Nena Postreria will be at 4219 Bryan St. Photo by Renee Umsted.
A local pastry chef is planning to open her first brick-and-mortar bakery in Old East Dallas.
Diana Zamora, who’s the pastry chef at Cry Wolf, has been operating Nena Postreria as a pop-up for a couple of years, and she’s hoping to open the brick-and-mortar at 4219 Bryan St. by September. The shop will be next to St. Martin’s Wine Bistro, which is moving from Lower Greenville to Old East Dallas.
Zamora’s interest in baking came from her mom, who died of cancer in September. Zamora named her business after her mother, who was nicknamed “Nena,” which means “little girl” in Spanish.
During her cancer treatments, she lived with Zamora, who took care of her.
“We would talk about a lot of things food-related, so I was like, ‘Alright, I’m ready to do this. This is how I want to pay tribute to my mom,'” Zamora said.
She didn’t go to culinary school, but Zamora has been working in the industry since her teen years, and she said she’s learned from mentors such as Jill Bates, a former pastry chef at Café Momentum and Fearing’s Restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton Dallas.
Her take on gansitos, which are chocolate-covered cakes layered with fruit filling and cream, got a shoutout from Texas Monthly‘s José Ralat, who’s the taco editor at the publication. Zamora calls them Gansitos de Gabby, named for a friend’s mom who always asked for the sweet treats.
“My big thing is nostalgia, so I like making things that remind me of my childhood,” Zamora said.
She also makes empanadas using her mom’s recipe, tres leches and other desserts.
Nena Postreria is expected to open at 4219 Bryan St. by September 2023.Â
