Lyndell’s Bakery has been going strong in Ball Square since 1887.

By Fernando Cervantes Jr.

Opened 135 years ago, Lyndell’s Bakery has been a staple of Ball Square for more than a century. Known as the “Godfather” of scratch bakeries in all of New England, the small local bakery has become renowned.

Its current owner, Bill Galatis, has owned the bakery for the last 23 years and is the fourth person to ever own the bakery. From Lyndell’s treats as a kid to the COVID pandemic, we sat down with Galatis to talk about Lyndell’s history and his time as the owner of one of the oldest bakeries in New England.

Birger C. Lyndell, a Swedish immigrant, opened Lyndell’s in 1887, seven years after coming to the United States. The bakery has survived everything from rationing during World War II to various ownership changes.

Galatis, born and raised in East Somerville, just down the street from Lyndell’s, spoke fondly of his childhood memories of the bakery.

“My mom, who was a working mom in the ’60s, used to tell myself and my two younger sisters at the time, ‘Get your homework done on Saturday, clean up, get in front of the TV to watch The Jackie Gleason Show by 8:00 o’clock and you’ll get your treat from Lyndell’s,’” Galatis said.

Then in 1999, the bakery was put up for sale by former owners Herman and Janet Kett who owned Lyndell’s since 1968. By now, Galatis owned various restaurants and Dunkin’ Donuts across Boston. Once he bought the bakery his mom had a particular reaction.

“She was overwhelmed, she was thrilled. She said, ‘You don’t know anything about the bakery business,’” Galatis said, “So I said, ‘Well, that’s true, but I have enough business experience in the industry.’”

Like many businesses across the United States, the COVID pandemic was a cataclysmic event, but for Lyndell’s this period of time was one of hardship. But according to Galatis, the bakery was suffering before the pandemic as the bridge that connects Ball Square to the rest of Somerville was closed for the construction of the Green Line Extension.

Now that the new Green Line Extension and its stop at Ball Square are now open, the benefits of it have been felt greatly by Lyndell’s.

“The first day it opened, we gave away a free cup of coffee and a donut just so people who don’t realize that we were there could now realize that we were there. According to our staff, they said that they saw some faces in there for the first time,” Galatis said. “At this moment, the opening of the Ball Square T stop has been a plus for us.”

After owning the bakery for 23 years, Galatis hopes to continue providing great service to his consumers for the next 23 years, and with the decades of experience his bakers have, this high level of quality is easy to maintain.

“We do things the old-fashioned way and it still counts,” Galatis said.

Visit Lyndell’s Bakery online at: https://www.restaurantji.com/ma/somerville/lyndells-bakery-/