Charles Froke, St. Croix Baking Company

12/05/23 • 28 min

Charles Froke's career as a baker has taken him around the world. He's baked at high-end restaurants and for prominent figures. But with family ties to the Hudson area, he always had an eye on the riverside town as he thought to one day open his own bakery.
That time came in 2020, when Charles opened St. Croix Baking Company downtown Hudson. Despite opening during the pandemic, the bakery was an immediate success — he had a line around the block during the store's soft opening. Three years later, things continue to be busy for Charles and his team at St. Croix Baking Company.
On this week's St. Croix Stories podcast, Charles shares more about his journey as a chef, talks about his early childhood memories of visiting his grandparents in Hudson, offers advice to anyone who wants to become a home baker, and much more.

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Follow St. Croix Stories on Facebook and Instagram, and hear all episodes at stcroixstories.com.

Send a message to the host

Follow St. Croix Stories on Facebook and Instagram, and hear all episodes at stcroixstories.com.

Previous Episode

Chad Trainor, Urban Olive and Vine

When it comes to promoting Hudson, Wisconsin, few people do it quite like Chad Trainor.
As the co-owner and chef at Urban Olive and Vine downtown Hudson, Chad is a business owner who also helps out other local businesses. At the onset of the pandemic, he started posting about other restaurants on his social media pages, helping struggling business survive — and thrive. As Chad likes to say: "Community over competition."
Chad is the inaugural guest on St. Croix Stories, a weekly podcast dedicated to highlighting the people and places that make the riverside town of Hudson, Wisconsin unique. On this episode, Chad talks about the origins of his promotional social media posting, the type of restaurant he wishes Hudson had, a recent run-in with the Hudson police, and more.

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Follow St. Croix Stories on Facebook and Instagram, and hear all episodes at stcroixstories.com.

Next Episode

Justin Terbeest, Hop and Barrel Brewing

While working full-time as an attorney, Justin Terbeest became an avid home brewer — and he was good at it, too. Justin entered numerous home brewing competitions in Wisconsin and elsewhere in the United States and found success at it. That sparked the idea to eventually open up a brewery, and he chose Hudson, Wisconsin for the location of Hop and Barrel Brewing.
Hop and Barrel is one of two breweries currently in operation in Hudson, along with Pitchfork Brewing. Hop and Barrel helped bring beer back to downtown Hudson, where there were once multiple breweries more than 150 years ago. Hop and Barrel recently celebrated its six-year anniversary and has expanded its footprint to cover nearly every county in Wisconsin.
On this week's episode, Justin joins St. Croix Stories over a few beers at the Hop and Barrel taproom to talk about his journey in home brewing, what it was like to quit his job as a lawyer to focus on the brewery, and discusses his favorite (and least favorite) styles of beer.

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Follow St. Croix Stories on Facebook and Instagram, and hear all episodes at stcroixstories.com.