When Mechelle Coate and her husband found themselves to be empty-nesters, Coate decided she wanted to re-enter the workforce and opened House of Bread in McKinney.

“Being a stay-at-home mom, I have no marketable skills anymore,” Coate said. “I really didn’t want to work for anyone, so I circled back to [a bakery].”

The backstory

The bakery, which also sells breakfast and lunch sandwiches, opened in February 2022.

“My husband and I considered opening something similar in 2008,” Coate said. “But my kids were all young and were in soccer, choir and band. It just wasn’t feasible.”


Soon after her youngest daughter graduated, she began looking into opening the House of Bread, a small franchise based out of California; however, the COVID-19 pandemic halted her plans.

“It gave us a unique opportunity because we got to watch this industry survive the [COVID-19] pandemic,” Coate said. “Nothing is pandemic-proof, but [House of Bread] was able to pivot and really help the community.”

What’s special about it?

House of Bread offers a rotating menu of bread and pastries, Coate said, adding that everything is baked fresh daily. Popular breads include Grandma’s White Bread, which is the base for most other breads offered, as well as chocolate zucchini bread and Jalapeno Jack, which is Grandma’s White Bread made with jalapenos and cheese.


What’s on the menu?

The menu also includes several breakfast and lunch sandwiches, such as the Cranky Turkey, which features turkey, dried cranberries, cream cheese, mayo, red onions, lettuce and tomatoes. Other popular sandwiches include the spicy chicken bacon ranch, which features Jalapeno Jack bread, chicken, bacon, cheddar cheese and ranch dressing, and the California fusion panini featuring pesto, turkey, provolone and artichoke hearts.

Lastly, the menu offers pastries, such as bagels and cinnamon rolls, coffee from Noble Coyote, and flavored lattes using housemade recipes.