Three Daughters Baking is a small business located at 12 Vose Ave, South Orange, NJ. It is only 0.7 miles from Seton Hall University, which makes for a short walk or drive from campus.
Erica Leahy, the owner of Three Daughters and pastry chef, said taking on ownership of the restaurant was her “next step” in her career.
“Truthfully, I didn’t want to work for anybody else anymore,” Erica said. “I worked in restaurants for a long time, and I didn’t want to do that anymore.”
Leahy said that she didn’t know the biggest challenge in running her own business because there are a variety of challenges.
“Construction things, and permits to training staff, is your equipment working properly? Is the product what it's supposed to be, are all the ingredients coming in the way they are supposed to? From the flour to the butter to anything else, did it not come in?” Leahy said. “It's just all the different levels of possible problems you could have, and you just have to be ready to bounce from one to the other.”
However, for Leahy, her connection with customers is the most fulfilling element of her work.
“I’d say seeing all of our regular customers who come in and building that community of people who come in, and they know who works here, they know the products and they’re excited for something new,” Leahy said. “They just want to come in and see what we are serving and dive on in, and that's really fun.”
Leahy’s husband and managing partner, Chris Leahy said he likes building the business in the neighborhood they live in, where their children are growing up, as they’re making a better spot for the community.
Three Daughters serves croissants, scones, muffins, cakes, and more. Their chai is made from scratch. All lattes, matcha, iced drinks, and cappuccinos are from locally roasted coffee from a coffee company called Rabble and Lion. They have unique flavors and hybrid treats like almond croissants and a “cruffin,” which is a croissant muffin that can come in many different flavors depending on the season.
“I think what makes our business unique is that Chris and I are both professionally trained chefs, and so we’re kind of looking to take the bakery experience to a new level,” Erica Leahy said.
Martha Dunning, an employee at Three Daughters, said that even with all the unique treats they serve, a fan favorite will always be the plain croissant.
“For me, I will always go first for the plain croissant,” Dunning said. “They are the best croissants I have ever had. They are fluffy, buttery and delicious.”
Three Daughters Baking is an ode to Erica and Chris Leahy’s three daughters. They said they wanted to be more present, not only for their community but for their girls. They also wanted to show their daughters the value of working hard, which is how Three Daughters came to be.
Erica and Chris Leahy started small by selling to friends and family for holidays. They then moved to New Jersey, which allowed them to sell at farmer's markets and pop-up stores. Eventually, they made it into the General Store in Maplewood, which is where a bunch of small, local businesses get started. Today, they have a storefront in downtown South Orange.
All three daughters of Erica and Chris currently work in the bakery. The eldest daughter is Elizabeth, who works in the back of the house. The middle daughter is Maddie, who also works in the back of the house and helps with the baking. The youngest daughter is Brianna. She works in the front of the house at the cash register. On Sundays, all three sisters work together, as those are family days.
Erica Leahy said she wants Seton Hall students to know they can come in to get sweets, savories, breakfast, and lunch, and to also get a coffee and hang out.
“We’re going to have the best stuff to eat and drink, with a really nice environment to do it in,” she said.
Kate Kepuladze is a writer for The Setonian’s Campus Life section. She can be reached at kate.kepuladze@student.shu.edu.
