Steve Lewis, owner and founder of Gideon’s Bakehouse, famously started his company as a one-man band in a small apartment in College Park.
Since then, Gideon’s has grown from a bicycle delivery business to an East End Market stall to a Disney Springs strip mall where fans from all over the world line up for candy, coffee and limited-edition collectibles that attract hundreds of bids on eBay.
Today, Lewis presents a new chapter in Gideon’s story.
Six Ravens, a savory fast-casual extravaganza, will open later this year at Walt Disney World’s The Landing at Disney Springs, a sister location to its sweet predecessor.
The small shop will open a few doors down from Gideon’s Bakehouse, and “we’re hoping to open by the middle of this year,” Lewis said.
Six Ravens offers all-new products that focus on what Lewis cares about: supporting local, including handmade pie-like sandwiches called coffins and homemade yeast rolls with fillings.
“Ultimately, it was The Polite Pig (owners James and Julie Petrakis) who put Gideon’s cookies on the menu,” Lewis told the Orlando Sentinel. “It was always in the back of my mind that I had to give back.”
Lewis said the team has been experimenting with Coffin for years with friends and associates in Orlando’s local food world, including Bruno Zacchini of Pizza Bruno and Elliott Hillis of Red Panda Noodles.
“My hope is that we can create little breadcrumbs that lead people to Central Florida communities,” Lewis said. “They might find Coffin on the menu and be taken to a local restaurant they haven’t visited yet.”
Six Ravens is also a byproduct of creativity within Gideon’s team, which currently has more than 200 members, according to Lewis.
“They all come from great restaurants, have rich backgrounds, and have a level of creativity and knowledge that we can’t bring to Gideon’s,” he explained. “Six Ravens has allowed us to do what they have done best in the past. As the owner of the business, I feel that my biggest responsibility is to provide my team with opportunities for creative and professional growth…But with Gideon’s only having 1,600 square feet between the two stores, I can only go so far.”
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He said he has had a great time with the Six Ravens and is looking forward to the future.
A cosmic ideal name with a Gothic aesthetic, Coffin enjoys its 12th-century English origins, while Six Ravens’ pastries enjoy internationally-inspired fillings.
In the past, Hillis, a longtime friend, suggested collaborating with Gideons, and Lewis accepted.
“So I came up with a flavor and I was like, ‘Are you ready?'” And he said, ‘Yeah, we need two years of testing before we can release it.’ ”
Hillis laughed, amazed at the range of Gideon’s machine.
“I was like, ‘I don’t know if I’ll be alive in two years.'”
However, it took nearly three days for the red panda noodle curry chicken salad pie to come close to becoming a reality at Six Ravens. And Hillis is happy to be here.
“I wanted something that would stand out and that people would recognize as red pandas,” he says, admiring Lewis’ ability to build a world that connects with so many people and marveling that something of theirs might be on a Disney menu soon.
“It’s wild,” he says. “It goes back and forth between the ‘hometown boy does good’ vibe and the fact that millions of people are going to see our name… There’s also a sense of awe that comes with it.”
Lewis says the greatest joy in new projects is the collaborative part, as new characters are created, such as the otherworldly figures known as the Six Ravens, who “sometimes appear as crows, sometimes as mysterious women.”
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Also on board for the ride was art director Michael Reyes, whose images helped build Gideon’s brand (he and Ruiz have been collaborating since 2006), and Studio 407, which designed the award-winning Gideon’s Bakehouse Disney Springs, in addition to designing all themed attractions. Add Lewis’ culinary team and local associates to this summary, and the simmering soup is almost complete.
“I’m excited to have an excuse to play with some of my favorite local creators.”
As for his iconic half-pound cookies, things remain the same, but Lewis promises other treats at Six Ravens, including fan-favorite desserts served at Gideon’s in the past.
For news about Six Ravens, follow us on the Gideon’s Bakehouse Instagram page (@gideonsbakehouse) or behind the scenes on IG (@six.ravens).
Find me on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Instagram @amydroo or the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com, and for more foodie fun, join our Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
