Bredenbeck’s Bakery was originally founded in 1889 at 511 Callowhill St. in Northern Liberties. Frederick Robert Bredenbeck was a Bavarian immigrant and focused his shop on producing bread. German immigrants had a strong presence in Philadelphia at the time, and there were breweries, beer gardens, and other businesses to cater to them. There were also hundreds of small bakeries in Philadelphia, many of which didn’t survive as industrial competition took over – but Bredenbeck’s flourished. Soon, they started making the cakes they are still famous for.
Bredenbeck’s Bakery remained owned by the Bredenbeck family until it was sold to employees Otto Haug and his son Walter in 1954. Otto was a pastry chef and master baker who had immigrated from Germany, and he kept the name and the recipes, including Bredenbeck’s rum rings, cupcakes, cinnamon buns, and iced butter pound cake.
Walter and Otto expanded the business to a location in the Mayfair section of Philadelphia, and in 1983 they turned the business over to Walter’s daughter, Karen Haug Boyd-Rohde. Karen spent months renovating the 19th-century Victorian building Bredenbeck’s currently occupies in Chestnut Hill. In 1986, she purchased the ice cream parlor next door to add to the business, and continued running the bakery until 2022, when she retired and her sons Jacob and Irvin Boyd took over.
Over the years, Bredenbeck’s has been featured on TLC, the Food Network, and Rachel Ray, and has created cakes for the Phillies, Elton John, and Bon Jovi, among many other happy customers. In addition to cakes and cupcakes (which can be made with Phillies/Eagles themes!), Bredenbeck’s also bakes brownies, cookies, pies, tortes, tarts, macarons, and eclairs. It’s definitely worth the visit if you’re in the neighborhood and would like a snack!
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