Fresh from the oven

The small guest book that greets customers at French’s Cupcake Bakery in Costa Mesa has taken on a new meaning for owners Jerry and Dianne French. Once a mark of old friendships, the Venetian-themed signature book is now a symbol of resilience and support, filled with messages like “We’re glad you’re open” and “Good to have you back.”

“The entire time, we just wanted to get this place back open as soon as we could,” Jerry French said while finishing up a couple of pastries.

It’s been 13 months since a fire damaged the East 17th Street shopping center French and five other business owners had called home. For French, it was 13 months too long.

“It was kind of surreal when it all happened,” he said. “I thought to myself, ‘Gosh, we’re going to be closed for a couple weeks; this is terrible.”

Instead the wait would be much longer. Building delays, problems with the insurance and dozens of false starts made 2005 a frustrating year for the French family.

Jerry French’s grandfather first brought his baking talents to California from Ohio, opening up shops in Pasadena and later Santa Ana. It was French’s parents who opened the original French’s Bakery at Fairview Road and Baker Street, which they later sold after opening the shop on 17th Street. Jerry French said baking is all his family has ever known.

“It’s like someone died,” daughter Ginny French said. “It was our home base, and we always told our friends and family to come by and visit us at the bakery. All of the sudden, we didn’t see people anymore.”

Ginny French said she vividly remembers the day her mother called her to tell her about the blaze. On Dec. 3, 2004, a small fire broke out at the neighboring Regal Beauty Supply shop in the early hours of the morning. The blaze never reached the bakery, but smoke severely damaged the bakery’s structure, and much of it needed to be rebuilt.

“We were pretty nervous. Opening something from scratch is pretty difficult,” Ginny French said.

Without the bakery, the French family didn’t know what to do with themselves. Jerry French oversaw the construction of his shop and worked part time at a bakery in Torrance. Ginny French took an office job and hated every minute of it. Dianne French tried to make do with the situation.

“We we’re able to do a lot of classes and mini-vacations,” she said. “We kind of sat back and did things we didn’t expect.”

Dianne French said the family would have taken a longer vacation if they knew the construction was going to keep getting pushed back. Ginny French said she was constantly updating the website. First the bakery was going to be open by Valentine’s Day, then the Fourth of July, then maybe it was Christmas ? no one ever seemed to be sure.

“We even baked a few cakes at home because people kept calling us so much and begging us to do it,” Ginny French said.

Then earlier this year, after months of waiting, businesses began to reopen. The beauty center, a tanning salon, and Mesa Dental Center all started bringing in customers again.

“This location has been so good to me. I would never leave this area,” said Ric Flanagan, who recently reopened his Caliente Southwest Express and attributes his success to his loyal customers.

“I did some of my best business the first day we reopened,” he said. “We had people eating here twice a day.”

The French family said they were able to rehire all but one of their old employees, and many customers have returned to the bakery.

“I’m happy to see it reopen. Every time I drive up 17th, the car just sort of turns itself into the parking lot,” said longtime customer Frank McCune. dpt.24-bakery-kt-CPhotoInfoLQ1P936K20060324iwlz14knKENT TREPTOW / DAILY PILOT(LA)Jerry and Diane French own French’s Cupcake Bakery on 17th Street in Costa Mesa. After sustaining smoke damage in a fire, the bakery was closed for about 13 months. When it finally reopened, the Frenches rehired all but one of their employees. dpt.24-bakery-3-kt-BPhotoInfoLQ1P97BS20060324iwlz0kkn(LA)Ginny French decorates cupcakes on Thursday. She took an office job, which she hated, while the bakery was closed. dpt.24-bakery-2-kt-BPhotoInfoLQ1P94E320060324iwlz05knPHOTOS BY KENT TREPTOW / DAILY PILOT(LA)Pratiti Mehta, left, helps customer Stephanie Crane order a birthday cake at French’s Cupcake Bakery on Thursday. The bakery had been closed for over a year after it was damaged a fire.