A TASTE OF PORT ST. LUCIE
know they are getting something fresh, not out of a box
or from a truck.
“That makes a big difference. You can’t serve somebody
old food. They want it to stay hot,” she says. “There
is something about the texture ― light and fluffy.”
Dixie Cream also manages to compete with the larger
Dunkin’ Donuts chain by charging about $2 less per
dozen, though single prices are about the same,
Callis says.
Dixie Cream’s local involvement also attracts business,
she says. The company helps with school sponsorships
and donations to local groups.
The Port St. Lucie hours are from 5:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Fort Pierce store is open from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. In the
early days of Dixie Cream on Orange Avenue, doughnuts
were served until they ran out and the shop closed up,
Callis says.
To keep things in order and ready made, Callis, the
mother of four children, begins work at 2 a.m., long
before the store opens. She remembers coming in at midnight
when she first started out. Callis usually works on
the hot glazed doughnuts first thing in the morning. Her
husband Jonathon is a baker at the Fort Pierce shop.
The new restaurant in Port St. Lucie gets some of its
biggest orders from nearby organizations and workplaces.
A hospital will order 150 dozen doughnuts, and
churches will ask for 40 or 50 dozen at a time.
Callis says it’s the regular customers who determine
a store’s success. “When you see people every day, you
know they love it,” she says. E
When you see people
every day, you know they
love it. ‘‘ ‘‘ — Sarah Callis
Lines often stretch outside of the new bakery in Port St. Lucie.
26 Port St. Lucie Magazine
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