A Fresh Concept: Jackson's Corner revives the neighborhood corner store | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

A Fresh Concept: Jackson's Corner revives the neighborhood corner store

Fresh baked and hot off the grill at Jackson's.With the closing of Delaware Market, it seemed as though the neighborhood corner store in Bend had

Fresh baked and hot off the grill at Jackson's.With the closing of Delaware Market, it seemed as though the neighborhood corner store in Bend had gone extinct. There are still a few hanging in there on the Eastside, but with property values skyrocketing, you can't blame the market owners for opting to cash out.

The historic brick building on the corner of Broadway and Delaware that was once home to Delaware Market, Delaware Ice and a mini mural of downtown has been totally redone. The building now features condos upstairs and a bright, airy market café downstairs called Jackson's Corner.

"I wanted to bring back the market café," says Jay Junkin, owner of Jackson's Corner, "It used to be common in the U.S. but somehow we lost it." Junkin is the third generation in his family to find a career in the food industry and has been in Bend nine years-most of that time developing and running Parilla Grill.

"With this place I want it to grow organically - give the people what they want and serve this neighborhood first," says Junkin.
In reverence to the historical neighborhood importance of the building, Junkin has already started building a relationship with the community in the three short weeks that the café has been open.


The menu is fresh and seasonal, working mainly off special boards. Head Chef Brian Mankoski, who has worked most recently as the sous chef at Bluefish but has also helped out at Kebaba, Zydeco and Sumi's, has crafted a menu using local and organic products whenever possible. Every Wednesday, you'll see him pulling his red cart to the Downtown Farmer's Market to stock up on ingredients that will go into that week's specials. Everything is made in-house including all the breads, pastries and pizza dough.

Everyday, you'll find Gordon Benzer spending hours kneading mountains of dough and singing to his bread ovens named Kompa and Keeno. The dough becomes delectable ciabatta, baguettes, epi, cinnamon rolls and pizza crust. Benzer has a culinary degree and a specialty in baking which is apparent in everything he produces. His ciabatta and baguettes are crusty, with moist, inconsistent webbing and have a truly artesianal flavor.

There is also usually a special pasta dish or two in addition to the four listed on the printed menu. Junkin bought Sunriver company Gentilini's Pasta, and now Christopher David Knight makes over 500 lbs of pasta every week. Not only is the pasta fresh, it is made with whole, organic grain flour. Knight, a well-known figure around town because of his 10-year stint at The Victorian Café, makes all the pasta and sauces for Jackson's, as well as for a number of retail outlets such as Newport Market, Whole Foods and Rays.

Jackson's Corner already has an avid fan base with some folks coming in for three meals a day. Every employee had the same sentiment when asked about the over-all philosophy-grow organically and give the customers what they want.

"Nothing is set in stone, but I do love that I can keep costs down by not having wait staff," says Junkin. "With customers coming up to the counter they can see the value and have face-to-face interaction with the people that actually make the food."

Jackson's Corner opens at 7 every morning and serves Townshend's Teas, Umbria coffee and cold-pressed iced coffee. Lunch is hopping and there are big family-style tables to share. I highly recommend the croissants for breakfast (especially the almond), the Havana (slow roasted pork with red onions, bell peppers and ancho chili sauce) or the Alfredo pizza (sun dried tomatoes, prosciutto di parma, basil and mozzarella-provolone) for lunch, and anything off the special boards for dinner.

Jackson's Corner
845 N.W. Delaware Ave. 647-2198
Open 7am to 10pm every day

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