Great Harvest Bakery Cafe Opens First Ever Drive-Thru in Bridgeport

The Bridgeport store is one of two locations in the state of West Virginia, and is the first one of their more than 200 locations to have a drive-thru. Locals will also be able to enjoy their made-to-order breakfast, lunch, in store, to-go, or have it catered.

The location is locally owned and operated by entrepreneur David Kesling, who also owns the Great Harvest Bakery Cafe location in Elkins. Already being familiar with owning a business, Kesling was drawn to Great Harvest Bread Co. due to their made-from-scratch philosophy.

“My son and daughter work in the shop and I’m excited to be able to share this experience with them,” said Kesling. “Our location in Elkins is thriving, and I knew this concept would positively impact the Bridgeport community. We are the first Great Harvest Bakery Cafe with a drive-thru set up through the point of sales system, and if successful, I’m eager to see the concept implemented in future locations.”

Great Harvest Bakery Cafe is dedicated to using the freshest ingredients and making almost all breads and pastries from scratch. Their wheat comes from the Montana Golden Triangle, and owners spend five hours in the morning baking their bread. Their goal is to have labels as clean as possible, and strive for high quality products that are made with real ingredients.

The company also offers a unique stance on franchise ownership, called “freedom franchise”. This means that they allow their franchise owners to operate their business in whichever way best fits their community’s needs. For Bridgeport, this meant the addition of a drive-thru.

“We put as much care, time, and attention into our franchise owners as we do with our fresh baked products,” said Mike Ferretti, CEO of Great Harvest Bread Company. “We value what the community needs, and we listen to what they need from us.”

Operation hours of Great Harvest Bridgeport are 7 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Friday with the drive-thru open at 6 a.m., and 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Saturday.