Martha Gilreath of Nolita Bakery

Nolita Bakery

New Orleans is the city of second chances. After hurricanes and pandemics, there’s nothing this city and its people can’t come back from. No one knows that more than Martha Gilreath, owner of Nolita Bakery. Gilreath survived addiction and homelessness and graduated from the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute. She opened Nolita as a popup in 2019 and recently opened the bakery’s first brick and mortar on Orleans Avenue in Mid-City. Gilreath shares what she’s learned from the life she’s lived and what the future holds for her and her bakery.

Q: Have you always had an interest in baking or cooking?
Oh, my gosh! Um, no. I have said for years that I was going to get out of the restaurant business. It’s just something I kind of fell into; 2020 is when I decided to go to culinary school for pastry and actually gained some more knowledge, but I’ve been in and out of kitchens for years.

Q: How does it feel to finally have Nolita be a brick and mortar?
It’s terrifying. And it’s wonderful and surreal all at the same time. There is a time every morning, when I go in before everyone else and it’s dark outside and completely quiet, where I’ll sit there and just see a dream come true. It’s wonderful.

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Q: What’s the best part about what you do?
Right now, since we’ve opened, it’s the people. Because I get to watch these little kiddos come in with their parents and read books from our little library, or the people that bring in their dogs and people that live in the neighborhood. It’s such a variety of personalities. There’s never a moment to be bored.

Q: What advice would you give to a younger you or someone on a similar path?
(with a laugh) “Don’t do that.” I’d tell my younger self, “Don’t do that, it’s not a good idea.” I was talking to someone recently and I thought, you know you can’t go back and rewrite it, it’s just how you move on. But, yes, if I was able to talk to 19-year-old Martha, I’d say, “No ma’am.”

For both personal and business, I’d say, if you ask for help, people are always willing to. If you’re kind and sincere. And ask to be taught. And ask and seek direction. If you’re willing to open your mouth and be humble and ask for help, people are willing to show up and it’s a game changer. I believe people are inherently good and they want to help you.

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Q: What’s next for Nolita?
I’m looking forward to discovering more [about] my customers and know what they want from me. Is it a cupcake class for kiddos, for example? Or special occasion treats? I want to grow and grow with the wants and needs of the community I’m in.

 

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