A couple of days, an urge for something sweet drove me into Back to Eden, a four-month-old bakery in Portland, Oregon. I've been monitoring rave reviews for the bakery on Yelp so I was curious to to give it a try. When one of the owners told me that all items on the menu were vegan, I was leery since I just couldn't imagine baked goods without any dairy product tasting good. But, the baker must have a degree in alchemy because everything looked delicious and tasted even better. The rich and dense pumpkin whoopie pie on its own changed my perception of veganism. That one item alone is worth a trip. Cap it off with hot chocolate made from hazelnut milk for something completely different and delicious.
John Blomgren, one of the owners of Back to Eden, told me that the business is doing well thanks to positive word of mouth. Many people have found the bakery thanks to the rave reviews on Yelp. When customers sample the goods, meet the nice owners, and visit the beautifully-appointed store, it's not surprising that they come back, refer their friends, friend the bakery on Facebook, and follow it on Twitter. It's awesome to see a small business firing on all cylinders when it comes to generating positive word of mouth.
John also told me something that many business owners should take to heart. He said that he and his partner decided to start the business without any fanfare like opening parties or aggressive media outreach. He figured that they could do these once the business had established itself. Furthermore, he knew that many kinks needed to be worked out before he could ensure people would be so pleased that they would come back and refer their friends.
I'm glad that the business approach Back to Eden is taking is so sound since I want my source for great baked goods to last for years!
