Mountains, bears, orchards; Washington state has immense beauty, so why would Samatha move to Texas to open Shirley Mae's Bakery?
Samantha, a pastry chef trained at Le Cordon Bleu met her now husband, a classically trained chef as well, in 2007, both working in the kitchen of a resort, nestled in the mountains just south of the Canadian border. They worked in resorts for years, saw the economy fluctuate, and felt the pressure on their industry.
In 2023, her brother moved to Texas then shortly after her parents retired and moved to Texas as well. Following them, Samatha’s other brother then moved to Texas. Samatha and her husband had recently had their first baby and decided that they didn’t want their son to grow up without a family's love and support system nearby - so, they loaded up their life and moved to Texas as well, settling in Cameron.
Samathan’s first thought was to find a part-time job at a bakery, but there wasn’t an opportunity for that nearby. She and her husband tossed around the idea of opening a bakery, definitely something their area was lacking. Signing up for car insurance one afternoon, she happened to ask the agent about business insurance, and it didn’t take long for the agent to point out a building on the square that was available.
They moved from Washington in August 2023 and opened the bakery in late November. It’s been a roller coaster ride since, one that without her family, “she couldn’t, and wouldn’t want to do.”
Not only did the whole family embrace the move across the country, but they also embraced the bakery.
“It’s the definition of family owned and operated.” Samatha is there baking and running the day-to-day operations. Her husband works for the school district daily and helps out at the bakery in the evenings and on weekends. Her dad works at the bakery every day with her, and her mom watches their son, making all this possible. Her sister-in-law did all of their digital creative work, and her brother helped with build-out and construction. Even her grandmother is there, in spirit; the bakery was named after her because of how supportive she was of Samatha’s dreams.
Even the table tops were hand-crafted by Samatha and her mom.
They want their customers to know, it’s about being one big family. Old recipes found, clipped, and inlaid onto the tabletop, one at a time to give a downhome vibe. A play area for kids to run to when they walk through the door. And a comfy chill area upstairs complete with beanbags and rocking chairs.
If you don’t feel welcome here, I don’t know what to tell you.
When you walk in, be prepared to be overwhelmed with choices. Cheesecakes, sticky buns, cinnamon rolls, loaves of bread, cookies, macarons, and more. Samantha told me that they delight in watching people try to choose.
We had the chance to taste a couple of trays worth of treats.
The macarons were light, crisp, and delicate. The chocolate flourless torte is a chocolate lover's dream; rich, creamy, and smooth. I’d never had a St. Louis gooey butter bar before, and I feel like I’ve been missing out, it was incredible.
Coffee cake is always one of my favorite desserts, and this did not disappoint. Moist and crumbly, with a lovely cinnamon flavor. It was perfect with my cup of coffee.
The gooey filling in the mixed berry bar was outstanding, a very fresh and bright dessert.
Kolaches aren’t something that she was very familiar with, so Samatha did a lot of research, aiming to make them as authentically as possible. Boog and I tried the lemon-filled kolache and it was spot on. I love the tang of a good lemon curd in baked goods.
Now we’re in the thick of it, our favorites -
The peach and cream cheese Danish was Boog’s favorite, so I literally got one bite, ONE. From the bit that I got it was sweet, but not overpowering. The pastry was light, flakey, and buttery. Boog said she would enjoy it as part of breakfast, and that it would be perfect as the bread choice with a breakfast plate.
The cinnamon rolls and sticky buns are hand-mixed (as in no mixer is used), rolled out, and filled with the amazing cinnamon filling. Then the cinnamon rolls are topped with a generous cream cheese icing, and the sticky buns are smothered in local honey and local pecans. The sticky bun was by far my favorite item of the day. The bun itself is soft, fluffy, and filled with the buttery cinnamon mixture. Then goes on the covering of the gooey honey and fresh pecans. It was love at first bite!
And then, Samatha sent us home with a bag of their freshly made granola. Oh my gosh, this is a must-have. I added it to yogurt, oatmeal, my hand - yes, you could find me in the kitchen nearly every evening grabbing a handful. Just the perfect sweet treat after dinner.
Make sure when you’re out and about this weekend, you take the backroads on over to Cameron, Texas, and check out Shirley Mae’s Bakery on the square. Tell ‘em I said hi, and get there early because the cinnamon rolls and sticky buns always sell out, so get a few extra to take home for the week to come.
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106 S Houston Ave Cameron, Texas 76520
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