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Photo courtesy of Fataneh Dowlatshahi. The owner of Bibi Cafe and Bakery, Fataneh Dowlatshahi, recently returned to Westwood from a well-deserved summer break in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
9-03-2024 12:32am
Getting to Know Your Westwood Neighbor: Fataneh Dowlatshahi, Owner of Bibi Cafe and Bakery
Darlene Cancell
Editor
By Caroline Killilea
While growing up in Tehran, Fataneh Dowlatshahi loved to visit the small, family-owned cafe and bakery on the end of her street. The couple that owned the cafe made everything from scratch, and kept a garden with various herbs and vegetables. They even raised animals, from goats to chickens to sheep. “Everyone in the neighborhood would gather there. . . . It was just a wonderful, beautiful place,” she said.
It became her lifelong dream to open her own bakery and cafe, and her dream came true in 2014 when she opened Bibi Cafe and Bakery on Church Street in Westwood.
Dowlatshahi decided to move to the U.S. for an education, majoring in business management. She lived in Boston, managing a bookstore and then a toy store in Chestnut Hill.
She married her husband and moved to her current house in Westwood, where she opened a daycare in her home, hiring her mother as her assistant. She had always loved kids, and operated her daycare for many years, but continued to dream about her favorite cafe near her childhood home.
Once her two daughters were grown and had jobs of their own, Dowlatshahi decided it was time to begin her passion project. The spot she chose, at the corner of Church street and route 109, was once a diner. The old and run-down building had to be demolished, so an entirely new building was erected, taking three years to complete due to strict regulations. She named her cozy cafe “Bibi,” her name for her great grandmother, with whom she shared a love of baking.
After opening Bibi Cafe, Dowlatshahi kept her daycare business open for four years so that she could continue earning money. “Every morning, I got up and I had to run both businesses, because, like any new business, the first three or four years, you don't make any money,” she said.
After 36 years of owning and operating her daycare, Dowlatshahi’s mother passed away and she closed the business. Her main focus became the bakery, which she described as her “third child.”
Dowlatshahi insisted from the beginning that everything Bibi sold would be made from scratch-nothing would come from a box or a can. This is what Dowlatshahi says makes Bibi Cafe unique, and keeps her business thriving despite competition with a host of other establishments, including the Dunkin’ located right across the street. Her customers are loyal, and she often sees the same faces day in and day out.
“Just seeing these people coming here every day, they become almost like my family. I miss them if I don’t see them, if they don’t show up, I get worried about them,” she said. She is grateful for the feeling of community Bibi provides.
Playing a key role in the bakery’s success, she says, is her tight-knit staff. Pastry chef Cynthia Highers is “the heart of the bakery. She’s extremely talented. The cookies she makes, the cakes she decorates-it’s just outstanding,” said Dowlatshahi. “And the rest of the staff, we are just a few, but they’re all wonderful. It is like my family working here.”
For Dowlatshahi, the COVID pandemic is a key example of how running a small business like hers is far from a piece of cake. Bibi closed for two months in the spring of 2020, and her profit halted entirely. Even after reopening, customers were hesitant to visit the store.
A decrease in profit was accompanied by soaring prices, and Dowlatshahi now must visit three different stores to purchase ingredients in order to find the most affordable options. “The chocolate I bought for $55 per box is now $105. Almost twice the price. How could anyone make it?” she asked.
She is always thinking of new creations to add to Bibi’s extensive menu of brownies, cookies, and cupcakes. From biscotti to ricotta cakes, she bakes something new every weekend, especially desserts with European influence.
Her family has been first in line to support her venture, with her daughters helping wash dishes and work the register when they are home, and offering advice wherever needed. “My biggest supporters are my family,” she said.
Despite its challenges, Dowlatshahi says that small businesses are crucial in community building. Her favorite part of owning Bibi is “seeing people coming every day, and we talk about our lives together. It's just like a party!”
Thanks to Caroline Killilea, a journalism major and rising sophomore at Northwestern University, for contributing this article to Westwood Minute, and to Fataneh Dowlatshahi for sharing her story.
Updated 9/3/2024 at 10:29 p.m.
