Another Austin Bakery Is Closing, This Time, It’s Word of Mouth on South First

Austin catering company Word of Mouth is closing its South First bakery. Its last day in the Bouldin Creek neighborhood at 1506 South First Street will be on Sunday, September 11. The original 12th Street bakery will remain open, as will the full-on catering company.

Owner Leslie Moore tells Eater that “it was difficult to manage two bakeries with all of the staff shortages.” He also notes that he is looking for a new tenant to take over the South First location, with the assurance that it will be “someone local, so no worries about the site being handed over to be torn down.” Ideally, it would be a cafe, restaurant, and/or bar, as he adds that, “I think in order to make money on that street, one needs to be selling alcohol and I just wasn’t up for it.”

The South First had previously been home to Seventh Flag Coffee, which opened in 2014 and closed in 2020. Moore then opened the second Word in early 2021. Moore had been involved with the Austin service industry since he was a student at the University of Texas at Austin in the 1960s and 1970s.

This is the third Austin-area bakery shutter in a month. First, there was gluten-free Wells Branch bakery Dream in late August. Then, there is the forthcoming shuttering of far south Austin bakery and cafe Crema on September 17.