Oakland’s oldest kosher bakery hits the market for $1

In this file photo, workers pack cooled round challahs to be placed on the shelves of a large bakery in Oakland for the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. (Laura A. Oda/Bay Area News Group)

Grand Bakery, the oldest kosher bakery in Oaklands and one revered for its pit, just hit the market for $1.

Owner Sam Tobis announced in an email late Wednesday afternoon that he was looking for someone interested in the Jewish bakery to take control of the large Oakland bakery, which is now available for purchase for $1.

Why this low price? Because I am less interested in the profit from the sale and more invested in finding the right person to carry on the 60-year legacy of the popular bakeries, Tobis wrote. I have preserved the great legacy for seven years, but it is time to pass it on to the next set of loving hands.

Tobis bought the bakery in 2017 to keep the great legacy alive for generations to come, he said in a statement on the bakeries’ website. But sometimes life has other plans. Tobis also recently became a partner in Sauls Restaurant and Delicatessen in Berkeley, and running the two seems like a difficult task.

[F]He wrote: Or in the last two years I have tried to manage both. Being a part of the Jewish food community in the Bay Area is my greatest joy and I wish I could do it all, but I can’t. It’s time to pass the Grand into the next batch of loving hands.

The person who blocks the $1 sale gets the brand name, recipes and current staff. Tobis said he is open to various arrangements regarding equipment and vans, including loan shipments. No mention was made of rental arrangements. Grand Bakeries current production facility above The Food Mill natural goods store at 3033 MacArthur Blvd.