Goodbye Childhood Bakery

Wilson’s Jewel Bakery in Santa Clara, CA closed for business after 85 years due to economic reasons. When I was a kid, my family and I visited the bakery to buy donuts, pastries, pound cake, cookies, and birthday cakes. My parents always bought the lemon filling birthday cakes for my brother and I even though my parents hated the lemon filling. Who knew why my parents kept buying something they never liked? As we grew up, my parents tried different flavors. The results were mixed. Regardless the bakery was so good, it was worth the 15 minute drive from San Jose to Santa Clara. Also, after we visited Kaiser Hospital, we drive to Wilson’s and purchased goodies.

My favorite pastry was the butter horn. It’s a soft and tasty pastry with white colored vanilla glaze. For a while, my parents never purchased donuts because donuts were junk food. I really didn’t understand the difference between donuts and pasties. They’re both junk food. It’s just donuts have more sugar *heh, heh* And when we purchased donuts, most of the time we purchased twists because we get more donut for the price.

I also liked the cookies. I begged my Mom to buy the sugar cookies and the sprinkles cookies. She said they were bad buys and always purchased the chocolate chip cookies. The sugar cookies and the sprinklers were the best.

I remember the last two purchases. The first was two donuts for breakfast. There was a farmer’s market nearby every Saturday mornings. My parents and I visited once in 2004. The second was my family purchased a wedding cake for my brother’s wedding reception. We visited the bakery several times and stayed in the bakery for a couple of hours on the day my parents choose the cake. I walked around the bakery looking at the various cakes.

Wilson’s Jewel Bakery was a complete bakery with donuts, cakes, brownies, muffins, cookies, pastries, coffee cakes, eclairs, birthday cards, cupcakes, breads, and even the Victorian house cookie jars. In the late 1980s I believe, the bakery expanded into a closed cafe. The bakeries at Costco, Wal-Mart, and any major supermarkets are nothing compared to Wilson’s. Wilson’s was a complete, authentic bakery making yummy treats from their hearts.

Unfortunately, it’s another example of nothing lasts forever. The best one can do is keep it going as long as one can just like it lasts forever. In today’s economic and business climate, mom-and-pop businesses are closing down ;__; Make every effort to last forever.

Note: The owners tried to sell the business for which there were no buyers.