By Lakhram Bhagirat
If someone told Jason Lampley a few years ago, that he would give up his love for graphic designing and marketing to enter into the uncertain world of baking, then he would have definitely laughed at them. Now here he is, in a world where he is still trying to find his footing but is destined to leave his mark on the taste buds of every Guyanese and even those far afield.
Jason, along with his business partners Alan Ferreira and Roger Welch, recently opened Kupkake-inator Café located at Sheriff Street, Subryanville.
The name itself is one that would send English teachers into a frenzy, but rolls off the tongue perfectly and cements the business as a unique one. Jason says his former boss and marketing veteran, Alex Graham, was the one who came up with the name drawing inspiration from the movie “Cat in the Hat”.
The 34-year-old remembers how it all started in his small kitchen about four years ago. He said that a friend introduced him to baking and he quickly developed a liking for it, but never envisioned that he would make it his main source of income. At that time he was comfortable with being a graphics designer and building a career in marketing but his newfound hobby was too intense to ignore.
He would spend hours in his kitchen trying recipes and making his friends his guinea pigs. One of his close friends took the initiative of making a poster advertising cupcakes in his office and that resulted in his entry into the commercial baking world.
“He decided to create a flier and post it on his work place and sent me it and you have a sale and that I have to bake cupcakes to sell. I told him that I never made anything to sell to anyone and I did it and it was very successful. From then almost every week the Ministry of Health, particularly the Accounts Department, would order cupcakes and the business then took off from there,” he told me. 
Jason said that they would have transitioned from just cupcakes to actual cakes and remembers visiting a friend in Trinidad who bakes cheesecakes on the side. With no formal training in baking, Jason’s friend took him under her wing and taught him the art of making cheesecakes. With her recipes as the base, over the years, Jason would have improved and modified them to suit the Guyanese palette.
Guess what? The cheesecakes at Kupkake-inator are to die for. They are light, fluffy and oh so satisfying. Jason experiments with the flavours, but my favourite is and remains the cream liqueur flavoured ones.
“She never imagined I would caught on so well. There are times she came and helped me with sales and so. Most of the recipes are hers and I would have modified over the years and came up with my own flavour and the cheesecakes here are the best sellers and it is my favourite thing to bake,” he said.
Roger, over the years of their friendship, would have encouraged Jason to expand his business as his client list grew, but he was sceptical since it was a path he had not planned. Sometimes the hassle of balancing his full-time graphic designing job and his orders were so much that he would go to work late most days.
He tells me that there were days when it became so stressful that he wanted to throw in the proverbial towel and at one point he announced that his “ovens were closed”. It was a disappointing time for his clients, but they understood and after two months they begun asking him to do an order ever so often which resulted in him reopening his ovens.
Back to the idea of the café, Jason explains that Roger continued to encourage him and when a location was found for the business, he helped finance some of the equipment and aided in acquiring the space. The Kupkake-inator Café officially opened its doors in September and is now a staple in people’s lives. 
Every item available in the café is made from scratch with the finest ingredients available. For Jason and his team, quality always surpasses quantity.
“Response has been great and over the years, I have built up a lot of clients and good customers who supported me and were excited for the café and it was overwhelming. Opening day, we were sold out and it is just a start. Our prices make us different, because you can get something made from scratch at a really affordable price.”
Jason’s other business partner, Alan is just 20 years old but a true master of the kitchen. He is the one that decides what comes out of the kitchen into the display case as well as how it is presented. He, like Jason, has no formal culinary training, but comes from a family of bakers.
He says from a young age he always was intrigued with creating things and would YouTube simple recipes and execute them. As time progressed so did the difficulty of the recipes. He did a stint at the Marriott as a cook and would have learnt various techniques and now incorporates them in his work at Kupkake-inator.
“Working with a chef I learned the tips and tricks of the trade there. I like people critiquing my work and I am a bit of a perfectionist,” he said.
Kupkake-inator not only serves sweet treats but also classic breakfast, salads and sandwiches. But when you visit you cannot leave without a slice of cheesecake. Trust me when I say it is inexpensive, satisfying and totally worth the few extra ounces you’ll put on when you’re finished. But hey you only live once, right? (Sunday Times Magazine)
