Behind plywood-covered windows, a big surprise has been baking in downtown Redmond. After some time away, a popular Central Oregon bakery is coming back bigger than ever.

Ida’s Cupcake Cafe, which has two locations in Bend, closed its former location that had been open a few years on SW Highland Avenue in Redmond when its lease expired at the end of 2018. Since then, the store has been renovating a spot in the 400 block of SW Sixth Street.

“We just had an opportunity to get into a new, larger space being renovated for us right downtown, so we wanted to jump on that,” said Ida’s owner Autumn Lodge Persinger, who bought the cupcake shops in March 2018 from founder Ida Green Gurule.

While the construction has seen some setbacks because of structural and plumbing issues, Persinger said Ida’s new location is now scheduled to open Nov. 1. “It’s good to finally have a date, but it’s a lot later than anticipated,” she said.

The new store will be about three times the size of the former Highland Avenue location, Persinger said. It will have an expanded menu with more coffee options.

“It’s going to be great, we’re going to have more of a dine-in area,” Persinger said.

Most notably, cupcakes at the Redmond store will be baked there, Persinger said. The previously Redmond location, like the Ida’s on NW Galveston Avenue in Bend, had cupcakes delivered from the bakery at the Division store.

That will help Ida’s reach more of the northern part of Deschutes County with delivery and catering for weddings and other events. Redmond resident Emily Littledeer, an Ida’s employee since April who will be head baker at the new Redmond store, was a customer at the former Redmond location before she got a job with the company in Bend. She looks forward to working close to home.

“It’s definitely a lot more convenient for people who live in Redmond,” she said. “My sister lives in Crooked River Ranch, and she’s been a customer for years.”

And being downtown will also be an advantage, Littledeer said.

“I think it’s such a better location than it was before,” she said. “There are a lot of festivals, the car show, the street fair, trick-or-treating on Halloween. People are starting to mingle down there and realize it’s a great place to go for the day.”

Along with getting more foot traffic, Persinger expects the downtown location to be more visible.

“I love the opportunity to get in the center of the community as it’s growing,” she said.

Along with the couple full-time employees already lined up for Redmond, Persinger said another 10-to-15 part-time workers will be hired for the Redmond store. That’s on top of the 20 Ida’s now has in Bend.

Two condominiums are also being renovated in the downtown building. Persinger expects the owners to appreciate a cupcake shop being located below them, instead of a bar.

“It will kind of be a match made in heaven where the tenants won’t be bothering each other,” she said.

Ida’s is a little different from what many might expect from a cupcake shop, where they pick out a prepared cupcake from under a glass case. Customers at Ida’s chose the size of the cupcake (with a “kidcake” costing $2.65 and a double-size “gourmet” selling for $4), then the cake, with traditional flavors like vanilla and chocolate, as well as more unique flavors like key lime and peanut butter chip.

Then the fun begins. Customers chose frosting, with flavors like raspberry swirl and mint Oreo available. Finally customers can add sprinkles or other toppings.

Ida’s also has seasonal flavors of both cake and frosting, as well as vegan and gluten-free options. If cupcakes aren’t your thing, they also sell cake pops for $1.95 and make larger cakes.

“I really like the idea of being able to make something on the spot,” Persinger said. “You know it’s fresh and you know it’s exactly what you’re looking for.”

— Reporter: 541-548-2186, gfolsom@redmondspokesman.com