“It was literally a spur of the moment,” said David Knight, of The Village Baker, 21 S. Main St., Muncy, which he owns with wife, Angela.

“Angie and I had owned a bakery pastry shop in Colorado, so we had a lot of equipment, and we always talked about opening up another one. And I just happened to come by the space when it was completely gutted, walked in, and when I saw it, I saw a bakery being here, and it just felt right,” David explained.

Enamored with the prospect, David initially moved forward without queuing Angela in on the plans, much to her chagrined.

“When she found out, she wasn’t too happy, but then I brought her in on the idea, and she saw the vision, and just ran with it, David explained.

“Other than the baking, all of it, the decoration, the furniture, the comfortable atmosphere, bringing in local artists, our amazing graphics and logo, that was all her vision, and she’s done an amazing job,” David said of his wife of six years.

“I have absolutely nothing to do with baking and pastries. I’m a realtor, so marketing is what I bring to the table, and running a business,” Angel added.

“That’s how Dave and I compliment each other,” she said.

Originally from Bethesda, Md., David’s brother was a longtime resident of Muncy.

“I spent a lot of summers up here, and have a lot of amazing memories. I caught my first bass at Montour Preserve, and my first experience deer hunting was up here at my brother’s cabin. So we came for a family visit, and just fell in love with the area,” he said.

David brings with him 38-plus years as a chef, and having taught culinary arts and baking and pastries at Escoffier Culinary School, Colorado for seven years as well as physics and science of food.

Dave’s culinary education began during a six-year stint with the U.S. Navy, carrying on a long family history of military service.

He would later complete four with the Army National Guard.

“I have a younger brother with developmental learning disorder, so by going back in the National Guard, I was able to get him benefits that he needed,” he said.

The couple describe their Colorado venture as “farm to table,” making their butter from fresh milk, and utilizing fresh produce and eggs, along with other local ingredients.

“Moving here is like Toys R Us, as far as farm to table goes with all the orchards, farms and berry farms, so we’re working our way back into doing a lot more farm to table,” David said.

“I’m starting to grind my own wheat berries to make artisan breads, and we’ve got a couple that are retired and started a greenhouse, and they want to grow lavender and chamomile and herbs and edible flowers and heirloom tomatoes and that kind of thing for us,” he said.

The Village Baker carries the expected inventory expected of a bakery, as well as several of David’s own concoctions, including a curry apricot carrot cake and a desert take on chiles rellenos.

“We’re a kind of a bakery on steroids,” Angela said.

A confection David highlights is the bakery’s butter cream.

“There is not one drop of shortening inside these walls. My butter cream by far, is probably the lightest that you’re going to buy. It’s not an icing, it’s not a frosting. It’s a true Swiss buttercream from Europe, and it’s the only one recipe that I’ve used for 38-plus years,” he said.

“It’s an acquired taste, definitely, but the difference is it allows a balance of flavors, so it can be flavored with any flavor, whether it’s fruit, sweet or even savory. You’ll be able to literally taste all the flavors at once, which is a big difference in our items,” David explained.

Every aspect of the bakery is guided by the couple’s core values, consistency, quality and community.

Our pastries, breads, sticky buns, croissants and things like that are all baked fresh every day,” Angela said, adding that the menu will continue to expand, culminating in the offering of wedding cake preparation.

“We want to make sure that when people come in, they know what they’re looking for, but we also do a lot of special orders. In our bakery, you’re only limited to your imagination. If you can dream it. Dave, can do it,” she said.

The Village Baker also sets itself apart by offering a seating area, complete with WiFi, basic locally-sourced coffee and tea service, featuring 12 varieties of tea.

“It’s like being at home. We have high wing back chairs, soft couches and pillows you can stuff under your arms and just lean back and relax and sink into a couch or a chair. In our front windows, we’ve got two high back wing chairs with a side table and a reading lamp. So everything’s designed to invite you to stay and relax and enjoy,” Angela explained.

“We’re more than happy to have a place for people to sit and do their work, have meetings, or have school kids come and do their homework,” she said.

The Village Baker is also ADA compliant and has abundant parking in the back of the business and along Green Alley.

Rather than trying to out do others in the community, the husband and wife team are grateful to bring something new to the table.

“We don’t feel like we’re in competition. We feel like we’re complementing the other businesses in the area. We’re happy to be able to add to the choices that people have,” Angel said.

For more information, please visit The Village Baker online at www.villagebaker.shop or across social media.