As most of the world slept on the morning of Jan. 6, workers at Don Polvorón Bakery in Hayward had been hustling since 2 a.m. to make traditional Rosca de Reyes (Three Kings Bread) in honor of Dia de los Reyes. In Mexico and other countries in Latin America, the Catholic holiday commemorates the arrival of the three wise kings (Balthazar, Melchior, and Gaspar) to greet the newborn Jesus with gifts in Bethlehem—and it is celebrated with the roscas, which originated in Spain.
The bakery began making the traditional ring-shaped cakes, which are typically decorated with candied fruits and sugar, last Sunday, but owner Jorge Flores has been preparing for the occasion since last month by ordering ingredients and custom boxes.
“It’s kind of our superbowl,” said baker Andres Perez, who had been pulling nearly 12-hour shifts in the lead up to Three Kings Day.
By 6 a.m. on Tuesday, the bakery had already made around 400 roscas and expected to make 900 more by the end of the day.
The baking team, made up of six to seven people, starts off by making a large batch of masa, or dough, that they separate into 35 pieces to knead out before putting them onto trays. After they rise for 30 minutes, each one is rolled out in a large or medium oval-shape, and then covered with pink and yellow sugary paste in different sections.
The cakes are then moved to another table where three people decorate. The first adds three different colors of jelly: green, red, and white, which signify the jewels on the crown. Another person adds figs and powdered sugar. Finally, the last person adds sweetened jicama, known as acitrón, to the bread. Each Rosca de Reyes bakes for 35 minutes in the oven, and once fully formed, a tiny baby Jesus figure is snuck into different places inside the bread.
“It’s all pure tradition connected to the Three Kings,” said Margarita Iniguez, who has worked at Don Polvorón for nine years. “The custom of putting a baby Jesus figurine inside the bread is also traditional, because it symbolizes when [Mother] Mary hid Jesus from King [Herod].”
Jorge Flores, 52, opened Don Polvorón Bakery with his younger brother, Oscar, twenty years ago. Oscar was tired of working at a bakery and wanted to open his own. He asked Jorge, who had never worked at a bakery, to join him. They decided to go for it and opened their first bakery in Hayward, which is named after their favorite Mexican sugar cookie, the polvorón.
Oscar left Don Polvorón in 2016 to open a different business and now Jorge runs both the Hayward bakery and a second location in Livermore—which opened in April 2025. Flores says the best part for him is the relationships built over time with his customers.
“Our job is really beautiful because it’s not just about food, you bring joy to people,” Flores said in Spanish. “You give them happiness.”
El Tímpano captured the rosca preparation at Don Polvorón in photos on Three Kings day, and spoke with bakery employees, and customers about roscas, Reyes, and tradition.
It’s important to keep traditions [like Roscas de Reyes] because I have three kids and the first two are older, and they both speak English and Spanish well. The oldest, he speaks Spanish perfectly. The middle child, she speaks it somewhat well. And the youngest, nothing. Because between them they only speak English, with time, you lose that connection to the culture.”
Maria Flores, 54, Employee at Don Polvóron Bakery
What I’ve seen this year on [social media] is that there’s been lots of trends with the Roscas de Reyes. They’re filling them with cookies or nutella. Young people want something different. On many levels, I understand that, but traditions should remain the same. It’s how you show new generations what our culture is, right? I mean it’s the kind of tradition that makes you Mexican, makes you Latino. Losing them means you lose culture… and I don’t think this is a tradition that should be lost in this country.”
Jorge Florez, 52, Owner of Don Polvorón Bakery
I lived here [in Hayward] 15 years ago and I still come [here] every year for the Roscas de Reyes. When I first moved into the area, this bakery was already here. I always make hot chocolate when I get home from work and I wait for the rest of my family so we can eat the Rosca together at dinner time. I like maintaining traditions because of the sentiment of being Latino.”
Elza Carrasco, 46, Oakland
I have biracial children, I’m married to an African American man and so it’s really important for me to keep the foundation going. To teach my kids my side, my culture, so that’s why I do it. They look forward to getting the little baby Jesus in the bread, stuff like that. In the afternoon, after they get home from school and their games, they’ll cut into it [the bread], and they enjoy the hot chocolate with the rosca so I think it’s a tradition they look forward to.”
Gloria Hill, 44, San Lorenzo
It’s important to maintain this tradition because it was passed down from our parents up til now. Who knows what will happen next year, but we’ll continue. My grandson gets excited over the Rosca de Reyes and when the kids grow up maybe they’ll keep on the tradition of the Three Kings Day.”
Soledad Tinoco, 72, Hayward
