(The outside of Topper Bakery after it was destroyed by fire. Photo: Paul Nelson)
OGDEN, Utah – The owners of an extremely popular bakery in Ogden are promising to rebuild after it was destroyed by fire. They also want to thank the community for showing them an amazing amount of support.
If you’ve had a Big Ben at Burger Bar in Roy, then you’ve eaten bread made by Topper Bakery in Ogden. The owners say they provide the buns for that specific burger, along with pita bread for Greek restaurants all over the Wasatch Front. One restaurant owner even takes shipments of Topper’s rolls all the way to Nephi every week.
Customers like Ed O’Brien have been going to Topper for decades.
“Not only did they make a good product, but the owners are hard workers. You could drive by here late at night, and they were always working,” O’Brien said.
O’Brien described the fire as heartbreaking.
“To see a family business go up in smoke, it tears my heart out,” O’Brien said.
Owner Valeen DeRyke said the front display area was completely gutted along with most of the baking area. Plus, a lot of their equipment either burned or was damaged by the water crews used to knock down the fire.
However, she said the recipes are safe, and there are certain items her employees can salvage.
“The pans, and all that, I think have been fine. It’s just a matter of taking them, cleaning them and getting them sterilized and everything. That’s what they’re going to work at,” she said.
They’ll rebuild their bakery, but they don’t want to stop working while they do that. DeRyke hopes they can find a temporary work station they can use so they can keep baking.
“The search is out. [We’re] trying to find somebody with a mixer and an oven that we can use to do the Big Bens, and stuff,” she said.
Meanwhile, she says the support from the community has been overwhelming. DeRyke said people are reaching out to her asking how they can donate money to cover the damages.
The company has set a Venmo account to take donations, and supporters have established a GoFundMe account to raise donations.
She said, “We didn’t realize that we were that loved and appreciated and how much people really like our business.”