TJ Greenhowe & Elle Daniels
Baking came at just the right time for Elle Daniels.
She took up the hobby while walking through a period of stress and anxiety, and baking became the perfect outlet, the Harrisburg resident said.
For a while, she baked for fun, making treats for friends and family. It wasn’t until her partner TJ Greenhowe encouraged her to start a business that she even considered it.
After her daughter was born, Daniels started vending and doing pop ups at events and quickly began receiving praise from satisfied customers.
“There was so much positive feedback and people asking, ‘When is your bakery opening?” she said.
Daniels and Greenhowe decided to take the plunge and open their own storefront. They looked at a few places downtown, as that’s where they often went to grab coffee and wander around, before settling on a newly vacant spot on N. 3rd Street. They decided on the name, Wake & Bake Café, planning to provide both quality coffee drinks and baked goods, along with breakfast items.
In July, the couple cut the ribbon on their storefront, surrounded by friends and community members. It didn’t take long for a line of patrons to fill the shop.
“It feels unreal,” Daniels said on the opening day.
Wake & Bake serves up a variety of treats, from cookies to cakes to breads.
Anything chocolate peanut butter is a crowd pleaser, Daniels said, and her favorites to make are carrot cake and unique flavors like lavender lemon.
She also takes custom cake orders and even holds monthly cake giveaways to families that can’t afford special occasion cakes.
Affordability is another important value of the business. As someone with a family of her own, Daniels knows how expensive it can be to go out to eat and wants to make sure customers can still get quality flavors at reasonable prices.
The shop itself looks different than what customers might remember of the former business at that location, Deco Grab & Go.
Greenhowe, who has his own contracting business, Greenhowe’s Aesthetics, did all the interior renovations himself. That includes a newly white tiled counter, new tables for customer seating and a window bar that provides extra space to sit and snack.
“Our main goal was to make it vibrant,” he said. “It’s like, wow, we really managed to pull it off.”
The journey toward opening hasn’t been easy, as Greenhowe balanced his full-time job with renovating the café and as Daniels found out she was pregnant again, just after deciding to open the storefront. But now that they’re open, the couple is excited to offer the Harrisburg community a new place to hang out, satisfy a sweet tooth and meet with friends.
They also have plenty of help in the form of a significantly sized team for a new business. Four additional staffers will work at Wake & Bake, helping with cooking breakfast, making hot drinks and serving patrons.
During the July ribbon cutting, Harrisburg Mayor Wanda Williams gave her congratulations to the new shop and noted how important small businesses are to the city.
“Thank you for choosing the city of Harrisburg,” she said to the owners. “Thank you for seeing what we see—a city full of promise, full of pride and full of people who will support you every step of the way.”
Wake & Bake Café is located at 240 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit them on Facebook and Instagram @wakeandbakecafehbg.
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