Cake Man Raven facts for kids
Raven Patrick De'Sean Dennis III (born in 1967), also known as Cake Man Raven, is a famous American baker. He used to own a bakery in Fort Greene, but now his bakery is in Harlem, New York. People have called him "the best red velvet baker in America." He is known for making red velvet cake, a dessert from the South, very popular in Brooklyn.
Contents
Early Life and Learning to Bake
Raven Dennis was born in Harlem, New York City. His parents were Raven Dennis Jr. and Ruth Murrelle Dennis. When he was young, he lived in South Carolina with his grandmother, Evelyn Nowlin Murrelle. She was the one who inspired him to start baking.
Raven baked his first cake when he was just nine years old. He sold his first cakes when he was 13. His school secretary bought two coconut pies from him for $2.50 each.
He went to Mount Pleasant High School and finished in 1985. Before graduating, he entered cake shows and baking contests all over South Carolina. He also took part in business competitions. His business plan won the top state award in both 1984 and 1985. He even earned a scholarship for his skills. An article in The Lee County Messenger newspaper gave him the nickname "Cake Man Raven."
After high school, Cake Man Raven studied at Johnson & Wales University and Brown University. Both of these schools are in Providence, Rhode Island.
Starting His Career
After college, Raven moved back to Harlem. He started baking cakes, mostly for children's birthday parties. He named his cake business "All Occasion Cakes." He had plans to go to graduate school, but his grandmother passed away in December 1989. This changed his plans.
He went back to Johnson & Wales University to get a master's degree in education. For a short time, he worked at a company that deals with stocks, but he didn't enjoy that job very much.
Cake Man Raven also created amazing ice sculptures. Some of his ice sculptures were shown at the World Trade Center's Windows of the World. They were also featured at the Grammy Award ceremonies in 1986 and 1988.
Becoming a Famous Baker
Cake Man Raven baked full-time in Harlem before opening his own bakery. In 2000, he opened the Cake Man Raven Confectionery in Brooklyn. It was located at 708 Fulton Street. There, he sold his famous red velvet cake and many other delicious cakes. His fans often just call him "Cake."
Many famous people have enjoyed cakes made by Raven. These include Bill Cosby, Jay-Z, Katie Couric, Michael Bloomberg, Whoopi Goldberg, Morgan Freeman, George Pataki, Patti LaBelle, and Jesse Jackson. He has also been featured in national magazines and on popular TV cooking shows. Some of these shows include The View and Good Morning America. When Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz started his job in 2002, Raven baked a special cake for the party. It was shaped like Brooklyn Borough Hall.
Cake Man Raven has made several other very large and impressive cakes. He baked a cake shaped like the Columbia University Library. He also made a giant wedding cake for the TV show Bridezillas. In 2003, he created a huge cake of the Brooklyn Bridge. It was seven feet tall and 12 feet long. This cake celebrated the bridge's 120th birthday. It took 20 people five days to put it together and 22 hours to decorate!
For Mary J. Blige's birthday party in 2003, Raven baked a special cake. It was four feet wide and 26 inches tall. The cake celebrated her life choices. It had edible parts that looked like a CD, fashion symbols, and a life-size baby. Raven also baked a cake shaped like a Bible for Al Sharpton. For Cab Calloway, he made a cake shaped like a grand piano. When Jam Master Jay passed away in 2002, Raven baked a cake shaped like a large Adidas sneaker.
In 2005, Dennis baked the world's tallest wedding cake. This sponge cake was 15 feet high and weighed 5,000 pounds. It was big enough to feed 30,000 people! This amazing cake was shown to everyone on ABC's Good Morning America. In 2008, Raven appeared on the Food Network show Throwdown! with Bobby Flay.
Moving the Bakery
In 2012, the owner of the building where the Fort Greene bakery was located wanted to raise the rent. The rent would go from $3,000 a month to $5,100. After 12 years in that spot, Dennis decided to move his store. He moved his business to his baking facility in Cypress Hills. He has been working from there since then. In late 2013, some of Cake Man Raven's former employees opened another red velvet cake bakery in the same Fort Greene storefront.
