Oakland's Holiday Baking Season Starts on a Saturday Morning

Before this summer, a loaf from Sprinkles & Sourdough meant getting to the Mountain Fresh pavilion before it sold out, and Mullenax Bakery's treats were sold from a small cooler inside Fox's Pizza. Both bakers now have their own storefronts in downtown Oakland. Sprinkles & Sourdough opened at 204 E. Alder Street on August 15, 2026, and Hey Sugar by Mullenax Bakery held its grand opening at 255 N. Third Street on August 11.

The market is still part of the picture. Its winter season opens Saturday, November 7, and it's short: seven Saturdays, then no market until February. For anyone in Oakland who wants local bread, pie and cookies on the holiday table, the season comes down to those seven mornings.

Seven Saturdays, Then a Gap Until February

In an October 17, 2026 memo to vendors, the Mountain Fresh Producers Association set every winter market for Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Mountain Fresh Pavilion off 2nd Street by the town parking lot. The memo also says there are no sales before 10 a.m. The board noted on its own schedule which holiday each date falls near:

After December 19, the next market is February 13, on the Winter Fest and Valentine's weekend. The winter schedule then picks up again in March. So the stretch from Thanksgiving through Christmas gets four markets. After that, the storefronts carry Oakland's local baking until mid-February.

The market's rules don't change in winter. Vendors must make, bake or grow what they sell, and baked goods, jams, honey and maple syrup are all allowed alongside produce, eggs and crafts. The roster of vendors for the 2026-27 season hasn't been posted yet. The vendor page still shows the fall and winter 2025-26 lineup, and it warns that not every vendor comes every week. The market's weekly email list says who's attending and what they're bringing, and it's the most reliable way to know before you head out. The market also matches SNAP and other farmers market benefits, currently up to $20 per person per market day; the details are on its match page.

A note for cold mornings: an earlier winter notice from the market said the pavilion's garage doors may be closed on cold days. If the doors are down, the market is still open.

The Market Table Was the Proving Ground

Sprinkles & Sourdough shows how the market works as a starting point. Garrett County's business development office reported in July that owner Jen Thomas began baking sourdough at home, applied to be a Mountain Fresh vendor, and expanded into 204 Alder Street after consistently selling out at the market. She told the county about applying:

"I literally didn't give it a second thought, and I applied… then I got accepted a few weeks later and the rest is history."

The same story said Thomas planned to keep selling at Mountain Fresh after the shop opened. That matters this winter, because the shop does things a market table can't. According to the opening announcement in Deep Creek Times, the Alder Street store carries artisan sourdough and sweets, including the sea salt brown butter sourdough chocolate chip cookies. It also has a kitchen boutique with bread knives, cementware, aprons, baskets and sourdough tools, and an "eat local" pantry stocked with goods from the shop's partner farmers market vendors. The county's story also described a gift basket service, hand-picked and wrapped to fit the customer's budget. For holiday gifts, that one counter covers bread, a bread knife and a basket.

At opening, the store listed regular hours of Wednesday through Saturday starting at 9 a.m., with a note that hours might change. Daily availability is posted on the Sprinkles & Sourdough Facebook page. Open at 9 a.m. on Saturdays, with the market starting at 10 a.m., the shop makes an easy first stop on the way to the pavilion.

A Cooler at Fox's Pizza Did the Same Job

Marissa Mullenax tested demand her own way. The Garrett County Republican reported that she baked for more than a decade, starting as a home cottage baker. A small cooler of her products inside Fox's Pizza showed her there was enough demand for a storefront. Hey Sugar now sits right next door to Fox's on Third Street.

The same report says baking starts around 5 a.m. and everything is made that day. The daily lineup includes cupcakes, cheesecakes, croissants, cake pops and cookies. For holiday gatherings, Mullenax Bakery takes custom orders for cakes, cheesecakes, cupcakes and dessert trays, with pricing by email at [email protected]. The shop's phone is 240-488-3031.

Hey Sugar also brought back something downtown had been missing. It has a candy bar where customers buy candy by the pound, which the Republican compared to the "late, great" Candyland. The Oakland Farmers Market and Candyland had announced a planned final day of October 27, 2024. For two holiday seasons, Oakland had no place to fill a stocking by the pound. This year it does.

December 12 Puts Everything on Second Street

The two storefronts and the pavilion already make for an easy Saturday loop. On December 12, the Oakland A&E District adds a fourth stop. Its Bakers Market runs that Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 108 South Second Street, with treats "for gifts or for yourself." That address is The Gallery Shop, the Garrett County Arts Council's storefront for local artists.

The date is new. In 2025, the A&E District held its Bakers Market on Small Business Saturday, November 29. This year it moves two weeks later, onto the same Saturday the market's memo pencils in as Oakland's Small Town Christmas week. On December 12, the winter market runs 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. off 2nd Street and the Bakers Market opens at 10 a.m. on South Second Street. That's the one Saturday this season when the farmers market, the Bakers Market and both new bakeries are all open within a few downtown blocks.

The Bakers Market keeps going until 4 p.m., three hours after the pavilion closes. Anyone who misses the market's 1 p.m. close still has the afternoon to pick up holiday treats on Second Street.

Working Thanksgiving Into the Saturdays

The Saturday before Thanksgiving, November 21, is the market's last chance before the holiday. Small Business Saturday on November 28 comes two days after it. A practical way to plan the month:

• November 7: The winter market opens. That afternoon, the Civic Club of Oakland's 5th Annual Tea and Holiday Boutique runs 1 to 3:30 p.m. on the lower level of Ace's Run Restaurant, 20160 Garrett Highway. Tickets are $50, and proceeds go to local nonprofits.
• November 11 to 22: Our Town Theatre stages Come From Away over two weeks. Wednesday through Saturday shows start at 7 p.m., and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.
• November 21: Shop the market for the Thanksgiving table. If you want a custom dessert tray from Mullenax Bakery, email well before this date.
• November 28: Small Business Saturday at the market, the morning after the Festival of Trees opens at the Garrett County Fairgrounds in McHenry.
• December 12: The winter market and the A&E District Bakers Market on the same morning.
• December 19: The last market before Christmas, and the last one until February 13.

Sprinkles & Sourdough posts what's available on its Facebook page, and Mullenax Bakery handles custom orders by email. Market vendors and what they're bringing will show up week by week in the Mountain Fresh email.

If you're picking a single morning for local baked goods, make it December 12. The pavilion opens at 10 a.m., the Bakers Market runs until 4 p.m., and the shops on Alder and Third fill in around both.

At Chef's Edge Real Estate, we think a good Saturday works like a good kitchen, where everything is ready when you need it. If you're planning a holiday visit for out-of-town family and want suggestions for a downtown Oakland morning built around these markets, reach out. Let's Connect.