Leske’s Bakery To Reopen

March 1, 2012 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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BAY RIDGE — Rejoice, food-lovers! Those black-and-white cookies you love are coming back.

Leske’s Bakery is making a comeback, according to Bay Ridge officials.

Josephine Beckmann, district maanger of Community Board 10, said a sign has been posted in the window of the bake shop at 7612 Fifth Ave. informing customers that their favorite dessert emporium is going to reopen.

“It’s the buzz in the neighborhood!” Beckmann said.

Leske’s Bakery closed at the end of May after decades of being in business.

State Sen. Marty Golden, who grew up eating the sweet, delicious treats sold at the famous Fifth Avenue shop, said he heard that Leske’s Bakery would be reopening in approximately two months.

Golden, who called it “exciting news,” said Leske’s Bakery would be reopening under new ownership, but that the new owners are keeping the same bakers who worked for the previous owners. That means the mouth-watering crumb cakes, Danish pastries and brownies that Bay Ridge residents have been known to savor will be coming back, too!

“I can almost already smell the pies, the cookies, and cakes again baking on Fifth Avenue at Leske’s. I join the many fans cheering this news that a Bay Ridge tradition will live on,” Golden said, noting that his personal favorite treat is the bakery’s Boston cream donut.

Golden also posted a comment about Leske’s bakery on his Facebook page.

“Wow! I can’t wait!” he wrote.

Beckmann, too, said the sign in the bakery window informed customers that the same bakers would be on duty.

“We’re excited. We really missed Leske’s when it closed,” Beckmann said. “I think the fact that it’s reopening is great for the avenue.”

Beckmann said she can’t wait to buy her favorite dessert, apple turnovers, in the newly reopened Leske’s bakery.

One local businessman said he passed by the Leske’s site on Wednesday and saw construction work taking place there.

“It looks like it’s going to reopen soon,” he said.

The closure of Leske’s Bakery was mourned by several business leaders in the community, who said a piece of Bay Ridge history was dying.

The business was originally founded by Bay Ridge’s Norwegian-Americans. In the 1950s and 1960s, Bay Ridge boasted a Norwegian-American community that numbered in the hundreds of thousands.

Despite the decline in the Norwegian-American population, Leske’s remained a popular place for dessert lovers.

On holidays, customers would line up outside the bakery to buy fresh bread, nut-filled coffee rings, butter cookies, and other treats.

The rebirth of Leske’s Bakery marks the second time in recent months that a Bay Ridge dining institution closed and then reopened. In September, Hinsch’s Confectionery, the famous ice cream parlor at 8518 Fifth Ave., closed. It reopened under new ownership two months later.

— Paula Katinas