Photos by Stephen Montoya
Just south of Vickery Boulevard on 106 Daggett Ave. is a unique cake shop that has been making the news for its cupcake designs for several years. This bakery, amply named Loft22 Cakes, after its owner Tareka Lofton, was mentioned on the “Today Show” for creating “quarantine cakes” — a cake that resembles a roll of toilet paper — back in 2020.
But, today, this small bistro style brick and mortar business is back in the spotlight for a different reason: Its owner is part of an up-and-coming Prime Video show called the Dr. Suess Baking Show. Lofton, along with 17 other bakers in nine teams, will all compete for a $50,000 grand prize by creating Dr. Suess style confections.
This show will be hosted by Emmy award-winner Tamera Mowry-Housley and be judged by baking stars Clarice Lam and Joshua John Russell.
Fort Worth Magazine had the distinct honor of talking with Lofton about her journey into the world of baking and what it was like behind the scenes of this new show in Los Angeles.
FW: After doing some research, it looks like becoming a business owner and a baker was a dream you achieved after several years of doing something else. What did you do before this and why did you decide to become a culinary artist?
TL: I was in the world of retail … like fashion merchandising for major retailers but I was always in the kitchen, just not professionally. Cooking was just kind of like a hobby then. I was already baking and decorating, taking classes at Michaels and Hobby Lobby on the weekends. But, when I turned 30, I had this early mid-life crisis where I had to ask myself ‘What am I doing, and does it make me feel fulfilled?’ So, my next step was to go to the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary School in Dallas to get real classical training as a pastry chef.
FW: How did you end up in the location you are at now?
TL: This location is a serendipity type of story (laughs). In order to graduate culinary school in 2012, I had to work at a bakery, and I found an internship here when it was the former business, Stir Crazy Baked Goods. That’s when I fell in love with this little shop. I never dreamed in a million years that it would end up being mine. Fast-forward a few years when I was looking for a place outside of my house to continue baking and expand my business when that very week, the owner I worked for, said she was putting this place up for sale. I said ‘That’s my shop’, which was a real full-circle moment.
FW: How did you keep the business running during the shutdown in 2020?
TL: It was tough during that time because we were coming off of one of our strongest years, and then boom, everyone cancelled their orders except for one client. I was in a panic trying to figure out how we were going stay open. Then we started doing these ‘quarantine cakes’ because people were losing their minds over toilet paper. Before you know it, we were starting to get noticed, locally first, and then we were mentioned on the ‘Today Show’. That little six-inch tissue paper cake helped keep us afloat with orders coming in from people all over the country.
Image Courtesy Loft22 Cakes
FW: What was the process for you to be picked for the Dr. Suess Baking Show?
TL: I started getting emails from the Food Network asking me if I would be interested in doing any cooking shows and I guess once you get in that loop, other shows find out about you and that is how I found out about this show. I hadn’t accepted any invitations before, because I don’t see baking as a competition. I like to do what I do, in my zone and Zen space. But when I saw this was for a Dr. Suess themed show, that was the breaker. So, I did a few Zoom calls with the producers to see if my personality would fit for the show and was picked to go out to Los Angeles to start taping. Dr. Suess is so me … I am whimsical and quirky and innovative. If ever there was a theme that fit me it’s this one.
FW: How long did you stay in L.A.?
TL: All of the contestants stayed until they were eliminated. I can’t tell you much more than that, I can’t give away any spoilers, but I was there for several weeks.
FW: Did the studio pull out the red carpet for you?
TL: Did they ever! I mean, everything is paid for, your room, your board, your food. You could order whatever you wanted, and they washed your clothes. I kind of missed the laundry lady when I got back because I had to do my own laundry again (laughs).
Photo Courtesy of Amazon Studios
FW: Was it hard adapting to the filming schedule?
TL: The show was stressful. It was fun and exciting but so much more intense than I mentally prepared for. I had no idea the magnitude of the work, I mean like 18-hour days. It’s a lot! I felt like a fish out-of-water only because I wasn’t in my kitchen where I know where everything is. I had to learn on the fly how to do a lot of things during the film shoots.
FW: What was your impression of the host and the judges?
TL: We had no idea beforehand who the host was going to be, so when I saw it was Tamera, I was over the moon. I grew up watching Sister-Sister and to this day I still follow them. That was probably the highlight for me. The judges didn’t have any egos either, they made us feel like they were one of us and were down to earth. They wanted us to be comfortable and have a good time and encouraged all of us.
FW: How does it make you feel that you were able to represent the Lone Star State?
TL: I am humbled and honored that I had this opportunity because there is a lot of great talent all over Texas and to be a female African American pastry chef from Fort Worth, it really puts things in perspective.
All eight episodes of the Dr. Suess Baking Show will premiere on Prime Video starting Tuesday, Dec. 13. If you don’t have a Prime Video subscription, don’t fret. You can watch it on the free ad-supported service, Amazon Freevee.
