The air is frigid as I walk towards my car. It’s December 23, 2019— my
21st birthday. I’m home in the United States for the holidays and am picking up a batch of my favorite cupcakes. To celebrate (finally) being of legal drinking age, I’ve selected one dozen pink champagne cupcakes to share with my family members and then-partner.
After parking (badly) on Penn Avenue, the vibrant pink awning of Ady Cakes invites me in as if I were entering Barbie’s Dreamhouse. Walking towards the counter, I see the charismatic namesake of the shop, owner and baking extraordinaire, Ady Abreu-Miriello. With a sparkling smile, she wipes her flour-covered hands on a fuschia apron before handing me my order. And, as one could easily guess, my box of perfectly pink treats was made complete by a pink ribbon.
Later in the night, after a few too many glasses of chardonnay, I’m
especially eager to devour my dessert. Blowing out a birthday candle and peeling back the cupcake’s golden wrapper, I haven’t a clue how different the world will be the next time I visit Ady Cakes.
Ady Abreu-Miriello is no stranger to adversity. She was raised in the Dominican Republic, where many families struggle to survive. After a devastating foot injury crushed her childhood dream of becoming a professional ballerina, Abreu-Miriello attended university at Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra in Santiago, Dominican Republic. There, she pursued and completed a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering. In 2001, she decided that she wasn’t reaching her full potential while living in her beloved home country. With her allotted baggage in tow, Abreu-Miriello packed up her belongings and flew to Philadelphia.
She settled in Reading, Pennsylvania, a small city which is unfortunately infamous for violence. Though Reading was the kind of place where Ady always walked with her car keys clenched between her knuckles, rent was inexpensive and she wasn’t far from her place of employment. After working as an industrial engineer for 6 years upon moving to the United States, Abreu-Miriello was drained:
“I wanted to do my own thing, I no longer wanted to keep working corporate jobs and I wanted to pursue my own dreams.”
To accomplish this goal, she resigned from the engineering firm and opened Ady Cakes in 2007. A self-taught baker, Abreu-Miriello first operated the shop all on her own, before hiring two part-time employees in 2009. After 5 years of sharing her talents with Reading’s inhabitants, Ady entered and subsequently won $10,000 on Season 5, Episode 9 of Food Network’s elimination-style competition, Cupcake Wars. The episode, titled “Renaissance Faire” premiered on May 6, 2012. Abreu-Miriello bested all 3 of her competitors by dazzling the judges with innovative recipes; pistachio + cardamom, chocolate + ale, and pomegranate + ginger cupcake creations.
When I returned to Ady Cakes on April 11, I couldn’t see the smiling faces of Ady Cakes’ patrons—their faces were covered by cloth face masks. Even Ady herself, bubbly and warm as she is, looked physically exhausted and disheveled. It was the very first day Ady Cakes was offering curbside pick-up since COVID-19 restrictions were put into place.
But Abreu-Miriello took the setback in stride:
“On the first day of lockdown, I felt panicked. I worried for the health and safety of my family, employees, and customers. I was angry at our government for not taking this pandemic as seriously as they should have initially. In order to give myself time to draw up a plan, I closed the shop for 3 whole weeks. ”
In further reflecting on Ady Cakes’ first curbside pick-up weekend she said, “Oh, it was rough.” Laughing, she continued, “I’m so sorry you had to witness that. I really was like a chicken with its head cut off.”
With a busy Mother’s Day on the horizon, Abreu-Miriello tried a new business tactic—nationwide shipping. After a series of trials and errors, she perfected a collection of 8-ounce cake jars, which she’s been sending across the United States for the past few months. The flavors she’s currently offering via cake jar include; cookies & cream, peanut butter & chocolate chip, and, Ady’s all-time favorite, dulche de leche. We discussed why she decided to begin shipping after not previously doing so:
“Before COVID-19, I was hesitant to test out shipping. It’s fairly expensive and I was under the impression that nearly all of my customers were from Berks County. I soon found out that most people, from all over the country, are supporting small businesses more frequently nowadays. As the lives of entrepreneurs have truly been turned upside down in recent months, I am all the more grateful for the out-of-town customers who are ordering treats from me.”
Though this new shipping method is quickly gaining popularity amongst Ady Cakes’ customers, order pick-up is still available for masked customers. To support Ady Cakes, place a cupcake, macaron, or cookie order on their website here.
No one can confidently predict when or if businesses across the United States will return to a state of normalcy. As of July 16, the country has seen 136,938 total COVID-19 deaths, 6,973 of which were in the state of Pennsylvania. Fortunately for Ady Cakes, the people of Reading will guide them through the pandemic storm.
On July 2, I carefully remove the golden wrapper of (yet another) pink champagne cupcake. While taking my first bite, I can’t help but think of happier moments. Though we live in an unprecedented time of disease, police brutality, and mass uncertainty, this too shall pass.
