New bakery in MP customizes cakes, cookies and more

A new bakery in Mt. Pleasant is prepared to create fresh, customized cakes and bakes for their customers.

Batter & Dough (and more) is the dream come true for sisters Mary and Sarah Garmoe. The bakery and cafe opened on Thursday, Feb. 28, in downtown Mt. Pleasant at 114 N. Main Street Suite 101. Their hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Since they were children, Mary and Sarah's father, Michael Garmoe, has talked about opening a little diner in Mt. Pleasant.

'This is kind of a culmination of his dream and Mary's dream of having a bakery,” Sarah said.

The name for the bakery came from Michael. He called up his daughter Mary one day and said, 'I have a name if you ever get to open a business. ‘Batter and Dough,' because you don't just do cake.”

'And it was a good one,” Mary said.

Mary added the '(and more)” because Batter & Dough is more than just a bakery. It's soups, salads and sandwiches.

Everything made at Batter & Dough is made with a family recipe, and they will have vegetarian and gluten-free options.

Available soups will include chicken noodle, tomato, potato, broccoli cheese, ham and bean, and vegetable minestrone. Sandwiches will be cold deli or panini with options of five different meats and cheeses and signature sauces like bacon-chive mayonnaise, sriracha bacon-chive mayonnaise, and Parmesan herb dip.

They also will serve Harvest Ridge drip coffee.

'We have a lot of friends and family who have strict diets. We want to make sure they are included, and they can come in and not worry about having something to eat,” Sarah said.

Sarah said there is something therapeutic about putting a meal together, from preparing the meat to chopping vegetables and stirring sauces.

Mary said cooking something hearty, warm and satisfying that makes people happy makes her happy.

'My youngest (daughter), when she's hungry, she gets ‘hangry,'” Mary said. 'You want someone to be happy when they eat your food. My oldest daughter says, ‘My mom makes the best food,'” Mary said with a smile.

While Sarah still works full-time, she will stop in when she is needed. Mary, who has been a stay-at-home mom and has run a catering business out of her home for the past 17 years, is looking forward to being in her own kitchen away from home.

In 2018 Mary said her catering business grew astronomically.

'I was busy all the time making cakes and cookies. I thought if word-of-mouth can do that in one year, what can having a store front do?”

Mary said a lot of their family life centers around food. They go to their grandmother's house in Mt. Pleasant weekly for a family dinner. At Grace Community Friends Church, where they attend, they arranged a monthly potluck meal to sit down together with friends. Although that tradition was lost over the years, it's one example of how the Garmoes share food in community.

Batter & Dough will be an extension of that.

'We want it to be a place where people can come in and feel cozy and welcome, drink coffee and just chat,” Mary said.

They also will have cork boards for people to bring photos of their parties where they served Batter & Dough cakes and desserts and hang them in the bakery.

Getting the bakery up and running has been a family endeavor. Mary and Sarah's dad, brother and great-uncle built a divider for a place to bake behind the counter. Family and friends painted the purple walls to colors that matched the upholstery on the booths. Sarah refinished the table tops.

'That's how we've always done things. If family or friends need help, you go, you help, you do,” Mary said.

While the old Main Street Donuts sign still is up, Signs and Designs is working on a window decal for Batter & Dough (and more) to put on the store front this spring.