South Florida Sweetness is Knaus Berry Farm

You’ll certainly feel special, if not tired, when you wake up before dawn for the pilgrimage to Knaus Berry Farm (in The Redland) to experience their world-famous cinnamon rolls.

This wholesome treat doesn’t happen every day, but when it does, it feels (and tastes) amazing, and many South Floridians see it as a rite of passage to crave and partake in the sticky sweetness.

Sure, Knaus Berry Farm sells many other baked goods, produce…and milkshakes too, but it almost doesn’t matter to the throngs of people who for decades have stood in pre-dawn lines to get the fresh cinnamon rolls hot from the ovens.

Shortly after 1956, Knaus Berry Farm started selling baked goods after a customer tasted some of Barbara Knaus’ homemade cookies at the roadside strawberry stand. “These are good enough to sell,” said the customer. The rest is history. For well over 65 years, the tradition and kitchen kept growing, all the while staying a true homemade and family-owned operation.

Tom Blocher was a bundle of positive energy on their last day of the season

Today, Tom Blocher is the head baker extraordinaire while Knaus family members Susan (Tom’s wife) and Rachel (married to Herbie Grafe) run the rest of the operation. There are also 14 employees who make those sweet cinnamon buns during the 6-months of the year they are open (corresponding to strawberry season). Watching the kitchen operation is magical.

Without words, everyone knows exactly when and how to move the process along from ingredient mixing through baking and cooling. At the end, they deliver the cinnamon rolls to customers less than 5 minutes after they are out of the oven.

2023 was a difficult year, as many readers will undoubtedly recall. In February, Rachel Knaus Grafe was killed and her husband was beaten by their mentally incompetent son. The community reeled with this news and wondered if the Knaus Berry Farm magic was over. It wasn’t. “It’s been good to keep working. I’m not sure how we are going to feel once we stop,” stated Tom. His wife Susan added, “We are tired, but thankful. We seem to have become a must-do if you come to Miami and we cannot disappoint our people. We just keep going on.”

Danielle and Jamie Savage with the kids with their goodies

I caught up with Danielle and Jamie Savage, along with their daughters Ryan (9) and Tyler (7) in line. The kids were still in their pajamas. This was their second weekend in a row driving down from the Fort Lauderdale area after discovering Knaus Berry Farm this year. “We’re going to stock up our freezer today because this is the last day,” remarked Danielle. Both kids were “awesomely excited” for their sweet treat!

Janelle and Jeffrey Williams were in line since 7:40a to get some cinnamon rolls and strawberry milkshakes. They got served just after 9:00a. This is a tradition for them, as they grew up in the area and have been coming here for more than 30 years. “We just love it! The cinnamon rolls are the best! It is totally worth the wait,” explained Jeffrey.

All the extended Knaus family members are quite humble, despite their incredible success. And they keep much of their knowledge under their hats. Tom knows exactly how many cinnamon rolls they sell, but despite me asking several different ways, he just avoided the answer with a twinkle in his eye and a quiet “lots of them” passing his lips. I did coax out of him that on the day of my visit they used over 1000 lbs. of flour.

Customer leaving with tons of cinnamon goodness stacked high

April 15, 2023 marked the end of this sales season. So, if you are reading this now, you’ll just have to wait until November for them to head to 15980 SW 248th Street in Homestead to stand in line. Pro tip: Don’t come the first two weekends if you don’t want to stand in blocks-long lines. Also, they keep the ovens humming all day, so come later for a quicker wait.

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