By Adam Pincus
Juan Arache recalled that before he was old enough to bake, he would play in the backyard of his home in the Dominican Republic, molding Play-Doh into cakes. “I could never explain why,” he said, “I just know that ever since I was very little I wanted to do this with my life.”Arache transformed that dream into a career, and after working at the Manhattan confectionery powerhouse Cupcake Cafe as a cake designer for about eight years, he opened the SugarRoom in Sunnyside in 2002.In the short amount of time he has been on his own, he has developed a reputation for producing cakes with flair. He created a wedding cake used in a video for Mariah Carey's hit “Heartbreaker,” and more recently made a pair of cakes shaped as suitcases for Birmania R’os, a New York correspondent for the Spanish language Univision network whom the company feted at a December party.Arache moved to Sunnyside 16 years ago, bringing his passion for pastries to New York in two storefront spaces off Queens Boulevard, at 43-46 40th Ave.In one space he holds baking and design classes, and in the other he sells a wide variety of products for both professional and hobbyist bakers.”I love to teach, more than designing cakes,” he said. He gets a thrill when a student develops into a professional. “That is my major pleasure, to know that people are doing it.”He opened the two branches of the business simultaneously in 2002, explaining that he always loved instructing, but he recognized as well that it was difficult to find all the baker's needs under one roof. So he teaches in one space and sells supplies to his students and neighbors in the other.His classes span a wide range of technical levels, with training in the basics of bread and cake baking for beginners and more sophisticated classes taught in levels two and three for advanced students. Most of the classes meet weekly for three hours in sessions that last from four to 12 weeks.The baking classes begin with simple projects, such as carrot cakes, and lead to such advanced pastries as a Red Velvet Cake and Baked Alaska, taught in the third level.He also teaches classes in cake elaboration, instructing students in the art of creating life-like flowers such as orchids, magnolias, pansies, hydrangeas, tulips and forget-me-nots of sugar and gum paste painted with edible dyes.In the store, Arache sells cake design items such as candles in the shape of Sponge Bob Square Pants and imported dark and white chocolates. He offers baking tools as well, such as Bundt cake molds and rolling pins.Reach reporter Adam Pincus by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
