Local Bakery Finds its Niche Without Nuts

Tucked into an unassuming strip mall like so many of Metro Detroit's best-kept secrets, is a hit for its delicious baked goods as well as for its completely nut-free and kosher-certified environment.

Owner Steve Katz opened the original Bake Station 13 years ago in Southfield and added the West Bloomfield location in 2006. “We had a lot of Southfield customers, and when we opened on Orchard Lake (Road), we had customers we knew who had been driving all the way to Southfield from here,” said the West Bloomfield husband and father of three.

Daryl Mozel recently relocated from Canada with his family to New Hudson. “This is the only place (my son) can eat doughnuts,” said Mozel, who has plans to move to Milford. “We don’t mind traveling for a place like this.”

It was the needs of families such as Mozel’s that inspired Katz to make Bake Station a completely nut-free environment in the first place. “We used to get call from schools on a regular basis,” Katz said. "It got to a point where we were sanitizing entire areas, and we thought, ‘why not?’ ”

Katz’s dedication has earned him many loyal customers such as Cheri Morris, whose son, Jake, has severe food allergies. “We come here at least once a week. We feel safe,” said Morris.  “It’s a family environment. Everyone gets to know each other.”

In fact, Morris has gotten to know the Katz family so well that the West Bloomfield mother is teaming up with Steve Katz's daughter, Kayla, to promote Bake Station goods at the , an event set for Oct. 22 in Farmington Hills to raise awareness and advance research for food allergies.

In addition to catering to customers with food allergies, Bake Station also makes sure its products are kosher, selling the traditional challah to synagogues for Jewish observances and rye bread to local businesses such as Sunrise Deli in Warren and the various Bread Basket locations throughout Metro Detroit.

“We’ve been using Bake Station products for many years,” said Cheryl Mond, manager of the Southfield Bread Basket location. “I know Steve very well. We don’t use their use their rye bread for any reason other than it’s simply a great product.”

When the business day is done, the leftover cakes, doughnuts, cookies and breads don’t go to waste. “On a daily basis, we donate to a food bank called ,” Katz said. “We also deliver to Capuchin Soup Kitchen and in Plymouth.”