On the Rise

With her bakery Girl Nextdough, FIG Restaurant’s former executive pastry chef Caitlin
Schumacher is continuing her mission of serving savory baked goods and delicious, sweet treats to residents of the Lowcountry. 

Born and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, food has always been central in
Schumacher’s life. From her dad’s biscuits, rolls, and pies for Sunday dinner, to early-
morning fresh farmer’s market bagels and selling brownies or cookies with her
childhood best friend, Schumacher was brought up with a love for baking.  

However, it wasn’t until Schumacher finished college—studying French and Biology at
UNC—and took a job on a whim at Durham’s Magnolia Grill as an entry-level pastry
assistant that Schumacher began to consider baking as more than a hobby.   After an ambitious move across the country to San Francisco with her then-boyfriend, now-husband, Tori, Caitlin’s spark for pastry grew into a full-fledged flame. Spending five years in the Golden Gate City, working across two restaurants, Schumacher continued to develop her technical skills under Michelle Polzine and got her first taste in the small business world by managing the kitchen for 20th Century Cafe. 

Then in 2015, after falling in love with the Lowcountry during a work trip, the Schumachers moved across the country once more, this time with Charleston, their destination.  Scoring a job at FIG Restaurant—a local fine-dining staple—working under Melanie Durant in her pastry program, Schumacher got her first taste of Charleston’s restaurant community. Promoted to executive pastry chef after Durant departed to open her food truck Scram, Schumacher was a standout at FIG Restaurant until 2021, when she, too, felt the entrepreneurial winds calling. 

With the threat of Covid still looming over the restaurant industry, Schumacher knew the time wasn’t yet right for a brick-and-mortar business. However, with Melanie Durant looking to move north and sell Scram, to Schumacher a food truck seemed the perfect way to start.  Thus, Girl Nextdough was born. Working with her father, John McCormick, Schumacher’s breakfast-bakery-on-wheels hit the streets of James Island in September of 2021. 

For four years Girl Nextdough’s eye-catching blue truck fed the Lowcountry, boasting lines around the block as the community grappled for bread and pastry. Then, prompted by their success and the allure of a temperature-controlled building, Schumacher and her father made their next move, forging a permanent home nestled in the old oak trees at 1939 Maybank Hwy.   Opening in the fall of 2025, Girl Nextdough was reimagined, their brick storefront offering a newer, larger, and more diverse menu. Donuts, bagels, muffins, pies: if you’re looking for a sweet treat in Charleston, Girl Nextdough is the place to go.

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