Yes, someone "complained" about my working this business from home. I am to sease and desist baking asap!! I have not had one complaint from any customers!!! It was probably a pissed-off bakery owner who can't compete with how yummy, creative and fresh my cakes are. Anyway, I need to find a commercial kitchen to work out of. Any TX (Houston) people out there have any suggestions? Are church kitchens
"legal"? I just want to scream!!!

You can always try craigslist.org or your local classifieds.

I am so sorry this happened to you. Competition does tend to rear an ugly head sometimes! I am in PA, so I can't help you with commercial kitchen space....but I think a church kitchen can be an option for you. You will have to check and see if they are licensed and then maybe they would work with you to rent space....or you could provide bakery items for them when needed as a trade off! Good luck and don't let this little bump in the road become a block....BAKE ON!

I can't help you either but crazydaisy got really good ideas.
Don't let this trouble you! You'll find a place! A jealous baker probably did this. It shows that your cakes are really yummy!!!!

I'm so sorry that happened! Good luck finding a place to bake out of! Your cakes are very creative and you NEED to keep it up! I just realized I have the same theme coming up as your mod baby shower cake-it is so similar to what I had in my head, but the friend of mom-to-be just wants sheet cake! UGH!!!

I too live in the Houston "area" and am very upset for you! This is very concerning!! What part of the area are you in? North, East, South, or West? Don't be more general than that. I am South. I'll pass the word around to a couple of people I know that should know of what has happened to you. It could happen to any of us! Hang in there and maybe we can come up with something! I bet you are correct in saying a )&^&%$ off bakery owner!

Unless the church is zoned "commercial" rather than "non-profit", you cannot use their kitchen. I have looked into that. Look for a small restaurant, locally owned, that has limited hours. That's what one lady has done that I have heard of.

Good luck & don't let 'em get you down!!!!! {{{{hugs}}}}

Brenda

diva, it stinks that this happened to you!! i hope you're able to find something to fill your needs...

good luck to you check out a small local restaurant, like family owned sometimes they trade for cake or a small fee

I basically do my cakes for family and a couple of VERY CLOSE friends. I would love to do more but it isn't possible for me.
Even though that's all I do, my heart goes out to you and hopefully you'll soon find a good solution.
Best of Luck!!

Wow, I feel the love. Thanks for all your support!!

You're lucky they just told you to stop and didn't slap you with a fine! I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it was another baker....maybe it was a neighbor.

Well lets see the health department wasting taxpayers money in action by backing that order up with the law.

I can just see the bakery SWAT team surrounding your home. Someone with a bull horn screaming, "Drop the spatula and come out of your kitchen with your hands over your head."

But really Divaofcakes, I am sorry for your dilemma and wish you the best of luck finding a solution somewhere.

Okay Sweetamber I had to respond.....tee-hee ....so now all I can see in my head is the department of health recruiting our PTA Mommy neighbors who drive SUV's and bring their little kids to trick us into creating the special birthday cake in order to slap a huge fine on us.

Sorry - - - I really need to step back from the Powdered Sugar.....

But really Divaofcakes, I am glad they didn't slap you with a big fine. Good luck for your solution.

I feel for you and hope you can work everything out, however, as a bakery owner myself, I also understand the other side of the situation. Personally, I would never turn someone in for baking out of their home, but it does upset me when I have gone to the trouble and tremendous expense of setting up a commercial kitchen, paying for the appropriate inspections and licenses, and reading/deciphering the Kansas Food Code to make sure I am following all of the proper procedures. You have to remember that there are reasons for these laws. I'm sure you keep your kitchen very clean and sanitary, but I'm also sure there are those that do not. The health department is there to protect us from those people, and unfortunately, the only way they can "draw a line" is to require a license and/or commercial kitchen. Like I said, I do hope that things will work out for you - just please don't assume that all bakery owners would be out to get you - we're not.

Diva.... you might try a hall that rents out for receptions, etc..... most of them have licensed kitchens..... maybe one of them would rent space to you.... There was a large thread on here yesterday about Ohio laws, and it looks like I won't need a license under the "Ohio Cottage Industry "..... check and see if there is anything like that in Texas.......

3tiers, you know your statement opens up a whole other conversation to this subject, yet it has the same title. I understand your side of the issue 100% and agree with you to a point. However, I have a very open mind no both sides of the playing field.

Just this week a few thousand people are having to go stand in line to get the hemoglobin shots because they ate at a well known restaurant chain here in Houston called Pappasitos and may have been exposed to the highly contagious Hepatitis A employee!! How? Is he a legal worker? An employee there worked for 4 weeks sick with Hepatitis A in the restaurant before he was pulled from the job. Now keep in mind this is a licensed restaurant with a very good reputation that has been under fire several times for hiring illegals that are carrying God only knows what. Is this uncommon? No! It is not! Where are the FOOD POLICE when we really need them!!! Hmmmmm, now that is something to think about.

