Scones are traditionally served with tea, but they’re also delicious paired with coffee–or all by themselves. Layered with jam, butter or clotted cream, or flavored with all kinds of sweet and savory ingredients, their adaptability is likely one reason why they have become so popular.

Artisan baker Celia Strouse is eager to introduce her scones to a new clientele and raise the local profile of the beloved British baking import with the opening of her shop, Sunny Moon Sconery, at 1061 Seneca Street in Fountain Hill later this month. She is aiming for a Sept. 22 opening.

Sunny Moon Sconery owner Celia Strouse is preparing to open her bakery at 1061 Seneca Street in Fountain Hill. The cozy storefront has been home to local businesses for nearly a century, including the former Hunsicker’s Pharmacy, which closed in the 1990s. More recently it was leased to a hair salon, Kanvas, which has relocated to Salisbury Township.

Scones have been enjoying a moment, but Strouse didn’t start baking them to be trendy. Her scone baking is firmly rooted in the traditional methods she first learned as a child in Portugal.

“I’m Portuguese and we like to feed people,” she said. “I’ve always liked to bake.”

After moving with her family to Bethlehem at the age of 13, Strouse’s journey to becoming a full-time baker took some turns, though she never totally stepped away from the oven. Professionally, she became a graphic designer. Then, about 15 years ago, she began baking with sourdough.

In the winter of 2024, she used some sourdough discard (the portion of a sourdough starter that is removed before baking a batch of bread) to experiment with a scone recipe. She kept experimenting with various flavors of scone, and within a few months she had made over $500 selling to friends and family. Convinced that she was on to something, she began looking for a commercial kitchen space to lease. She didn’t find one, but eventually she stumbled across a bakery stall at the Slatington Farmers Market, which she took over and made her first sconery.

“Being up there for two years, my skill has evolved,” she said, calling it “the right space at the right time.”

Strouse gave up her space in the Slatingon Farmers Market in August in preparation for opening in Fountain Hill, where she will offer a rotating menu of nine different scones. The menu will include her classic “plain Jane” scone–usually paired with jam and clotted cream she makes from scratch–and the customer favorite, blueberry lemon. Other popular flavors on the initial menu will include cinnamon swirl, maple pecan and orange cranberry pistachio.

For fall, Strouse said she will feature freshly-baked seasonal flavors like apple cinnamon crunch and pumpkin cheesecake. For the holiday season, she plans to offer a hot cocoa scone with marshmallows and sugar cookie flavored scones.

For fans of savory flavors, Strouse has a delicious lineup that includes French onion, cheddar jalapeno, cheddar scallion, garlic and herb and spinach and feta scones.

Gluten-free and vegan scones will also be available.

“I’m going to try to do my best for gluten-free customers,” said Strouse, who noted that while she will be baking the gluten-free scones first thing in the morning to minimize the potential for any wheat contamination to occur, the bakery itself is not going to be celiac-friendly.

Sunny Moon will offer both coffee and tea selections from local purveyors. Monocacy Coffee Co. in Bethlehem roasts a Sunny Moon Sconery blend Strouse will be brewing, and Katydid Hill Farm in Sinking Spring, Berks County, produces custom tea blends they will have in stock.

A few other items she bakes that will be available include black bean brownies, sourdough pretzels, gluten-free coffee cake and the traditional Portuguese pastries, pastéis de nata.

Scone baking classes were a popular offering at her Slatington Farmers Market location, and she plans to continue offering them in Fountain Hill, along with a catering menu. Strouse is also planning to sell her scones at local farmers markets in Bethlehem and Emmaus.

Online ordering is in the works, and if customer demand is there, Strouse said she is open to expanding her menu to include things like soups.

Strouse said neighbors in the densely-populated borough have been excitedly watching her make progress on renovating the retail space she is renting, which will have a few seats, but will primarily be a takeout-oriented bakery. There will also be a bench outside for customers, who may receive a friendly greeting from the neighborhood “sconery cat,” Jojo.

Once the final inspections of the space are completed and Strouse has the required paperwork to open, she will start serving fresh, warm scones. She is hoping that will be around Sept. 22.

“I think this is going to be great for us,” she said.

The planned hours for Sunny Moon Sconery are Wednesday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

More information is available on the Sunny Moon Sconery website and on its social media channels, including Instagram and Facebook.