Sweet Dreams: Delmarva Pastry Chefs
If you’ve binge-watched The Great British Bake Off on Netflix, you’ve become acquainted with an assortment of pies, patisseries, sponges, tarts and tea party cakes. But for three Delaware pastry chefs, creating “bakes” is more than an entertaining pastime. It’s a sweet source of income. That’s particularly true in spring when they’re busy whipping up desserts for weddings, showers, Mother’s Day festivities and graduation parties.
However, making a living with fondant, bavarois, genoise and buttercream isn’t all that it’s baked up to be. “It’s hard for smaller restaurants to support a pastry chef,” says Dru Tevis, pastry chef for SoDel Concepts, who’s worked for more than one restaurant at once to pay the bills. Many eateries prefer to use a third-party vendor instead of hiring a pastry chef.
Independent chefs face competition from supermarket bakery departments, which have lower prices. The appearance and taste, however, are rarely the same. “My cakes are something that you won’t find in your average bakery,” says Jennifer Rineer, owner of Lewes-based Carolina Sugar Fairy. “It’s homemade from scratch—there are no preservatives.”
Not only must pastry chefs deliver a dessert that’s worth the splurge, but they must also keep up with the trends, particularly in the ever-evolving wedding market. Like Tevis and Rineer, Wilmington icon Michele Mitchell has taken orders for smaller cakes augmented by other desserts, including macaron towers. “The ability to customize your dessert to your wedding and your particular preferences is really big,” she says. “People are definitely putting their twist on it.
Tevis, Rineer and Mitchell have proved that they have what it takes. For all three, the road to a pastry career was a delicious detour that’s produced rising rewards.