We have a news anchor here named Marvin Zindler, maybe you know him? He is known all over for exposing well hidden "nasty's" in many aspects of life. Mr. Zindler also has the local "Restaurant Rat and Roach Report" on the news regularly. The list of filthy restaurants, bakeries, fast food places is so long he doesn't have time to name them all off!

I have an Uncle that owns a very reputable plumbing business of 40+ years and in his own words; "If you could see what I see in these local restaurants and places you would never step foot in another one without looking for yourself". He went into some details but I don't think I need to share them here.

And we have the health department knocking on our home doors telling us to cease and desist baking because we don't have a license!?!? A license to what? Legally be illegal? I would MUCH rather buy a special cake from someone that works legally out of a clean kitchen in their private home than a kitchen that is illegally working legal in various ways all because they are licensed! And who goes in and makes sure your licensed business is as clean as my unlicensed kitchen before you close the doors at night? There are plenty of food establishments I wouldn't take a toothpick from..........let alone eat anything cooked in their kitchen.

Before I start getting hate mail from all you legal bakery and restaurant owners out there let me say this; I know all licensed establishments are not running illegal or unclean. I know there are reputable good ones out there because my husband and I frequent a FEW of them. Not many, only a handful, but they are out there.

I simply think our Heath Department should be busy policing the places they license and collect money from so we don't have to worry about getting a contagious communicable disease from an illegal or picking a piece of rat crap out of our food.

And besides, I don't like people being rats!

Nothing personal to anyone here. I am just voicing my opinion.

Again, thanks to everyone for their support and opinions! I may have jumped the gun in saying that it was a bakery owner who probably had turned me in. Yes, it could have been a neighbor, but I doubt it. Thanks for the bakery perspective though. I can totally see your point.

I, on the other hand, completely agree with Lea. The health dept needs to police the establishments that are constantly violating regulations! My few customers are not getting sick or finding rat feces in their cakes. They love them and some will surely cry when they find out that I have to "cease and desist" for a while.

Thanks to all for the advice. I will be up and running again in no time.

WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Check under this topic on CC's for a listing for Houston...Looking for commercial kitchens, check out these places...

This is just my opinion, but as a chef, I had to go through about 100 hours of food safety training. I bet I could go through any of your refrigerators and find about $500 worth of fines. IE: When was the last time you checked the expiration dates on all of the condiments in your fridge.

That said, I don't think that health laws are intended to imply that commercial establishments are cleaner than home based ones. They are trackable because they have a license and regular inspections. If you happened to get some bad eggs, make a meringue butter cream, and get 40 people sick, the hospitals, CDC etc. would have a difficult time isolating the cause of the outbreak.

If the same thing happened at a commercial establishment, they can go to the bakery, who is required to keep six months of records, and find out that the eggs can from such and such produce company etc...and they can isolate and recall bad food products.

Licenses are just a way of limiting the number of places the health inspector need to keep track of.

I am sorry for your trouble and I hope you find a legal kitchen soon. My best suggestion would be to find a catering/banquet hall and arrange to be their cake supplier. You make them cakes that they can resell at a profit, and they provide you a kitchen to work in. The bonus in this arrangement is you can raise your prices and never do dishes again.

teekakes, I would be very upset with so many food violations that the news guy can't list them all, yet the health inspectors are NOT busting those guys.

My husband and I have the same viewpoint on seatbelt zones .... where they pull you over to check to see if you are wearing your seatbelt. Murders and crime overall is up tremendously in Indpls .... the police dept had a big merger and layoff ..... fewer cops on the street. But thank god the ones who are still on the force are stopping those violent criminals who are riding around with no seat belts! Whew!! I'll sure sleep better tonight knowing the seat belt patrol is on the alert!

("Honey? Did you remember to triple check the door locks and set the house alarm?")

Too long a thread to read all the posts, so this may hace already been suggested. Could you work with a licensed caterer who has a legal kitchen? Either you could rent a space from them or work alongside and agree on a percentage of the total fee of the reception?

I think this situation stinks. The whole debate on here about "legal" or commercial vs. home bakeries always gets a heated response. When I took classes six years ago, I had no idea that baking a cake from home for family & friends was illegal. Most of then gave me anywhere from $15 to $20. I have recently stopped making cakes for people. I do make treats for my girls to give away, I also give treats away. I thought about it in the way of ... What if I owned my own bakery, how would I feel. I personaaly probably wouldn't care BUT, I know my stuff tastes good. I can't decorate worth mud in my eyes. Everythign tastes great. I suggest that you check with your state,county whatever government office you need to, do what they say & start baking. That will really get the squealers goat.

just to touch on the *illegals* for a second, i have a few friends who are drs. and nurses and believe me the legals pass on disease just like the *illegals* its just not on the news


your cakes are great diva i hope you are up and running soon!