Kayshla Bentley opened Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts less than a month ago inside the most unique location — nestled in a cute food cart steps from the Avenues Mall food court. She had a dream that took nearly a decade to develop after years of being a binge watcher of “The Cake Boss” as one of his millions of fans.
In a city that has been blessed with heavenly bread smells wafting through various culinary neighborhoods and trendy bakeries that address every dietary requirement, Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts offers small beauties that customers admit: “They are so beautiful, I don’t want to eat them!”
We often imagine a dessert stop in the same breath as coffee, a window into thriving bakeries, doughnut shops, cupcake specialists — all common denominators when we imagine sweet desserts. However, Kayshla’s concept and imagination took her creative hands into a totally different direction. And her original foray into baking was a hobby that brought her true joy when she could create a simple chocolate covered jumbo marshmallow, strawberry or pretzel stick for one of her friends or close family. She had no thought that she could wave goodbye to her prior career in a law firm and embark on opening her own petite place as everyone practically begged her to take the chance!
Kayshla enjoys every day as if it’s the first day with passion and excitement to create and sell her delicious chocolate-covered individual desserts but to also make each piece into edible art. She personally prepares everything sold in her cart fresh to order the day before she opens each morning. And if she’s creating desserts for a private event, she’s meticulous about guaranteeing freshness and beauty every day.
On her grand opening date, Sept. 16, all the lovely treats were sold out, something that still surprises Kayshla. Her formula for creating a custom-designed dessert means uncomplicated — no silverware, no plates, only napkins and many on sticks. Featuring very affordable prices, her growing clientele recognizes that their orders — even the smallest order of a half dozen chocolate-dipped Oreos or Rice Krispies treats — can’t be found at a regular market.
Born and raised in New York City, she lived in many locations throughout the Northeast before meeting and marrying Nathaniel Bentley — they now have been married for 13 years and have two small daughters. Of her husband, she proudly admits, “He is the one who puts the Bentley in Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts!”
He’s very much an important part of their partnership. She handles all the creative baking and decorating, and he is the accountant/bookkeeper. But it’s Kayshla’s love for chocolate and creating pretty edibles that was her niche when they agreed to go “all in” to make Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts an official business.
Without hesitation, her tiny cakes and cake pops are like what one would see on a professionally designed wedding dessert table, baby shower, sweet 16 party or special holiday. Her No. 1 best sellers are the beautifully decorated and 100% totally edible cake doughnuts. Baked not fried, they have a soft spongy texture covered in a thin veil of candy-coated chocolate wafer that melts in your mouth. Kayshla uses vanilla-flavored chocolate, classic milk and dark chocolate depending on the color-scheme of the holiday or special events.
Kayshla feels the excitement of being at the launch and beginning of her journey. Her goal for this year is to expand Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts into a larger kiosk inside the mall where she will have the opportunity of baking her cake doughnuts fresh to order. If there was one essential similarity between “The Cake Boss” and Kayshla, it was the spunk to accept any challenge.
From the cart to the kiosk — and then a dream to grow into a larger storefront — we’ll be watching Mrs. Bentley’s Desserts as we, too, dream of that first bite of heaven … an irresistible jumbo sweet strawberry with a tiny chocolate edible rose.
