Sweet Alchemy invites lovers of vegan treats to first-ever Bakery Crawl
It all started with a tweet reading "A pub crawl, but just to bakeries." Just that 2021 post by user @difficultpatty was enough to inspire Jamie Parker, the owner of Sweet Alchemy Bake Shop, a local purveyor of vegan pastries.
Now, the baker and self-described alchemist will host the first Bakery Crawl at her recently opened Sweet Alchemy shop in New Kensington.
Happening Sun., May 21, the event will feature a number of bakeries selling sweet and savory plant-based goods. All of the participants will sell under one roof in Sweet Alchemy's new, nearly 1,000-square-foot space.
Parker, who, for years, has hosted a number of pop-ups and other events through her business, says the Crawl came about because people often sent her the tweet or tagged her in posts with it.
"Then I started brainstorming how to make it happen," she adds.
Unlike bar crawls, which require traveling to various different locations, she says she wanted to make it more accessible. "I didn't want to organize an event where you drive from bakery to bakery as some of us are spread out and gas is expensive, so I thought how do I bring the crawl to my space," she explains. "I realized with our new space, including our patio, I could easily host vendors."
After putting out a call for applications in mid-March, she says the "spaces sold out pretty fast." In total, the Crawl will feature baked goods by Sweet Alchemy along with five other area vendors, Abeille Voyante Tea Co., Cupcake PGH, Mami's Bakes, Nurture Pittsburgh, and Yumzio Bistro.
The entirely vegan event will feature a wide range of sweet and savory delights, coffee and tea, and some gluten-free options. Parker goes into more detail, listing off cookies, brownies, banana bread, coffee cake, donuts, cupcakes, cookie sandwiches, and "even some beautiful vegetable-forward pizzas and spinach pies."
The event will provide both newcomers and Sweet Alchemy fans with a look at the recently opened space. The storefront, painted with pink-and-white stripes, essentially doubles the area Parker had previously worked in, a 480-square-foot bakery located nearby on the same street.
Parker, a self-taught baker with a background as a mental health professional, founded Sweet Alchemy in 2016 as a home-based bakery, which she says allowed her to bake while still maintaining her job as a therapist. She hosted a number of events, including Sweet Horror, a bake sale made goth with the addition of local macabre artisans.
When the pandemic took hold, the business took on a whole different meaning for Parker.
"During that time, the bakery became a way for me to escape some of the tertiary trauma while fostering mindfulness and acting as a way to relieve stress," says Parker, adding that Sweet Alchemy was shut down in 2019 "due to some health problems and life changes" and was set to relaunch in 2020 before being sidelined by the spread of COVID-19. "During that time, we shifted to contactless delivery which was a great way for us to still connect with customers."
Parker says Sweet Alchemy "outgrew the home kitchen," which led to her looking for a brick-and-mortar location in late 2020. In August 2021, she moved into her old space and the bakery became a full-time job.
Over time, Sweet Alchemy has embedded itself in the New Kensington community, and Parker even coordinates events with other businesses in the Westmoreland County city, including Preserving Record Shop and Voodoo Brewing.
With the new space, located at 945 Fifth Ave. (the previous shop was at 932 Fifth Ave.), Parker says she and her staff "have the capacity to expand our menu and our service."
"We have recently started adding beverages and we are also home to a free library which is inside the bakery," she continues.
While the new space has, so far, hosted private dinners, culinary experiences, and classes, Parker says the Crawl will be the first large-scale event hosted at the Sweet Alchemy. If successful, she hopes to do it twice a year and launch other events, including a regular vegan market.
"I always try to do fun and different events that appeal to a wide range of people," says Parker.
Sweet Alchemy Bakery Crawl. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sun., May 21. 945 Fifth Ave., New Kensington. Free. linktr.ee/sweetalchemyllc
