Kansas City area bakery, coffee shop opens in century-old house. ‘Sharing my talent’
Instead of toys, young Megan Andersen would request cookbooks for her birthday presents.
Andersen grew up in a baking household, spending hours in the kitchen with her mother and grandmother, whipping up cakes and cookies.
She later earned her teaching degree and held a few different jobs, but her baking journey never felt finished. Eventually, she began her baking business fully at home. Fast forward to today: She’s baking in a 130-year-old home she fully renovated to become the first brick and mortar for Wild Flour Baking Co. — 307 Main St. in Parkville.
“I’m really excited to own this building and have brought it back to life,” Andersen said. “But then also sharing my talent with the community and then having a place where people can come and try my things.”
The charming yellow house with the fireplace, wood floors and covered porch is in the downtown Parkville area, just a hop, skip and a jump from longtime local businesses like Cafe Des Amis and Frank’s.
Before her bakery opened at the end of January, the space was a psychiatrist’s office, then a fabric shop, and several other things before that — though Andersen said the exact timeline for each is hard to trace. It took eight months to transform the place into the modern yet retro storefront seen today.
Customers who walk through the doors are greeted with the sweet smell of cinnamon rolls, cookies, brownies, kolaches, muffins and other baked goods on Andersen’s rotating menu.
And then there’s the coffee side. A full espresso bar serves lattes, Americanos, hot teas and other drinks. The signature drink is the Wild Flour Latte: a vanilla and lavender espresso drink.
Andersen says she wants to be more of a bakery that has good coffee than a coffee shop that sells baked goods.
Having the space has helped her connect more with her customer base that she spent two years building up during her at-home days. She’s gained even more fans since she opened.
“People in the community … they saw the ‘for sale’ sign, they saw the ‘sold’ sign, they saw the ‘coming soon’ sign,” Andersen said. “They’ve been anxiously awaiting the opening, and so it’s been really nice having those people come in and say, ‘I’m your neighbor.’”
Wild Flour is open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. It’s closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
Just a few buildings down, Deviant Kava is opening later this month at 405 Main St. It will sell kava, a non-alcoholic, mood-boosting drink and coffee.