In Warren Brown?s Cakelove bakery, you?ll find frostings made with cream, not creme, the hydrogenated shortening. Brown, former D.C. lawyer turned host of Food Network?s “Sugar Rush,” recently opened Cakelove in Canton. It?s his first Cakelove in the Baltimore area and fourth in his dynasty of delectables.
All of Cakelove?s cakes, cupcakes and other treats ? almost too pretty to eat ? are made from natural ingredients. You might wonder if gold is an ingredient after perusing the prices. But the delectables are worth it when you?re craving a hunk of moist cake and mouth-watering buttercream frosting.
Q You?ve said you started your business when you saw people wanted better cake. What made you think that?
A There was a critical moment when I was traveling through international and JFK [airports.] I had a chocolate cake on a dinner plate that I was bringing for my family to have for the weekend and I got a lot response. Everyone took notice and had a friendly, playful comment to make about it. My eyes were opened to the response baked goods get in general.
Q What?s been the biggest challenge opening the store in Canton?
A Keeping the display case stocked. People are buying the cupcakes nonstop. I didn?t know we?d hit the ground running. … The strange thing about it was we saw this downturn in the economy back in October, when no one was recognizing a recession or talking about it. But as soon as the news started talking about it in the end of November, our sales went up. I was caught off guard because I wasn?t expecting sales to be strong. But we opened the doors and people came in: ?Give me those cupcakes! Give me a dozen! Give me another dozen!? They?re moving quickly, and we?re responding.
QAny guilt-free items on Cakelove?s menu?
A The Scratch bars are awesome. They have a lot of protein. You make them with dried fruits and nuts, ground up in agave syrup and soy milk, and then baked quickly. They have chia seeds in them, like the seed you find in Chia Pets. … It takes hours for you to digest the bar. I like
them for staving off hunger. I?ll eat two of them and keep going for six hours.
