It begins in 2002, Phoenix, Arizona. That is the year my parents' opened their first restaurant and my mothers' cobblers gained a reputation of it's own. Customers would call and reserve slices, we'd sell out everyday! By 2004 we had a location in Sky Harbor Airport where also, the cobblers would sell out daily. After almost 10 years in the business, my parents decided to close the restaurants but my mother and aunts continued to supply cobblers for some local restaurants.
My parents left the food industry for some time though my father still did catering and events for friends part time. Growing up in a kitchen, I've always had the desire to own my own restaurants like my parents. So, fast forward to 2017, my mother and I had been living in California for a few years then and I still pester her about taking another shot in the food industry. She is reluctant but entertains the idea so the desire never really left. We'd always joke about what we'd do with an empty building we seen.
July of 2019, I returned from a fun-filled trip in Las Vegas to devastating news. My mother was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer and immediately the outlook of the future became a little blurry. She began procedures and treatment to battle the cancer and chemo would leave her sick and restless. On one restless night in October, she came to me with the idea of not opening a restaurant but, introducing the successful cobblers to California. A light bulb went off in my mind! I thought, this is a great way to not only own a restaurant, I'd get to work with my family and represent a product I really believe in. So I said yes, that is the plan! My mother, WHILE ON CHEMO, in her free time looked up everything we'd need and how to get started. We started baking out of my Aunt Vicki's home thru a cottage license and began doing deliveries off our website and taking digital orders when I'd get off work in the evenings. This had some success so we continued until an obstacle shook up the world.
March of 2020, the week after my mother successfully beat cancer and had her last treatment of radiation, the world was shut down to quarantine. Like everyone else, we halted the business due to health concerns for us and our valued customers. We didn't do anything as we both worked full-time jobs still. Then, in July of 2020, in the thick of a global pandemic my Aunt Vicki (my mothers identical twin sister) was also diagnosed with breast cancer. One calendar year and a one day after my mother. Well by August, my employer was forced to cut costs and as a result, I was laid off. I was discouraged but I told both my parents: should I lose my job, I'm going to take it as a blessing in disguise and focus on the building the business full time. So now my Aunt is battling cancer and trying to keep covid away, so we began renting a local kitchen to prepare to take the business to the next level. And I truly feel like thats when Queens of Cobbler was born.
We participated in a our first Famers' Market on November 1, 2020. We were not sure what to expect but, we acquired to equipment we'd need and my Mother and I went and set up. We ended up selling out early that first market! So we were thrilled about that and figured we'd better keep it up. So we joined 4 markets from San Jacinto, Temecula, Menifee and even as far as Lake Elsinore! With the success of the markets, we came together with my other Aunt Valeria and my big brother JD whom still live in Phoenix, and we decided to establish a brick and mortar, like we used to own. So the search began.
We acquired a space in June of 2021 that used to be a hair salon. We all pitched in and purchased equipment and put in blood, sweat and tears to turn the 500 square-feet into a commercial kitchen. It took us longer than anticipated but are more than happy with the turnout. We were able to open our doors December 24, 2021 and we have been at 249 East Main Street in San Jacinto ever since. We are still a family-owned and operated dessert shoppe with zero employees. We still participate in various Farmers' Markets and events to this day. The retail shoppe is open but our hours are limited due to our main focus being distribution and shipping. We are available at Gerrard's Market in Redlands, CA, and at the Swing Inn Cafe in Temecula, CA and more to come!
To this day, my mother and my aunt are doing great and cancer-free! We appreciate all the support and thank anyone who has taken the time to learn about us or try our desserts. Thank you! Every dollar spent with us helps us brings our families dreams to life and despite the rough battle we are happy say we are still here and still pushing. We sincerely thank you all.
-Jordan
