And there can be no doubt that, during the past near-century, Cohen's Bakery has become not just an Ellenville institution, but a bakery with a regional, and even national, reputation, providing the kind of high-quality baked goods that our parents, and grandparents, once enjoyed. But the business is still going strong, as people from across the country continue to seek Cohen's marvelous confections and savory breads and bagels.

"I know it was established in 1920," says Bill Tochterman, current owner of Cohen's. "But I don't know the precise date."

But, given that the year is three-quarters gone, the odds are good that the beloved bakery passed into its tenth decade of existence with little in the way of fanfare.

Tochterman says that he believes the bakery started in a location on South Main Street, somewhere near the former Collier Motor Car Company, before moving to its present location on Center Street in the years leading up to WWII.

Tochterman has collected a number of newspaper clippings and other ephemera over the years he has owned the bakery, offering a glimpse into Cohen's past. But he is unsure of exactly when the Cohen family took ownership of the establishment.

"In some of these articles that I've kept, you'll find that it was in the family before the Second World War," Tochterman says. "Ruby [Rubin Cohen] went into the service, he was in the army, and his father and his brother Willie ran the bakery. He didn't get involved in the bakery till after he got out of the army."

In 2003, because of Ruby's failing health, Tochterman and his partner Fouad Kerendian purchased Cohen's, lock stock and barrel. Tochterman is now entering his eighth year as the Cohen's proprietor.

And Cohen's can be seen as one of the surviving remnants of the Catskills glory years, when people throughout the region in the summertime would flock to the mountains in order to escape the oppressive heat of the city.

"The bakery took care of a lot of the Borscht Belt bungalow colonies," Tochterman says. "There used to be a truck going around every day, delivering bread and whatever it was."

Tochterman, who is a retired postmaster, says that he and Kerendian had first thought of purchasing Richie's Hardware, but then Cohen's became available and it seemed like a good fit.

"We decided to buy [Cohen's], thinking that it had a good reputation, it's well known in the area � at that time it was 83-years old � and we wanted to expand it," Tochterman says.

All of the actual baking, however, is done on the premises of the Ellenville store, with certified German baker Helmut Leunissen overseeing the operation.

Cohen's also does a brisk wholesale business, with stores and restaurants throughout the region selling and serving Cohen's products.

"We go to Neversink, to Phoenicia, we go to New Paltz a couple of times a week," Tochterman says. "We go to Monticello and Bethel every night."

The Mountain Brauhaus in Gardiner, for example, has been a Cohen's customer for more than fifty years.

"They serve a ton of our raisin-pumpernickel bread," Tochterman says.

Tochterman also says that he provides baked goods to three different area school districts: Rondout Valley, Tri-Valley and Onteora.

Cohen's has such a good reputation that he often runs into people who remember the bakery from their youth. He says he was at a food show in New York City, when an emcee at one of the booths was stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the 'Cohen's' nametag. "Oh my god! Cohen's is here!" the man said. "I remember Cohen's from when I was a kid!"

Tochterman says that he continually receives things people send to him from across the country. One woman sent a photo of some of Cohen's bagels sitting on a counter with the caption: "Want real new York bagels? Call Cohen's Bakery. They deliver right to Florida!"

But, it's the quality of the merchandise that really keeps people coming back, according to Tochterman.

"Everything is made by hand," Tochterman says.

And, given the support that the community has given to Cohen's over the years, Tochterman says that he works hard to give back to that community.

"We're community minded. We are involved in the community, we participate," he says. "We contribute to most everything."

He also wants residents that have become more health conscious to know that Cohen's is now baking bread with those people in mind. He recently unveiled recipes for four different whole-grain, low-gluten and multi-grain breads, so a trip to Cohen's need not necessarily mean a trip to the gym the next day.

"In keeping with the times, we're making new breads, we're making healthy breads," Tochterman says.

And, in a bit of serendipity, this past Wednesday, Tochterman was visited by Diane and Beverly Cohen, who are the daughters of Willie Cohen, one of the original proprietors. The sisters sell Cohen's products at the farmer's market they attend in Dutchess County, thereby maintaining an important family connection.

And it's this kind of familiarity that keeps people coming back for more. It's a formula for success that appears to be unlikely to change anytime soon.

"Cohen's Bakery is a destination," Tochterman says. "People come here from all over. We ship bread and goodies all over the country. Everywhere."

Cohen's Bakery is open Monday through Saturday 6:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m., and Sundays 6:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. For more information, or for orders, you can call (845) 647-7620, or visit the Cohen's website at www.cohensbakery.com.