Maltby Cafe, known for giant cinnamon rolls, to get new home

The Maltby Cafe, a Snohomish County restaurant in Maltby, north of Woodinville, is known for seemingly being frozen in time - and for its giant, homemade cinnamon rolls the size of your hand.

But that ice is beginning to thaw. New luxury town homes have blossomed in tandem with Maltby's flower fields. And the historic school buildings housing small businesses including the beloved Maltby Cafe, arguably the community's sole landmark, will come down.

In its place, the cafe will have a new building surrounded by around 10,000 square feet of additional retail space, outdoor patios and gathering areas called Maltby Village.

The cafe will remain, but not in its original building - the former gym and cafeteria of the century-old schoolhouse next door. The restaurant has outgrown its space and struggled to keep up with repair and maintenance costs in the 1930s-era building.

Instead, Westcott Homes, the Kirkland-based builder that owns the land and buildings - as well as the new luxury townhomes - will tear down the old school buildings and create a new space for the cafe.

Westcott Homes looked into preserving the restaurant in its original building, Kerek Edwards, president of Westcott Homes, said on Monday, but both the builder and the cafe's owners agreed the cafe could not survive long term in the space.

"They are egregiously harmed by working in a building that is not up to today's standards," Edwards. "Ultimately, we feel like we've come up with the best plan to keep the cafe central to that location."

The buildings' former owner, Ron Nardone, bought the schoolhouse buildings in 1974. He became known as "The Mayor of Maltby" for his development efforts in the area throughout the 1970s and 1980s, according to Seattle Times archives.

Since the county previously grandfathered the historic building into its city codes, the building did not require modern upgrades, said Tana Baumler, who co-owns the cafe with her daughter. That left the cafe with tremendous maintenance issues and costly repairs over the years, she said.

When the pandemic hit, the restaurant survived only with the help of its customers, who quietly fundraised $140,000 for the cafe just in time for Christmas in 2020. Locals remember it as the "Miracle at Maltby."

When Westcott Homes took over ownership last year, the builder decided bringing the 1930s building up to modern standards presented an "insurmountable" challenge, Edwards said.

The cafe will remain open as Westcott Homes builds its new location and surrounding retail. Once the new building is complete, the Maltby Cafe will move over immediately and will perhaps close only for a day, Baumler said.

Edwards estimates the entirety of Maltby Village, including the new cafe and retail buildings, will be complete in two years.

Besides the cafe's literal old-school building, all greens and whites and vintage signs, the cafe has served as the symbol of Maltby since Baulmer and two of her friends opened it in 1988.

With loyal customers and a rural aesthetic, the cafe is the epitome of small-town charm - a plucky microcosm of the surrounding semirural community, with vintage signs crowding its wooden walls.

And it's not just important to local residents. For many living 30 to 40 minutes away in bustling, noisy Seattle, the cafe is a breath of fresh air and perhaps even stokes a sense of nostalgia.

So after Baumler opened the cafe on Sunday, her usual Father's Day rush felt more overwhelming than usual, as customers bombarded her with questions and, occasionally, anger over new plans for the cafe, she said.

Baumler understands. She, too, has struggled with the idea that her cafe and surrounding area, known for its timelessness, will change.

"Your customers are also your friends, and you watch those families grow up. When we bought it back in 1988, moms had babies in their bellies, and we watched them grow up," said Baumler, 71.

Even though she knows some are disappointed with replacing the old with the new, she's excited for what a revamped Maltby community gathering space will bring and grateful that Westcott gave the cafe a seat at the table, she said.

To her, what makes the restaurant special is its loyal customers turned lifelong friends. And she knows they'll continue showing up and carrying on the traditions of Maltby Cafe, she said.

"I had my cry, and now I'm excited," she said. "I think we can do it."

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This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 9:41 AM.