The Famous Magnolia Bakery Settles into Union Station
By Julia Donnelly
In the corner of Union Station surrounded by the hustle and bustle, is a sweet treat getaway. The smell of baked goods fills the air. Glass cases are filled with decadent mini cheesecakes, specialty cupcakes, and countless other sweet treats. Pastry chefs can be seen icing and decorating cupcakes from outside through the glass walls that make up the bakery. The bright teal colors and the quaint décor invites a continuous line out the door.
Magnolia Bakery first opened in New York City in 1996. Since then, the bakery has expanded internationally with over 25 locations. Most recently, on September 10, Magnolia Bakery opened a new location in Washington D.C., at Union Station. The bakery offers a variety of pastries but is most famous for its cupcakes and banana pudding.
Lily Gasper, 20, is a pastry chef at the bakery and has been working there since the opening in September.
“My favorite part of working here is that I get to learn a ton,” Gasper said.
Although she did not attend culinary school, she has worked her way up from being a cashier to becoming a pastry chef for the bakery.
Gasper said the busiest times at the bakery are either in the morning before people go to work or in the evening when people get out of work. The bakery is used to long lines and works quickly to make sure that customers are in and out quickly.
“We work close by and decided to have a little Friday treat,” Susan Howard said.
Howard, 43, got the banana pudding since she had heard it is was a staple of Magnolia Bakery.
The bakery is in busy Union Station, a train bus and metro station, that has 37 million people pass through it a year. This gives Magnolia Bakery outside exposure to people who are stuck in Union Station waiting for a train or bus. It also attracts D.C. workers walking through the train station from the metro.
Megan Baker, 17, from East Liverpool, Ohio, also got banana pudding from the bakery.
“I heard the pudding is addicting,” Baker said.
The bakery found fame in 2000 when it was featured on an episode of the television show Sex and the City. The bakery has also been featured on Saturday Night Live and The Devil Wears Prada.
The bakery offers classic cupcakes, specialty cupcakes like caramel or carrot, and a cupcake of the month. November’s cupcake of the month is Pumpkin Spice. The cupcakes cost $3.95 plus tax. The banana pudding comes in three personal sizes and three party sizes. The price of the pudding ranges from $4.25 plus tax to $75 for a large party size.
The bakery is located on the main level of Union Station under Uno’s Pizzeria. The bakery is open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
