The Scoop: St. Louis’ oldest bakery up for sale

Robert and Linda Smith are ready to retire. The husband-wife owners of Carondelet Bakery have been the mom and pop behind the stand-alone retail shop at 7726 Virginia Ave., for nearly 40 years. For Linda Smith, putting the bakery up for sale is, well, bittersweet. Carondelet Bakery, which opened in 1875, is the oldest bakery in town, she reminisced. “We live here too,” she said, adding that she and her husband raised their family in the 11-room residence above the 2,500-square foot bakery. One of the Smith’s grown daughters, Lauren Crevits, recalled that her father has been working at the bakery nearly his entire life. “He worked his way up from up from a 12-year-old dishwasher to buying the bakery from his boss at 20 [years old],” she said. The Smiths hope that someone who wants to carry on the tradition of the corner bakery shop will step forward to purchase the business in a neighborhood that is experiencing revitalization. For the moment, however, the Smiths will continue to fill the Carondelet counter with ever-popular fudge pecan brownies, caramel-pecan topped elephant ears, award-winning gooey butter cake and other sweet goodies, all still made from scratch and using the bakery’s original recipes.