ago when a friend brought some to a picnic. She told the story of how the baker had gotten started, and it caught my interest, (and the taste was fantastic). Then, about a year ago, during a yoga class inside Illuminate Healing Studio, (whose owner I featured here), I found myself having trouble concentrating due to the intoxicating scent of bacon cooking, and finally after class had to ask about it. Turned out that guy from the “picnic bread” had opened a physical business (which sells sandwiches) in the same building.
When I finally stopped in, I was charmed. It’s visually inviting, the staff is friendly, and the aromas are enticing. I ordered a manchego and ham sandwich (which was delicious) and bought some Oasis hummus and kombucha from the general store. I’ve been back numerous times, and even though I’ve never ordered any of the pastries, they look amazing as well. (Here’s Brandon showing off some of those on Paula Sands Live.)
But not long after my first visit, I was dismayed to learned from a post the owner shared on Facebook that tough times have had to force him to reduce hours and begin re-focusing on a delivery model. (The business started out as a delivery service to homes and businesses before there was a storefront.)
So, while I’m relieved that the store didn’t close entirely, I’m still bummed that it’s struggling. I really want to see this business thrive. I hope that the addition of several new spots in the area, like this one I just wrote about, will help draw in more foot traffic.
Oh, and by the way, Blue Spruce is located on Second Street, (inside the former Cookies N’ Dreams location), in an area that’s now being branded as Motor Row.
What’s that, you say? Yes, “Motor Row.” So, sing it with me, won’t you?
Motor’nnnnnn!
What’s your price for flight…?
“Quad Cit-i-zens
you know the time has come/
and you know that you’re the only one (but please don’t actually be the only one!) to say/
okay (“…okay I’ll go buy a sandwich at Blue Spruce!”)
Are you a Blue Spruce regular? What’s your favorite item on the menu? Let me know in the comments below.
If you enjoyed this post, why not subscribe for free and look forward to having something in your inbox that is not a bill? Or upgrade to paid for $5/month (or $50/year) to show your support for my work. If you can’t quite make that right now, I’d welcome a tip in my Pay Pal jar or a coffee.
The Iowa Writers’ Collaborative
I’m honored to be included in the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, a group of journalists, columnists, memoirists, novelists, and former or current media professionals providing writing and commentary you don’t want to miss. We’d love it if you’d peruse the variety of voices and consider picking a few you’d like to support (including me!) by becoming paid.
We just stopped there a couple weeks ago and picked up some cinnamon rolls for my folks. My hubby sampled some of the other pastries as well. Delicious!