PHARR — You have to wonder, stepping into Irma’s Sweet Shoppe, how on earth anyone packed so much character into 5,000 square feet.
You don’t have much longer to wonder — the shop is closing its doors on Sept. 1, and the combination of spunk, charisma and labor that turned the bakery/diner/antique store into a Rio Grande Valley staple over the past 40 years is headed elsewhere.
Irma Elizondo is seen in the doorway to her bakery’s ovens Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma Elizondo removes baked cookies from large freezers Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, at her shop in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Friends join Irma for coffee at a round table in her shop Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Juanita Perez, a baker for more than 30 years, proofs cinnamon rolls at Irma’s Sweet Shoppe on Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma Elizondo and Juanita Perez roll out cinnamon rolls Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma Elizondo checks on the trays of baked cookies Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma Elizondo checks on the trays of baked cookies Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma’s Sweet Shoppe is seen early Thursday morning, Aug. 11, 2022, in downtown Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Pan de polvo cookies from Irma’s Sweet Shoppe are seen on trays Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])Irma Elizondo looks through all the memorabilia she has collected over the years Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, in Pharr. (Delcia Lopez | [email protected])
