PALMERTON, Pa. – A business that previously served its freshly prepared cakes, doughnuts, sticky buns and other sweet treats in a Northampton County shopping center is making moves with a new location opening this weekend.
Baker Ben’s Bakery, a full-service bakery offering a wide array of made-on-site cakes, croissants, muffins and more, is set to reopen on Saturday, Feb. 7, at 656 Delaware Ave. in Palmerton, Carbon County, according to an announcement in the business’ Facebook group.
Opening day hours will be 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Baker Ben’s Bakery
“You’re invited to celebrate with us!” the announcement reads.
“The time is finally here after the setbacks we had; we are finally ready to open! Thank you for your patience through the move we made. We are excited to be back open and with a whole new look. New product will be out as the weeks go on. Please be patient as this is a new start for everyone.”
Owner Ben Steitz, a resident of Whitehall Township, opened Baker Ben’s Bakery in July 2023 at 4330 Lehigh Drive in Lehigh Township.
Operations at the Lehigh Township location – a renovated Lehigh Town Center space that previously housed A Ca Mia Italian restaurant – ended in late November, and finishing touches to the new Palmerton location took place over the past couple of months.
Steitz decided to move operations about five miles north in hopes of garnering more foot traffic in a residential area along Palmerton’s main drag.
The Palmerton spot was most recently home to a chiropractor’s office, and it also was the site of another bakery over 40 years ago, Steitz said.
To prepare for the business’ opening in Palmerton, Steitz and a team of contractors performed upgrades that include updates to the flooring, lighting and HVAC system.
The space also features a new open-concept design.
In an earlier post in the bakery’s Facebook group, Steitz shared an update on the Palmerton location, noting that “it’s not easy to turn a doctor’s office into a bakery.”
“We ran into a cast iron sewer line issue that we weren’t expecting that needed to get fixed, which involved cutting up over 50+ feet of concrete through the whole building and the sidewalk to get fixed,” Steitz wrote in the online announcement. “Along with digging out 3-4ft deep worth of dirt, clay, and whatever else was used for fill back in the day.”
Baker Ben’s Bakery
In Palmerton, Baker Ben’s Bakery will feature its same assortment of baked goods, including cakes, cupcakes, cookies, sticky buns, danishes, cannolis and bagels.
Customers also will be able to shop fresh breads such as white, wheat, sourdough and cinnamon; pies such as apple, peach, blueberry and shoo-fly; muffins such as banana, carrot, lemon blueberry and chocolate peanut butter; croissants such as spinach feta, tomato olive and leek parm; and doughnuts such as Boston cream, jelly filled, blueberry glazed, coconut custard, glazed apple fritters and lemon filled with white icing and fresh raspberries on top.
Additionally, the bakery offers custom cakes and other baked goods, along with seasonal and holiday options such as glazed pumpkin and apple cider with cinnamon sugar doughnuts, nut/fruit rolls, cutout cookies and kiffles.
Baker Ben’s Bakery
The business also is accepting fastnacht orders in advance of Fastnacht Day, Feb. 17, and individuals can place their orders by calling the bakery at 610-224-9191, Steitz said.
The bakery offers a variety of fastnacht varieties, including cinnamon sugar, glaze, plain, powdered sugar and granulated sugar.
Fastnacht orders should be placed by Feb. 14 to guarantee you will receive them.
Fastnachts sold in-store on Fastnacht Day will be sold on a first come first serve basis.
“You may call that day starting at 4 am to have them put aside for you but it may be limited so please call ahead,” reads an announcement in the bakery’s Facebook group. “We will have out all of our regular donuts also for sale with other items.”
Baker Ben’s Bakery
Steitz, a 2016 graduate of Whitehall High School, traces his love for baking back to his childhood, when he’d spend time at his neighbor’s house – watching and helping her bake – around age 10.
He also studied commercial baking at Lehigh Career & Technical Institute in North Whitehall Township and worked at a few Lehigh Valley businesses, including Uncle Paul’s Pierogies and BabaNonna Kiffles, throughout high school.
From 2016 to 2020, he worked in the bakery departments of several local Weis Markets stores, where he held a variety of roles including a management position.
Just prior to opening Baker Ben’s Bakery, he worked in the bakery department of a Giant location in Allentown.
“This was a dream even before I went to LCTI in high school,” Steitz told 69 News in 2023.
“In middle school, I took the summer camp program that they offer there. Also, my neighbor would throw Halloween parties, and one year, I just made a shirt that said, ‘Ben’s Bakery.’ I didn’t think it would actually happen.”
For the latest Baker Ben’s Bakery updates, join the business’ Facebook group. Info: 610-224-9191.