Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Gajderowicz.
Hi Leah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
So this could be super long so ill shorten it a bit 🙂
I went to culinary school with in 2 years out of High School. I worked a few places after but always knew I loved smaller more quaint places. I had babies and was fortunate enough to be able to stay home with them for a few years. While driving one day with going to back to work in the back of my mind I was thinking about what is not offered in this area that I could maybe change. My first thought was chicken pot pies. Then all kinds of pies came to mind. People think of pie and they immediately think of the apple, blueberry, cherry etc. BUT pie can be whatever you want it to be. There are so many unique spins you can create. So when some say they don’t like pie I feel as though their mind is only subject to those traditional ones. While I was having this pie epiphany the holidays were just approaching. I thought I could test the waters out a bit with trying to sell pies from home through social media. That was 2019. It went great! I then was able to sell some of my products in a deli in town while trying to figure out how I could make this a proper business. We found a place in town that my husband totally redid with in 9 months! I always loved cafes in places like collingswood and new hope where guests could come to congregate with good food and coffee. February of 2021 we opened our doors and sold-out in 2 hours an we knew we had created something special
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
NO it has not been smooth. The building that we had bought had been an office building that my husband and I (99% husband) redid into a full restaurant/cafe. We knew it would be challenging but neither one of us knew how many obstacles we were going to face just working on the building. We look back and if we had known at the time the problems the building had that we were unaware of we probably wouldn’t have done it. But I guess it’s a blessing we didn’t know because I wouldn’t be writing this today.
Then there was covid that we had opened right in the middle of.
Leadership & confidence have definitely been a struggle.
Being a business owner brings so many challenges on a daily basis especially if you’ve never done it before and anyone who says differently is lying lol.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Being that my shop is called Pied Out we obviously specialize in pies BUT we are so much more! Pied Out offers breakfast, lunch , baked goods, locally roasted coffee and Thursday nights dinners. We bake all of our products fresh every morning including our biscuits and Jerusalem style bagels that customers can get their breakfast sandwiches on. Our menu is seasonal with specials every week. Our flavors of pie, quiche, scones, biscuits, cookies, muffins and cinnamon buns changes daily/weekly. My favorite part of all of this is the creativity I get to have/share. Coming up with fun flavor combos and getting inspired by a single ingredient is what keeps me loving what I do. We are a from scratch kitchen. 95 percent of our items are made in house. In fact the only items that are not are our bread and wraps that our sandwiches are offered on and believe me I wish we could make them as well. I think that sets us apart which is what I am most proud of as well. I could definitely take short cuts and from a business aspect I should BUT it would ruin it for me I think. Putting your heart into what you’re creating for other people can be felt through food. I truly believe you can taste the love behind a meal IF the cook has it in them.
Our Chicken Pot Pies are our best seller 🙂
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Everyone thinks Im super laid back but I describe myself as a Duck. Cool, calm, and collected on the outside but paddling like hell underneath.
Contact Info:
- Website: email: Leah.piedout@gmail.com
- Instagram: pied_out
- Facebook: Pied Out Bakeshop/Cafe
