Dudley’s Bakery, a must-stop roadside attraction for travelers on their way to Julian since 1963, has been sold.
But fans of the bakery-restaurant’s famous date nut raisin, jalapeño cheddar, apple walnut and garlic sourdough breads needn’t fret. Dudley’s new owners have a reputation for running longtime food businesses, and they plan to keep on the current staff and preserve the Dudley’s legacy and recipes.
Dudley’s new owners are Michel Malécot, who recently closed his 37-year-old The French Gourmet bakery-restaurant in Pacific Beach, and Michael Bower, who owns the 70-year-old Sire Bar and Grill in Riverside.
The new owners could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, but in a press release, Malécot said he’s excited to partner with Bower to preserve, strengthen and sustain Dudley’s for years to come.
The exterior of Dudley’s Bakery in Santa Ysabel. (Kaliana Caldwell)
“This partnership is about stewardship and respect,” Malécot sasid in a statement. “Dudley’s Bakery represents the core of what baking means, good recipes and joie de vivre. Collaborating enables us to safeguard this heritage and ensures a continued promising future.”
Bower said he recognizes the place Dudley’s has in the community at large and they have no plans to reinvent its operations.
“Dudley’s is a place that people feel connected to. Our goal is to honor what has made it special for decades and ensure it remains a gathering place for families, travelers, and the community for many years to come,” he said, in a statement.
Malécot’s decision to buy a bakery just months after closing The French Gourmet may seem a surprise to locals, considering the 74-year-old French-born chef told the Union-Tribune in December that he was planning to retire. But he also said he was open to the idea of finding a place to operate a small bakery with some of his longtime employees.
Michel Malécot sorts through loaves of bread at Dudley’s Bakery in Santa Ysabel, which he recently purchased with business partner Michael Brewer. (Kaliana Caldwell)
Located near the intersection of Highways 78 and 79 in Santa Ysabel, Dudley’s Bakery was opened in 1963 by Dudley Pratt, an El Cajon resident who developed the recipes for his more than two dozen varieties of artisan breads, fruit bars, pastries and pies from his annual summer trips around the world.
Pratt passed away in 1973 and Dudley’s Bakery and its recipes were passed through a series of owners over the next three decades. By the time El Cajon resident Barry Brunye purchased the business in 2007, it had seen better days. Brunye renovated the bakery launched its wholesale business, opened an onsite gift shop and quickly returned the business to profitability.
In 2018, Lydia Bilic and her friend Sejla Holland purchased Dudley’s. They expanded the operating hours from five to seven days a week. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, they organized bread deliveries to shut-in seniors and offered 50 percent discounts to first responders and healthcare workers.
Michael Brewer holds some of the bread products at Dudley’s Bakery in Santa Ysabel, which he recently purchased with business partner Michel Malécot. (Kaliana Caldwell)
Dining and Cooking