A century of tradition: Stock’s Bakery draws fans on Christmas Eve

In Port Richmond, the Philadelphia fixture for more than 100 years continued its Christmas Eve tradition, with a long line of customers waiting outside.

Pound cakes decorated for Christmas at Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

A century of tradition: Stock’s Bakery draws fans on Christmas Eve

In Port Richmond, the Philadelphia fixture for more than 100 years continued its Christmas Eve tradition, with a long line of customers waiting outside.

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Stock’s Bakery in Port Richmond, a Philadelphia fixture for more than 100 years, continued its holiday tradition, with a long line of customers waiting outside on Christmas Eve before doors opened at 7 a.m.

For New Jersey resident Lisa Holian, the journey to Stock’s is a holiday ritual. Holian grew up in Fishtown and has been visiting the bakery since she was a little girl.

“We usually come for the experience of standing in line,” she said. “You run into people you haven’t seen in a long time who are here for the same thing.”

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People waiting in line
People waited in a block-long line to purchase cakes and cookies at Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia’s Port Richmond neighborhood, Dec. 24, 2024. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
People waiting in line
Lisa Holian reached the head of the line at Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia’s Port Richmond neighborhood by sunrise to buy cakes for family and friends, Dec. 24, 2024. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

Holian and her wife make the pilgrimage every year to buy Stock’s famous frosted pound cake and butter cake, which they gift to friends and neighbors.

“They’re really excited,” she said. “It’s meaningful when they realize you stood in line — it’s part of the tradition.”

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Shopper in line in the store
Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia welcomed shoppers seeking holiday treats into the store at 7 a.m. on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2024. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

When the bakery doors opened Tuesday, a wintry mix began to fall. Among those braving the cold was Patricia Thurber, who has been Stock’s loyalist for decades.

“I don’t even know how long I’ve been coming — forever, it feels like,” Thurber said.

pound cake
Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia is known for their pound cakes. The cash-only bakery sells bars in vanilla or chocolate-marbled, with vanilla or chocolate frosting, for about $12. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
wrapped pound cake
Stock’s Bakery employees wrap cakes after they’re sold on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2024. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

Her kids urged her to skip the below-freezing wait.

“They told me, ‘Mom, don’t go,’” she said.” “‘You don’t have to stand in line,’ but I couldn’t disappoint them. They think it’s the greatest.”

cakes in a fridge
Pound cakes decorated for Christmas at Stock’s Bakery in Philadelphia. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)

Saturdays just got more interesting.

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