Darek Makhoul gave up making baked goods for TV celebrities and decided to come back home and make them for students.
The Lansing resident and owner of Sugar Shack, 2315 E. Grand River Ave., has been a chef for 16 years for celebrities such as the cast of “Sex And The City” and “The Sopranos” when he was a pastry chef in Palm Beach, Fla.
Wanting to carry on his grandmother’s legacy, who was the owner of the original
Sugar Shack on Pennsylvania Avenue in Lansing, Makhoul decided to move back and open a place of his own.
Sugar Shack, which has been open since Aug. 1, offers a variety of custom and freshly made cupcakes and cookies, as well as “cookie dough poppers,” which are safe to eat without getting a stomachache.
Makhoul said it’s almost impossible to pick which of his creations are his favorite.
“That’s like trying to name your favorite kid,” Makhoul, 37, said. “They’re all my babies.”
Along with normal flavors and toppings on cookies and cupcakes, Sugar Shack offers unique medleys such as the margarita cookie, which is a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie with a hint of lime, and peanut butter and jelly cupcakes. There aren’t only regular sized cupcakes, either: Makhoul offers jumbo cupcakes that can be custom made for birthdays or other special occasions.
Makhoul already has custom made several jumbo cupcakes, such as a jumbo cupcake with peanut butter cups to deliver to a birthday party.
“They’re larger than life,” he said.
Brad Otis, a hospitality business senior, has been working at Sugar Shack as a delivery driver since its opening, and said working in Lansing gives the shop an interesting atmosphere.
“The community has been really supportive,” he said.
Otis, who wants to go to culinary school to become a chef after receiving his hospitality business degree, works 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. a few times a week. The hours are conducive to his class schedule, he said.
“I’m a bit of an insomniac, so I’d stay up late anyway,” Otis said.
Sugar Shack runs monthly specials and a cupcake of the month, as well as a cupcake that is on special each day of the week. In October, the shop will feature a pumpkin cupcake, as well as a peppermint cupcake during the holiday season, Makhoul said.
Prices for cupcakes range from regular sized at $1.25 to gourmet cupcakes at about
$3 and cookies for $1-2. Makhoul said he stands apart from the competition because
his goods are baked fresh in the store daily instead of being shipped in from out of state as they are at some other bakeries.
Cupcakes are made fresh each morning, he said, and cookies are made every 15-20 minutes.
In addition to picking goods up in the store from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m., the bakery delivers to various locations, including dorms.
Just because the bakery is open late at night doesn’t mean that is when students
have the craving for sweets.
Alyse Bedell, a Spanish junior, said because she does not usually study late at
night, she doesn’t get late-night food cravings.
“Except for last night, when I got up and ate some yogurt and vanilla wafers,” Bedell said.
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Although Bedell said she would not likely order sweets late at night, she would give Sugar Shack goods a try sometime during the day.
“I’m a huge cupcake fan,” Bedell said. “And they sound really good.”
On Oct. 10, Sugar Shack will have an official grand opening event, with free cookies from 1-4 p.m. and someone dressed as Cookie Monster distributing them.
Next March, the shop will get a complete makeover of the cupcake menu, with all new flavors. The store takes Spartan Cash.
Bedell said a main reason to support Sugar Shack is that it is not a large chain
restaurant or corporation.
“I’m always up for trying anything local,” she said.
