Spruce Confections: NoBo's Beloved Bakery

If you live in North Boulder, there is a good chance Spruce Confections is already part of your routine. The bakery at 4684 Broadway has been a neighborhood anchor for decades, turning out fresh pastries, soups, and sandwiches every single day. It is the kind of place where the smell of butter and warm bread greets you at the door.

The Story Behind the Name

Spruce Confections started in 1992 when founder David Cohen began baking cookies in a friend's basement on Spruce Street in Boulder. With just a wooden spoon and a little startup money, he hand-delivered his now-famous "Old B Cookie" to local cafés. The business grew steadily, earning a loyal following built on simple ingredients and from-scratch baking. More than thirty years later, that same spirit still drives everything that comes out of the kitchen.

What They Make

The pastry case is the main event. Spruce bakes handmade croissants in classic, chocolate, almond, and savory ham-and-Gruyère styles. Their scones are made in small batches using high-quality ingredients and remain one of the most popular items on the menu. You will also find crown muffins, cinnamon pecan schnecken, coffee cakes, and tea breads in rotating seasonal flavors like Blueberry Cream Cheese, Banana Nut, and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip.

Gluten-free options are available throughout the menu, including wraps and select baked goods.

More Than Pastries

Spruce is not just a bakery stop. The café also serves a solid lineup of savory food throughout the day. Breakfast sandwiches on fresh-baked croissants are available until 11:30 AM. At lunch, you can order house-made soups, cold sandwiches, and hot pressed paninis. The quiche and pies use all-butter crusts made in-house.

Coffee is served all day. The Broadway location uses Kaladi coffee, a Colorado-rooted roaster with a focus on quality sourcing.

Beyond its own café, Spruce also runs a wholesale program that supplies fresh baked goods to independent coffee shops across the Front Range. If you have ever enjoyed a scone at a local Boulder café, there is a fair chance Spruce made it.

Practical Details

The Broadway location sits at 4684 Broadway in North Boulder, well within the 80304 zip code, just a short ride or walk from many NoBo neighborhoods. Street parking is generally available nearby.

Address: 4684 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304 Phone: 303-449-5819 Hours: Monday–Sunday, 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM Website: spruceconfections.com

Spruce also has a second location on Pearl Street in downtown Boulder if you find yourself on that side of town.

Worth the Stop

What keeps people coming back to Spruce is consistency. The croissants are reliably good. The scones are made fresh. The soup changes but is always worth trying. For a quick breakfast before a morning walk at Wonderland Lake, or a sit-down lunch after errands on Broadway, Spruce Confections fits the moment.

It is a genuinely Boulder institution — one that has stayed small-batch and neighborhood-focused while growing into something the whole city relies on.