“If you think about it, when you walk in a place and you smell something good and you have great coffee, it just puts a smile on your face. It starts the day off really positively and hopefully it continues from there.”
That simple idea is at the heart of Breadie’s Cafe, the new cafe and bakery Chris and Karin Conlee are opening in East Memphis on Oct. 16.
The date seems tailor-made for a bakery opening: It's also World Bread Day.
They did this on purpose, right? Both Chris and Karin laughed, shaking their heads. It was apparently a happy coincidence.
Happy is also what the Conlees hope customers will be once they walk into this spacious, welcoming cafe filled with
the aromas of fresh-baked breads, cookies and espresso. The menu stretches from sweet and savory breakfast favorites to artisan pizzas, burgers and plenty more. You name it, Breadie’s Café likely has it.
Located next-door to One City Church’s property at 120 N. East Yates Road, near Walnut Grove and I-240, Breadie's isn't just for churchgoers. It's designed for the wider East Memphis community, too — from nurses running to their shifts at Baptist East and families gathering over wholesome meals together to remote workers looking for a latte and a comfortable place to settle with complimentary Wi-Fi and ample charging stations.
The café offers seating for at least 80 guests, with an outdoor porch planned for spring 2027 that will accommodate another 70.
So why the name Breadie’s?
“It was my father’s nickname,” Chris explained. “He worked in the bread business, and I grew up helping deliver bread and baked goods to grocery stores and restaurants.”
“It’s actually where we met,” recalled Karin, who is also the founder and CEO of nonprofit Unite Memphis. “At the Trinity Commons Kroger in 1990. We were teenagers. He was delivering bread and I was working in the floral department. We got married four years later. Married 32 years in December. Together for 36.”
Chris said he got the idea for this restaurant about 10 years ago. Once the Conlees committed to the project, the process of drawing up plans and bringing their vision to life culminated in roughly 15 months of construction. With help from Fleming Construction Company, the project represented an investment of approximately $2 million.
The investment is evident in the equipment, thoughtful design, layout and attention to the menu and food. It’s hard not to feel a little joy when walking into the airy, vaulted space, where visions of colorful muffins and macaroons greet you.
It helps, too, that visitors are immediately met with the café's tagline, displayed prominently on a large dining-room wall: “Bake me happy.”
And baking is the center of it all.
The full-service coffee shop and artisan bakery are just the beginning. Created in collaboration with Breadie’s Café chef Ben Vaughn, the menu extends well beyond baguettes. Breakfast and brunch options include buttermilk pancakes, farm omelets, quiche and breakfast sandwiches.
At a recent soft open event, Karin noted that one of their biggest brunch hits was their Lamb Pastrami + Hash Browns.
For lunch, the offerings include soups, salads, gumbos and live-fire pizzas made New York style with sourdough crusts. Smoked chicken and arugula, sausage and charred greens, and pepperoni and pickled pepper are just a few of the combinations available.
“The pizza crust is truly special,” Chris said. “The base is more of a thin crust, but around the edge, you got a little bit of a thicker crust. It’s really strong.”
But what do the owners order themselves?
“Oh, gosh,” Karin said, taking a moment to think. “I would say probably the French toast is my favorite. It’s very, very good.”
As for Chris?
“I would say mine, although I know it’s a traditional favorite, but I’d go with the Breadie’s burger, which is a smash burger, that's really delicious.”
Before he could finish the thought, Chris was already praising another menu item.
“What I think also separates us a little bit is that our cold cut sandwiches are not cold cuts,” Chris explained. “They're made with these specialty breads that are toasted and warm. Like our turkey brisket sandwich is amazing. And there's a sandwich called the Denton, with cheddar and cranberry that's more of a ham sandwich. So the sandwiches are truly like a cut above.”
And, of course, you can’t talk Breadie’s without talking about bread.
“We've got rye. Country sourdough. French baguettes. Brioche. Croissants. Focaccia. Scones. Biscuits. All kinds of bagels,” Karin said.
“And all are homemade,” Chris added.
For the Conlees, that commitment to baking is about more than what comes out of the oven. It's about creating a place where people can gather, build relationships and enjoy the simple pleasures of good food and good company, one slice of artisan pizza at a time.
The World Bread Day timing may have been a happy coincidence, but the idea behind Breadie's is no accident. Chris and Karin hope that whether customers stop in for a loaf of chocolate sourdough, a morning Americano or a meal with friends, they leave feeling just a little happier when they arrived.
After all, the invitation is right there on the wall: "Bake me happy."
Brian Strickland is the Food & Dining reporter at The Commercial Appeal. Contact him at brian.strickland@commercialappeal.com.
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Breadie's Cafe
Where: 120 N. East Yates Road
Hours: 6 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; closed Monday
Online: breadiescafe.com
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: 'Bake me happy.' That's the mission at Breadie's Cafe in East Memphis
