ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn — For 30 years, Tami Cabrera and a small staff have kept have kept Muddy Paws Cheesecake afloat. Cabrera started the business that now makes around 15,000 gluten-free and vegan cheesecakes per year.
"All of our cheesecakes take somewhere between 20 and 40 hours," Cabrera said. "We make everything from scratch and slow baked, and you never want to rush a cheesecake."
A bakery that gives back, Cabrera says most profits go to animal rescues and the St. Louis Park Emergency Program food shelf.
"When I went to college for veterinary, I really decided I wanted to do something to give back," she said.
But over the last five years, Muddy Paws has encountered what Cabrera calls a snowball of problems, beginning with a 2018 burglary. Cabrera says the intruders forced entry through the roof, which wasn't covered by insurance.
In 2019, they moved to their current location at 3359 Gorham Ave.
"Ran into over $250,000 worth of unexpected costs," Cabrera said.
And 2020, the pandemic.
"I don't need to go into that long description because everyone knows, and everyone's been there and everyone's felt and everyone's experienced things, but we were there, too, and we spent a lot of our time and resources donating cheesecakes during that time to a lot of local people who couldn't get out of their house," she said.
Then in 2021, someone drove their car into the bakery, pausing cheesecake production. And over the last two years, ingredient costs have skyrocketed.
Cabrera spells out all of the reasons on the Muddy Paws Cheesecake website.
"People think, oh, we need more business or we can get a small loan, but it's not that situation," Cabrera explained.
She says, with plenty of loyal customers, sales aren't the problem. Debt is.
So now, the business known for helping others is asking for help, and closing its doors beginning this Thursday, Dec. 28, to raise money for 22 days. Cabrera says if they reach their fundraising goal, they'll reopen Jan. 20.
"We need around $480,000 but we could reopen at around $240,000," she said. "I'm just thinking we're going to because I really have faith in the local people that will put us through."
Muddy Paws Cheesecake is offering incentives to those who donate, from stickers and T-shirts to advertisements. Those who donate more than $250 may have their own logo placed on one of the bakery's walls. Donations can be made through the bakery's Venmo account, @muddypawscheesecake.
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