Longtime bakery becomes a daily stop on the Central Coast

Gayle’s Bakery & Rosticceria has been serving people on the Central Coast since 1978.

“I think Gayle really had a vision of treating people nicely and using quality ingredients. The whole idea is that everything is made fresh every day,” said Owner Joe Ortiz.

From loaves of sourdough and pastries to burritos and ribs, Gayle’s Bakery offers something for everyone.

“It’s really easy to just do the things that people like and have done through the years. But I think part of our success has been trying to stay ahead of the curve, developing new things and fine tuning all the products that we do have,” said Ortiz.

On any average day Gayle’s serves 1,800 to 2,000 people a day, and customers say they know the drill.

“You get a ticket, they call your number, then you tell them what you want,” said Edward Guillory.

Which bring us to the difficult part, choosing what to order.

“I don’t think I’ve had anything here that I don’t like,” said Renee Shinkle.

“I like the fired egg sandwiches and burritos,” said Guillory.

“The cakes are outrageous. We always come here for people’s birthdays,” said Shinkle.

The bakery is also a big draw for tourists.

“My friend told me ‘you have to go to Gayle’s,’ and once you go to Gayle’s, you come back to Gayle’s,” said Mike Manning.

And that’s the reason why the business has gone from 800 square feet to now 10,000, and employs 200 workers.

“It’s all about fine tuning. We are still trying to get this one right,” said Ortiz.