Nima Etemadi and Lily Fischer have officially opened Cake Life Bake Shop, a bakery and all-day café on Frankford Avenue, a growing dining destination and retail hub within the city’s Fishtown neighborhood. Formerly located in the mixed-use building Globe Dye Works, Etemadi and Fischer have moved their full-scale baking operation to the new location, where they will continue to create beautiful wedding and special event cakes alongside a full menu of savory and sweet pastries, including cookies, scones, pies, muffins, cakes by-the-slice, whole cakes to-go and more for walk-in guests. The shop serves Rival Bros Coffee and guests may also BYOB.
“Over the years, we’ve been a part of some really amazing events thanks to the people of Philadelphia,” says Fischer. “From weddings to baby showers, sad goodbyes to happy birthdays, we’ve baked for it all, and now we’re excited to open this shop for our Fishtown neighbors and be a part of their daily lives.” Adds Etemadi, “The café allows us to expand what we can offer as well, including anything savory, not just sweet.”
The expanded selections include a variety of cookies, brownies, scones, pies, croissants, muffins, kouign-amman, sweet and savory pastries and tarts, as well as cupcakes and slices of cake. These may be enjoyed on-the-go or while relaxing in the café. Guests looking for last minute cakes to bring home or to parties may choose from a rotating selection of “case cakes” in both four- and eight-inch sizes.
To pair with their freshly baked goods, Cake Life’s beverage selection will offer a wide variety, ranging from juices and teas to drip coffee and espresso beverages from local favorite Rival Bros Coffee, a Philadelphia-based, small-batch, custom coffee roaster. Working with top-of-line coffee equipment, including a classic silver La Marzocco GB/5 espresso machine handmade in Florence, Italy, Cake Life’s team will be able to prepare coffee drinks to order. The café also encourages guests to BYOB, whether it’s a bottle of champagne to toast over slices of rich cake or bottles of beer to knock back with a few savory sausage rolls.
For the shop’s interior, Etemadi and Fischer worked together with local designer Michael Gruber of Gruber Design Associates. The building’s glass facade allows for natural light to pour in, and white subway tiles line the walls up to the colorful pop of aqua stretching across the ceiling, keeping the space even brighter. Working with the bones of the space, they left old industrial features including exposed beams and concrete floors. Upon entering the space, guests will be encouraged to take a seat at one of nine café tables (25 seats total) and then wander up to the wrap-around Carrara marble counter to peruse the cases and chalkboard specials, then place their orders.
After meeting at Sarah Lawrence College in the early 2000s, Fischer and Etemadi remained friends throughout their education and beyond, as they went on to explore careers. While earning a pastry degree from the Art Institute of Philadelphia after working as a teacher, Fischer entered Food Network’s Cupcake Wars and won with her first business partner. When she was called back to compete on Cupcake Wars Champions, the two had parted ways and she called on her friend Etemadi, who also holds a pastry degree from the International Culinary Center. Though it was only the third time they baked together, Fischer and Etemadi took home second place and started scheming plans for Cake Life Bake Shop. Now in its fourth year, this is their first full-service café.
Cake Life is open Tuesday through Thursday from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. For more information on Cake Life Bake Shop, please visit their website.
Find Cake Life Bake Shop at 1306 Frankford Ave. in Philadelphia; phone: (215) 278-2580.
- Photo: Cake Life Bake Shop
