Beloved Marigny Bakery and Breakfast Spot Cake Cafe to Close Permanently

The owners of popular Marigny cafe Cake Cafe and Bakery announced Monday afternoon that they will close permanently at the end of June, ending a 13-year run as a neighborhood destination for breakfast classics, pastries, and apple and goat cheese king cake.

In a Facebook post, Steve and Becky Himelfarb wrote that while they support the industry in this “moment of new beginning,” they’ve decided that with their building’s lease coming to an end “and fresh prospects in sight, professionally, it is time for us to move on.” The touching post added “we’ve seen people fall in love, babies born, and loved ones pass on. Thank you for letting us be a part of your lives.”

The couple opened the original Cake Cafe in the French Quarter in 2004, years after Steve Himelfarb first became known to University area residents for selling plastic-wrapped cake slices from a tray on Maple Street. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, they relocated to the Marigny neighborhood, opening on the corner of Chartres and Spain Streets in 2007. The tiny, art-covered cafe quickly became loved for its cakes, breakfast, and add-a-cupcake-for-$1 option. Himelfarb’s unique goat cheese and apple king cake has also been a local favorite for years.

The business is going up for sale, with the Himelfarbs writing that “it is a perfect turn-key operation in an ideal location” and that while buyers have expressed interest, nothing is set. Cake Cafe will continue to offer takeout service Thursday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. through Sunday, June 28.

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