What's in your Office - mimicafe Union
mimicafe Union is a fun little sugar art educational resource for cake decorating... or to put it more succinctly, I teach how to make figures from fondant (sugar paste) to all variety of participants, from curious beginner / hobbiest to Pastry Professional. My Broadway Suites space serves as my home base from which I teach one-on-one workshops, as well as the occasional group workshop in the conference room.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] mimicafe Workshop[/caption]
I originally arrived in New York from my native Japan to study at a small culinary school. I then worked at a specialty cake shop on the Lower East Side for two years where I was entranced by the Cake World and felt a destiny calling me....I started my own company and at that time, I thought my work was going to be more connected to cupcakes....One thing led to another and eventually I realized the joy of teaching the skills I developed over the years, transforming simple fondant into fun, lively figures. I would have never thought it possible, but the teaching has taken me to places far and wide around the world and introduced me to so many great people in the cake community, but also in towns and cities in distant locations, big hearted people I feel so privileged to have met and call my friends!
It's always great meeting people from abroad who schedule a workshop with me in my suite while they are visiting New York.
One of my favorite memories at Broadway Suites is from 2 years ago when I was contacted by an Australian Cake Group visiting New York for their "New York Cake Crawl". I scheduled the conference room and contacted my friend who is a Cake Artist... and one fateful morning, some 35 fantastic Australian Cake Artists enthusiastically trooped into the 6th Floor Conference Room for my fondant demonstration and my friend's cake decorating demonstration. The energy from all these happy Aussie's pure fun! After the demos, their organizer had arranged for a picnic lunch for the group in Central Park, so we all hopped on the subway uptown and enjoyed our sandwiches on blankets with a view of the boats on the lake, as well as more cake demos under the sun!
I usually stop by Spreads on the corner of Park Avenue & 30th Street, I love their Orange & Chocolate Chip Muffins. I also stop by Fresh Co. on Park & 29th to pick up some lunch for my clients to enjoy at my one-on-one workshops... I find their vegetarian sandwiches really delicious, especially when freshly made.... Bread & Butter Cafe opposite Fresh & Co. is my "go to" when I need my Egg Salad sandwich fix, ha ha...
Oh and also, I am still in mourning about the closing of Miss K's on the corner of Madison & 30th, the neighborhood definitely misses it!
I can't believe it, I've been at Broadway Suites for almost 5 years now!!! When I was first searching for a work space, I knew I needed to be centrally located and Broadway Suites had the perfect balance of professionalism, accommodation and friendliness that I was seeking. Due to the tiny detail of the things I am teaching, I knew I needed a space with great daylight and the big window in my suite provides that amply.... and when you lean "just so" and look up, you get a pretty decent view of the Empire State Building!
I would like to share that the world is filled with some amazing people... sometimes you may not be able to see them immediately around you at any given moment, but that doesn't mean they aren't there... I found that in my work, when I've pushed myself with a challenge and ventured out of my comfort zone, I've encountered great new people and great new experiences that have enriched and continue to enrich my life!
mimicafe Union