By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
GREAT BEND — Every business needs a good backstory. Great Bend's Allie Cartwright just needed some financial assistance to help pay for her dog's dental surgery when she hatched the idea of selling cheesecakes. The demand was there, as it turns out, but so were a few hurdles along the way. So Cartwright opened the Freaking Delicious Cheesecake Company at the Wolf Hotel in Ellinwood five weeks ago.
"I put the idea out there, and people were really into it," Cartwright said. "Then I found out it was illegal to sell cheesecakes out of your house with cottage food laws. I was like, 'Okay, well, there goes that idea,' except people didn't stop asking me for cheesecake. I had complete strangers messaging me wanting cheesecake."
Working out of the Wolf Hotel has been mutually beneficial. With the hotel's full-sized professional kitchen, Cartwright is now fully licensed, and business is growing. This week alone, she has 20 cheesecakes ready to go. As for the business name, Cartwright calls herself an exuberant person who used to swear a lot. Then she had a kid.
Her menu includes four and nine-inch cheesecakes. The base menu is vanilla or chocolate with strawberry, blueberry, chocolate ganache, and salted caramel toppings. She also offers a specialty nine-inch deluxe turtle cheesecake on the regular menu. She plans to offer a flavor of the week beginning each Friday.
"I'm basically going through all of those specialty flavors one at a time and making them available to people," she said. "This week is chai, and on Friday, it will change to lemon meringue."
At this time, all of her cheesecakes must be pre-ordered and are available only by pickup due to the cost of shipping the desserts. Due to the nature of making a cheesecake, there is a two-day turn time between order and pickup. The four-inch basic desserts start at $12, and the nine-inch cheesecakes are $40, or $45 with toppings. Cartwright has plans to cater events in the area. That would include two-inch cheesecakes that are small enough to be finger food but still feature a hearty three or so bites.
"I am really excited to start doing catering in the area for basically any events: weddings, baby showers, anything you can think of," she said. I'm really looking forward to working with people to try and elevate their event."
Cartwright plans to have her business webpage online soon but does have an Instagram and Facebook page for Freaking Delicious Cheesecake Company. Orders can also be placed by calling (620) 303-0350.