Cafe Flora owner building out bakery space in Beacon Hill

Nat Stratton-Clarke said he began evaluating how to improve his new Floret restaurant in Sea-Tac International Airport at the one-year mark.

Tight on space and in high demand for breads and pastries, the solution was to build something new to feed not only Floret’s needs, but also Stratton-Clarke’s flagship Cafe Flora vegetarian and vegan restaurant in Madison Valley.

The Flora Bakehouse is the newest addition to the Cafe Flora Family, and will continue to grow in Beacon Hill.

“We moved into the neighborhood and we just started getting knocks on the door from people asking, ‘Can we buy a cup of coffee and get a pastry?’” Stratton-Clarke said.

The restaurateur acquired the old Paris Bakery spot in Beacon Hill for $263,000 back in February, and his pastry team now has their own dedicated space to work in.

“We’re excited. I think it has a lot of great potential to it,” Stratton-Clarke said. “For us, we’re making stuff from scratch, which I think is really exciting, and I think the pastries we’re making are really interesting.”

Bakehouse is presently just operating as a commercial bakery, but construction will soon start on an addition that will provide a cafe and events space serving Beacon Hill.

“I think it’s going to happen in a really great way,” Stratton-Clarke said. “We’re also going to have a second story on the new space that’s going to have an event space for about 20 people with a roof deck.”

The Bakehouse is roughly situated between Cafe Flora and Floret, which will allow for expanding offerings to both. Stratton-Clarke also plans to offer a few pastries exclusive to Bakehouse, he said.

The bakery is also due for upgrades to increase capacity, and Stratton-Clarke said people can soon expect to see Flora pastries and breads at coffee shops and other spots around town.

“It’s been just a really fun growth project,” he said, “and getting to share what we do with people is just really exciting.”