East Setauket Bakery Celebrates 25 Years Despite Pandemic

Hitting a milestone such as 25 years in business is a sweet accomplishment to celebrate but, due to the pandemic, Rolling Pin bakery had to scale down its plans.

Owner David Dombroff said the hope was for current and past employees to come together at a gala at the Setauket Neighborhood House this year.

“We had gotten in touch with so many people — many who worked through high school at the bakery and now some have kids of their own,” he said. “Social media helped us get in touch with dozens of people from a long time ago.”

While the gala couldn’t take place due to state guidelines that limit indoor gatherings to 50 people or less, the Rolling Pin owner and employees still celebrated by giving out free cupcakes on the bakery’s anniversary Sept. 22 and then again Sept. 26 at its Three Village Shopping Center location.

The pandemic has been a big blow to bakeries. Dombroff said baking wedding cakes is a significant part of business, and while people are still celebrating and ordering cakes, the sizes of them are much smaller than usual.

“This was by far the biggest hit — we lost over 70% of the business — and are still down nearly that much — as all of our wholesale accounts have shut down,” the bakery owner said. “This time of year we would typically be making 45 to 55 wedding cakes per weekend.”

During the pandemic, Dombroff said the bakery adapted by offering curbside pickup and working with the food delivery service DoorDash.

Dombroff, who has lived in Setauket for 30 years, grew up in the local small business world. His father for 15 years was the owner of Bagel King that was once located in the same shopping center where Rolling Pin is today.

After high school, Dombroff attended The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park and completed the program with his associate in occupational studies degree by 19. After working in the culinary field for a hotel chain in both Boston and Long Island, he said he realized the corporate culinary business wasn’t for him.

He went on to work in his father’s bagel store for a few years, he said, and when he heard the former Glendale Bakery was for sale, he bought it. At first, Dombroff went into business with Beth Litt-Wahl. After five years, she went on to work for Whole Foods and now has a line of brittles called Brittle & Beyond.

“Through the ups and downs of running a small business, he was able to pivot and make it work throughout it all. He has wonderful support from his Rolling Pin bakery team, family and friends.”

— Beth Litt-Wahl

Litt-Wahl said she is proud of Dombroff for keeping the bakery open for 25 years and wished the Rolling Pin team continued success.

“Through the ups and downs of running a small business, he was able to pivot and make it work throughout it all,” she said. “He has wonderful support from his Rolling Pin bakery team, family and friends.”

While Dombroff no longer has a business partner, store manager Rene Augello has worked for the bakery for more than 19 years. Augello graduated from Suffolk County Community College’s culinary arts program, where Dombroff said he’s been teaching one class each semester for 15 years.

Augello said working for the bakery is an amazing experience.

“I love being a part of the community bakery,” she said. “I get such a sense of pride when I see the trucks out on the road knowing they are going all over the Island to make people happy. After 19 years of working for the Rolling Pin, I am still in awe at how much production can come out of one little store, and I’m so proud to be a part of it.”

For eight years, the bakery owner also ran a second Rolling Pin location in Bay Shore. Dombroff said while he loved the area and people, “we couldn’t replicate the magic from Setauket” and closed the doors to that store last year.

Looking toward the future, while he and his wife Marlo, who works at Stony Brook Medicine, have two children Benjamin and Sydney, he said he doesn’t foresee them going into the business.

Through the quarter of a century, Dombroff has seen dramatic changes in the bakery industry, especially with supermarkets and warehouse clubs selling baked goods, so he’s thankful for Three Village and nearby residents.

“Thankfully, the community has supported us through the years by shopping local,” he said. “This is what allows us and other small businesses to survive against these chain stores. Otherwise, we will all be left with just a few places to shop and none too close or very good.”