Local Hero #17: Luquana McGriff

Luquana McGriff's baked goods are so gorgeous that they often look unreal. "They are edible art," she explains. If you scroll through her Facebook page or Instagram account, you will find dozens of creations reflecting the utmost of attention to detail, color, and craftsmanship. Her business, cleverly named A Cake Baked in Brooklyn, is an award-winning boutique dessert catering company that creates "stylish, personalized, and delicious desserts" for a variety of occasions and events.

Since the pandemic, Luquana has been contributing some of her baked treats to the food deliveries for residents of Red Hook. She gets inspiration for her ideas from a wealth of sources, including her walks to the park, pieces of fabric and other everyday objects, and from lots of books and magazines, including magazines from the UK. One of her inspiration books is authored by Toba Garrett, a well-known black pastry artist whom Luquana worked for as a chef's assistant in a cake-decorating class last summer. Luquana also draws inspiration from her own intentions: "I envision 'fabulous' before I create," she shares.

Luquana's original inspiration was her great-grandma, who taught her how to bake. "She inspired me to bake this edible art. She would be proud of how I am recreating the good times I shared with her with my own children. We need that kind of family, quality, therapeutic, traditional time now," says Luquana, "that time where you put away your phones and do something together."

Prior to establishing her business, Luquana saved lives as a police dispatcher for the NYPD, responding to 911 calls. Describing herself as "an octopus with eight arms," Luquana recalled that she helped to maintain the safety of both the caller and the responder between the time when the call to 911 was placed and the responder arrived on the scene. She was sometimes in charge of 2 precincts at a time, and worked during traumatic events such as 9/ll and the great blackout.

As her baked goods gained notice both within and outside her workplace, she finally took the bold leap of leaving her job to start her own business. A Cake Baked in Brooklyn was born in 2016.

In addition to running her business, she has also been volunteering with Icing Smiles, a nonprofit organization that provides custom cakes and other treats to families affected by the critical illness of a child. In addition, Luquana is the proud mom of two daughters, ages 19 and 14.

When I asked Luquana what she thought about what's going on in the political landscape, she had this to say: "There have been a lot of injustices in the black and brown community. We have been left out of a lot and not treated fairly. I would like to see change in my time. I would like to see more business owners who live in my community and who look like me. There need to be more opportunities for black and brown entrepreneurs and business owners."

Her advice to BIPOC women business owners? "Don't give up. Whatever your passion is, continue to do it. It will lead you to even greater gifts. Find someone who supports you, because you are going to need support. Have an open mind to learn for people around you and from new opportunities."

Thank you, Luquana, for taking the leap of faith to create a business where you share your beautiful baked goods with the rest of the world!

A Cake Baked in Brooklyn:
http://www.acakebakedinbrooklyn.com
info@acakebakedinbrooklyn.com
FB: A Cake Baked in Brooklyn
Instagram: @bakedinbrooklyn

Want to see all the heroes in one place and receive new ones directly in your Facebook feed?

Visit this link and “Follow” the page:
https:www.facebook.com/mylocalheroesbk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mylocalheroesbk/
https://linktr.ee/etraubman