Editor’s Note
Jesse Quesada is my great uncle that died in 2010 from multiple
myeloma. In his lifetime, he created one of the most popular
bakeries in the country that made him a millionaire. He worked
at an Ybor City restaurant as a teen, and left high school at the
age of 17 to join the U.S. Navy, where he learned how to bake
from Jewish sailors. When he returned in 1946, he began
working for a 42-store commercial bakery called “Grables,”
where he rose from a truck driver to a vice president - saving
enough money to then start his own bakery. In 1963, he bought
space on 248 Andalusia Ave. in Coral Gables, FL and named it
“Andalusia Bake Shop” after the street. The items Jesse sold
were so delicious that people were willing to pay top dollar for
them. He once tried to raise the prices to slow the frantic pace,
but it didn't work. One day, a man he had just hired to wash
dishes and clean the floors, stabbed the head baker five times
with a French Kitchen knife. He staggered through a crowd of
stunned co-workers and costumers, and died on the sidewalk
outside of the shop. Jesse was so distraught from loosing a friend
and employee, that he sold the bakery to a business man that
ended up attempting to expand Andalusia but ran it to the
ground and had to file for bankruptcy.
This magazine is in honor of My Uncle’s brilliance and
his influence on so many people’s lives. His story should be
heard and his legend continued. I hope you enjoy the multitude
of family recipes in this magazine and create your own memories
with these desserts in your family.
Selena Lynn Cline