August 8, 2006
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Donna and Kenny Tibbits, left, and Rebecca and Ron Hall are the new owners of Joe's Bakery, 616 W. Ninth St. They plan to bring back the old ways of the longtime Lawrence institution with original recipes, familiar items and hot glazed doughnuts until 2 a.m. weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends.
Hot glazed doughnuts. Egg salad sandwiches. Frosted sugar cookies.
Next week, folks once again will be able to snarf down the familiar, original-recipe favorites at Joe's Bakery - as late (or early) as 3 in the morning.
"The Joe's run is back," said Kenny Tibbits, who teamed up with his wife and friends to buy the bakery last week.
All four of the new owners - Kenny and Donna Tibbits and Ron and Rebecca Hall - readily admit that they don't have many fresh ideas for the venerable bakery at 616 W. Ninth St., just off the edge of downtown and a healthy walk down the hill from Kansas University.
And that's the point.
The business that Joe Smith opened in 1952, and son Ralph Smith operated as a late-night mecca through the 1990s, had lost some of its charm a few years ago when Ralph Smith closed the place for months at a time and eliminated late-night and early-morning hours, frustrating students and townies alike who had enjoyed making the run for hot glazed doughnuts well after dark and - seemingly - just before sunrise.
More about Joe's Bakery
"We're bringing back the late-night," Ron Hall said. "Everybody wants the doughnuts."
Video
Rebecca Hall, one of the four new owners of Joe's Bakery, shows off the place at 616 W. Ninth St., and explains what folks suffering from late-night hunger will be able to count on beginning Aug. 15, when the place reopens with a late-night focus. Enlarge video
Video
Joe's Bakery owners discuss the new late-night hours. Enlarge video
The new owners know they'll be working late to make their new operation go, all without quitting their day jobs. The guys both work for the city of Lawrence - Ron Hall drives a recycling truck, and Kenny Tibbits drives a sanitation truck - while Donna Hall runs the drive-through at Bucky's Drive In and Rebecca Tibbits manages the office at FirstMed.
Other family members also will be on the payroll: Kylee Tibbits, a junior at KU, and Joel Hall, a senior at Free State High School.
"And our 12-year-old said he'd work for free doughnuts and long johns," Rebecca Hall said of son Kyle, a seventh-grader at West Junior High School.
They'll also get some consulting advice from none other than Ralph Smith, who had sold the business last year to Brad Rettele, owner of M&M Bakery. Smith is turning over his dad's original recipes - written in pencil on note cards, yellow legal paper and other parcels - to the new owners, and he has arranged to sell the name as well.
They're ready to put the information to work.
"We're going back to the old Joe's," Donna Tibbits said.
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8 August 2006
at 6:21 a.m.
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xenophonschild (Anonymous) says…
See, if you're patient, good things will happen.
BTW, went fishing with Joe once, in the late 60s. He told us he named the bakery after his oldest daughter, Josephine, ergo “Joe's Bakery.”
8 August 2006
at 6:22 a.m.
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oscarfactor (Anonymous) says…
Oh gawd…. gonna have to increase the number of reps and miles pedaled to compensate for the overindulgence known as Joe's.
8 August 2006
at 6:47 a.m.
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bankboy119 (Anonymous) says…
xeno I know Joe's daughter and he doesn't have a daughter named Josephine.
8 August 2006
at 6:50 a.m.
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ksmattfish (Anonymous) says…
“The business… had lost some of its charm a few years ago when Ralph Smith closed the place for months at a time and eliminated late-night and early-morning hours….”
It wasn't the changing of the hours, it was how the quality suddenly fell through the floor. I've eaten at Joe's for decades, but in the last few years I stopped going because I kept getting stale donuts and soggy egg salad sandwiches. I hope the new owners can repair the damage.
8 August 2006
at 7:28 a.m.
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trinity (Anonymous) says…
yay, joe's is back!
and this article, *giggle*-i've not seen the word “snarf” in a newspaper in a verrry long time, if ever! ;)
8 August 2006
at 7:38 a.m.
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craigers (Anonymous) says…
They stated how late they will be staying open, but when will they open in the morning? When it is my turn for donuts at church I wouldn't mind bringing hot Joes.
8 August 2006
at 7:51 a.m.
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KSChick1 (Anonymous) says…
found a chest hair in my chicken salad on croissant once and never went back
might try it again now though
what's a stray chest hair among friends?!?
8 August 2006
at 7:59 a.m.
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thomgreen (Anonymous) says…
I'm glad to see a couple of local families take over the business. The Hall's are really nice people and I think they (and the Tibbits) will do a fine job running the place.
