Mouthfuls of frosting, sprinkles, filling and more. What else could a sweet tooth ask for?
Mid City Bakery has a grand selection of desserts to choose from; customers will not walk away hungry. With a singular baker and owner creating and perfecting every recipe from scratch, there is a guarantee that these sweets are made with love.
Based in Baton Rouge, Kimberly Fansler is the owner and sole baker of Mid City Bakery, a private cottage bakery business. She handles every aspect of her business, from finances and customer service to product prep work and the baking from scratch itself. As it is a cottage bakery, she does not have a store location. Instead, she bakes in her own home.
Fansler begins her mornings in the kitchen, fixing the space to be best suited for the bakes of the day. Once she conquers the battle of beating doughs and mixing batters, she scribes invoices and polishes her social media pages. This all happens while her oven works its magic and fills the kitchen with the scent of homemade treats and hard work.
As the timer rings and the desserts come out the oven to cool, Fansler moves to package, label and take inventory. She explained how she begins reviewing orders for the next day, as customers depend on the bakery day to day. She also added how she handles the cleaning, and the dishes are a beast that she has to fight all day long.
With over 12 years of industry experience under her apron, she handles both sides of owning and running a business with a knowledgeable flair.
Mid City Bakery’s menu consists of cookies, pies, cakes and more, and Fansler emphasized how she is confident in making just about anything. The bakery’s top sellers are Big Debs, which are homemade oatmeal cream pies, and the GF/Vegan Chocolate Cake.
Although Fansler stressed how customers rave about these top treats, she said that her personal favorite is the rainbow Sprinkle Sugar Cookie. The cookie’s recipe is drawn from her grandmother’s holiday sugar cookie recipe, and nostalgia seizes her every time she eats one.
“We use rich European butter and super high quality royal icing sprinkles. I can’t stand the waxy soft rainbow sprinkles, so we tried tons before we settled on our favorite,” said Fansler. “These cookies are baked until golden brown. They’re crisp around the edges, soft and chewy in the middle.”
Family is an important part of Fansler’s love for baking, as she watched her mother bake and decorate cakes to supplement income while raising her and her two siblings.
“I spent a lot of time watching her make beautiful things. Our family is full of artists and creatives, so I guess it’s also just kind of in my blood,” said Fansler.
Fansler’s brother is a painter and a sculptor, and her sister runs a baking business on the side in North Carolina. Her mom, who is now happily retired, bakes only for leisure and crochets blankets for everyone she knows.
Fansler’s business’ presence in Baton Rouge has grown significantly since its opening on Jan. 2, 2024. Mid City won The 225 Magazine’s Best of 225 Award for best cottage bakery. Mid City also has a few regulars who order weekly, and there are families that place cake orders for every event they hold.
Abbey Weselak, a records management specialist and two-time LSU graduate, is a regular customer of Mid City Bakery. She was introduced to the bakery when she attended a local festival and came across one of Fansler’s pop-ups. She purchased a few treats, and she instantly became hooked on the baked goods.
Weselak’s favorite dessert is The Big Deb. She always stocks up for herself and her fiancé when she sees Fansler, and she recommends trying the cookie to any first-time customers.
“My favorite thing about the desserts is that they have the perfect sweetness level. You know how a dessert can be too sweet? MCB desserts never feel like that,” said Weselak. “They’re always perfectly balanced in my opinion, and always satisfy my cravings for a treat.”
Weselak explains how the most enjoyable parts about Mid City Bakery are how personable Fansler is and how versatile her skill repertoire is.
“When a business owner is a good person and sells great stuff, how could I not want to support them?” said Weselak.
Weselak expanded on how she lived in the Mid-City area for a few years up until recently, and she still keeps up with the hustle and bustle of local businesses; this means being able to see what places sell Fansler’s baked goods.
“Between the pop-ups and festivals, I’d consider MCB a staple in Baton Rouge. When local businesses support independent creators like Kimberly, it really fosters a sense of community and fellowship,” said Weselak. “I love putting a name to a face and being able to support real people, and I know a lot of other people in the local scene feel the same way.”
Weselak adds how Fansler will be making her wedding cake. She explains how her and her fiancé held a meeting with Fansler to discuss what they envision for the cake and how Fansler will make their vision a reality.
With Mid City Bakery turning two, Fansler has already accomplished so much; from a fresh start in her home kitchen to winning the hearts of Baton Rouge residents, her business can only continue to flourish.
“Down the road, I’d love to specialize in something I call ‘unpretentious patisserie’ – high‑end pastry that feels accessible, welcoming and down‑to‑earth,” said Fansler. “I also want to bring my fine arts background into my wedding cake work, creating designs that are both artistic and deeply personal.”
And just in time for the Mardi Gras season, Fansler recently announced on the official Mid City Bakery Instagram page that she now sells a special treat with a green, purple and gold spin: The King Cake Cheesecake. Bathed in gold and sprinkled with purple and green, the cheesecake appears ready to deliver a bite of Mardi Gras.
Mid City Bakery also has items available at Pelican to Mars, Red Stick Reads and Mid City Beer Garden. For a full roster of its sweet and savory delights, customers can go to the Mid City Bakery website to view the menu, prices and ordering information.
