adios, midtown
Houston's 'Sugar Fairy' serves up a new home for her beloved bakery
Fluff Bake Bar will have a new home for the new year. Chef-owner Rebecca Masson tells CultureMap that she’s relocating her bakery from Midtown to Shady Acres (Full disclosure: Masson is a regular guest on CultureMap's "What's Eric Eating" podcast).
Fluff’s last day of service in its current location will be Sunday, January 19. It will open at 1701 W. 15th St a couple of weeks later.
“I’m so sick of Midtown,” Masson says. “The biggest issue is parking. Even though there is a humongous parking garage behind the bakery, no one knows it’s there. No one takes the time to look for it. They drive by, they don’t see a parking spot, they don’t pull over.”
Having decided to relocate, she began looking in and around The Heights. Initially, she approached private equity investor Louie Comella about taking over the shuttered Gelazzi space, but Comella had already sold the property. Fortunately, he had another property available that had been slated to become a bar.
“We were going to open it up as part of a TV show,” Comella says. “I decided no, because Rebecca came up and said I needed a spot. We built it out for her the way she liked.”
For the most part, Fluff’s menu will remain the same. Patrons will be able to get the same Veruca Salt cakes, Couch Potato cookies, and Star Crossed Lover bars that they’ve been buying since the Midtown shop opened in 2015.
Masson is moving all of her equipment to the new location. Since it’s physically a little larger than her current location, it will offer more seating.
Moving into the middle of a neighborhood will result in one important change. Fluff will open at 7 am with a new line of breakfast goods, including kolaches, cinnamon rolls, and, most importantly, Masson’s signature croissants — previously only available occasionally as part of her Saturday morning bake sale pop-ups.
The kolaches should be equally memorable. She’s working with Truth BBQ to include some of its signature meats in the savory pastries.
Masson, known as both the Sugar Fairy and the Sugar Hooker (depending on who you ask), is feeling optimistic about her new spot.
“I’ve always liked being a part of a community, and I think being smackdab in the middle of a residential neighborhood will be a huge draw for us,” she says. “It will be a great place to convene and eat delicious cookies.”