I have to admit, I've never been to Joe's bakery, but I'll be more likely to stop in and pick some donuts up now.
8 August 2006
at 8:06 a.m.
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lunacydetector (Anonymous) says…
……..major news coming from lawrence this morning…. joe's bakery had closed -for those of us who didn't know- and now they are back in business! two online polls to boot!
i'm glad someone put a finger in the dike. will this be the start of a bigger business turn around for lawrence?….only time will tell.
now, here is skippy with the sports.
8 August 2006
at 8:15 a.m.
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bmwjhawk (Anonymous) says…
That wasn't a chest hair.
8 August 2006
at 8:18 a.m.
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WereAllMonkeys (Anonymous) says…
I hope they bring back the torpedo and turkey on roll.
8 August 2006
at 8:22 a.m.
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lunacydetector (Anonymous) says…
i found one of those “chest hairs” embedded in a meat ball within my meatball sandwich at a local restaurant (NOT joe's). they were good enough to offer me a new meatball sandwich. Yum.
did the old joe's offer you a new chicken salad sandwich? it's all about customer service, you know.
8 August 2006
at 8:41 a.m.
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badger (Anonymous) says…
Hmmm, will now have to schedule trips back to Lawrence around donut hours…
8 August 2006
at 9:54 a.m.
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reginafliangie (Anonymous) says…
What kind of scientific experiment did you do to determine it was a chest hair?? ewwwwwwwwwww
8 August 2006
at 10:27 a.m.
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oldgoof (Anonymous) says…
The most recent operator had added some great new sandwiches. (No knock on previous management)
8 August 2006
at 10:40 a.m.
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mooseamoose (Anonymous) says…
me likey…..
doughnuts that is - not chest hairs in my food
8 August 2006
at 10:45 a.m.
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tunarubber (Anonymous) says…
joe's sucks. what kind of bakery isn't open on sundays and isn't open in the early mornings? the donuts were greasy and nasty tasting as well. i'll take munchers any day of the week over joe's. plus joe's had all that weird fathers' rights and nra crap in the store.
8 August 2006
at 11:48 a.m.
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Fatty_McButterpants (Anonymous) says…
Um, rightthinker, I think you mean the “American PENAL Press”…not “penile”. At least, I hope that's what you meant.
8 August 2006
at 12:01 p.m.
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smitty (Anonymous) says…
Phallic thinking??
8 August 2006
at 2:34 p.m.
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spacystaci8 (Anonymous) says…
Joes rocks! Krispy Who?
8 August 2006
at 2:59 p.m.
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bambam (Anonymous) says…
tunarubber keep going to mucnhers we dont want you at Joe's anyway.
As a former employee I'm glad to see late night opening up again loved the hot donuts and the selection of sandwiches and no one can for get the iced cookies mmmmmmmmmmmmm
8 August 2006
at 3:56 p.m.
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ThomasJefferson (Anonymous) says…
Do really like that greasy junk which will clog your arteries?
8 August 2006
at 4:51 p.m.
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yellowrose (Anonymous) says…
I used to get their baked Cinnamon Rolls when I first came to Lawrence in the early 90's. They were fabulous! I hope they bring them back. I suggest that they add Buttermilk Doughnuts to the menu. They are my favorite kind and I can't find them anywhere in this town. If they make those two things and if they make them right, they will have my business.
8 August 2006
at 10:40 p.m.
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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…
chocolate creme! uuuhhh yeah!
so glad to see Joe's returning to its glory. it had really slumped.
they're in a great location.
9 August 2006
at 1:09 a.m.
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thebaker (Anonymous) says…
Just so everyone knows: you frost a cake and you ice a sugar cookie.
9 August 2006
at 2:16 a.m.
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auturgy (Anonymous) says…
Wait a minute, you can't frost a sugar cookie? That's CRAZY!
9 August 2006
at 8:30 a.m.
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Augustamy (Anonymous) says…
Brad Rettele does not own M&M Bakery. Dave and Ursula Nichols bought it in December 2004. The JW needs to get their facts straight. There is a small “news brief” in the business section today. I guess that is their way of doing a “correction.”
22 August 2006
at 10:42 p.m.
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bearded_gnome (Anonymous) says…
my wife got a variety of wonderful items from Joe's last weekend! wow, they're definitely back!!!
choco creme, at least as good as I remember!
doughnuts, brownies, rolls, all damned good!
rice crispy treats delicious but a little crumbly, they need to make them with a little more marshmellow?
keep it up, you're doin' great!