MEET OUR TEAM

Lusy wilson

Position: River North Head Baker

Favorite Donut: Maple Glazed Pineapple and Bacon or Wildflower Honey Glazed.

Another New Jersey native on our team, Darcy comes from Bridgewater, NJ. Like the rest of New Jersey, the most Bridgewater has to offer is being near NYC which is why Darcy reached out to other parts of the country to grow her creative spirit. She just never knew how much she would miss being near the ocean (the only thing people miss about New Jersey!) – that, and the most delicious bagels around (a love shout out to Round Dough With A Hole).

John Garcia

Position: Oak Park Manager

Favorite donut: Currently pistachio old fashion. Subject to change with the seasons

Rob is excited to be joining the Firecakes family. Originally from Cape Cod, Massachusettes, Rob has called Chicago home for over a decade. He began his career in the service industry while in college. A friend's brother needed help at his restaurant and was paying cash. Rob showed up for the gig, which turned out to be dishwashing. After half a shift, the manager gracefully sent a soaking wet Rob home, saying "You're more of a front of house kind of guy." Rob has been serving guests in some shape or form ever since.

Nansy Smith

Postion: Lincoln Park Supervisor

Favorite donut: Chocolate Hazelnut Long John or Espresso Cream

Noemi was born in Chicago but partially raised in Santa Ana, CA. She’s been working in the customer service industry since 2001. After a long working relationship with Chipotle, she decided to make the switch to sweets. Noemi started at Firecakes as a team member and quickly climbed the ladder to being a supervisor at our Lincoln Park location. Not only does Noemi manage one of our largest locations, she’s also a busy mom of 5 wonderful children. In what little free time is left, Noemi enjoys strategic games and activities

The inspiration for Firecakes is rooted in Karen’s family history. Her grandfather, William “Billy” Hobbs, was a baker in the logging camps of northern Wisconsin in the 1930’s. Responsible for feeding large groups of working men, Billy used his limited resources to create tasty baked goods that would sustain the workers throughout their long and arduous workdays.

Billy was renowned throughout the region for his excellent bread, and after acquiring a round dough cutter (the original of which is located in our Hubbard Street shop), Billy began making “firecakes”, a backwaters take on the modern day donut. His original fried treats were made in a large, cast iron pot of oil over an open fire and sprinkled with just a little bit of sugar.

Our recipe is based off of Billy’s original, a closely guarded family secret. We source locally farmed products and unique ingredients to make our very own “firecakes”, and just like Billy, we serve our donuts starting early in the morning and going well into the night. Because we believe that everyone — not just early 20th century loggers — can use a sweet treat to get them through.