Today we’d like to introduce you to Randy and Lucy Hines.
Opening its doors in 1970 on Richmond Ave, Kolache Shoppe began a legacy of serving delicious kolaches in what was then the suburbs of Houston. The original owner, Erwin Ahrens, developed a dough recipe that captured the essence of authentic Czech kolaches by talking with all of the Czech grandmothers that he knew about their family kolache recipes. He learned from these seasoned bakers that truly the only recipe for successful kolaches were preparing them from scratch, using quality ingredients, and giving them plenty of time to rise. There was no rushing a great kolache!
In addition to making traditional kolaches filled with a dollop of fruit or sweet cheese, Mr. Ahrens also incorporated the Texas touch of adding savory meats to his sweet kolache dough (properly called “Klobasniky”). Kolache Shoppe quickly grew to serve many local residents and businesses.
In 2006, Randy was eager to learn the art of kolache making and he called upon his local favorite, Kolache Shoppe, to see if they would teach him their beloved craft. A consultant by trade, his travels took him far and wide, but he found that he always missed the great foods of Texas. Having grown up in the “Czech belt” of Texas, he had developed an affection for authentic kolaches and believed that Mr. Ahrens’ Shoppe had the best kolache dough in Houston.
After spending a year in our nation’s capital with not a kolache in sight, he called Mr. Ahrens and asked him to teach him how to bake. It turned out that Mr. Ahrens was more than glad to introduce him to the art: it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Eight years later in 2014, after 44 years of serving kolaches to the Houston community, Erwin proudly passed his Kolache Shoppe on to Randy and his wife Lucy, handing down a delicious, hand-crafted legacy of authentic kolaches. Now five years after taking over the Shoppe, Randy and Lucy have opened a second Kolache Shoppe, located in Houston’s historic Heights neighborhood. They are thrilled to offer the same authentic, high-quality kolaches and a full espresso bar to the Houston Heights neighborhood, all with the convenience of a drive-through.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Although we started with lots of passion and energy when taking over the Kolache Shoppe, we had ZERO training or experience in the food industry, which posed quite a challenge in the first couple of years! But, after many lessons (some easy and some hard), we have been able to come up to speed and run our bakery in a more efficient and effective way. Similarly, we encountered many trials in opening our second location in the Heights, but we’ve had such a warm response from the neighborhood that it’s made the expansion totally worth the effort!
Kolache Shoppe – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Kolache Shoppe has been making scratch kolaches for nearly 50 years. We are known for our soft, sweet, pillowy dough, which is made from 100% real butter and stuffed with high-quality meats and fruit fillings. We are local owner-operators who love our craft and our food community! Also, at our Heights location, we have a full espresso bar featuring beans from Boomtown Coffee. We loved the idea of offering people the finest kolaches and coffee with the convenience of drive-through.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
One of our favorite quotes comes from author Wendell Berry, who says, “A community economy is not an economy in which well-placed persons can make a ‘killing.’ It is an economy whose aim is generosity and a well-distributed and safeguarded abundance.” The question we try to ask is, are the people around us thriving? Not just our employees, but also our customers, vendors, partners, etc.? If the answer is yes, then we consider ourselves to be successful.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1031 Heights Blvd
Houston, TX 77008 - Website: www.kolacheshoppe.com
- Phone: 281-846-6499
- Email: eats@kolacheshoppe.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kolache_shoppe/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KolacheShoppeHeights/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/kolache-shoppe-houston-2
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