I Am A Cake, a Korean dessert cafe, is doubling down in the Toronto area.
Following the success of its inaugural Greater Toronto restaurant in Markham, I Am A Cake ownership decided to open a second location this month at 67 Shuter St., a few doors down from the Eaton Centre. The cafe serves a wide selection of Korean cakes, desserts and sweet drinks.
Owner Jeff Jo told CoStar News that the residential demographics in downtown Toronto drove him to open a second location in the city. Moreover, the local neighbourhood has had a facelift.
“Young people live around there, and that’s why we decided to open the location,” he said. “The area used to be really bad with a lot of homeless people, but it’s cleaned up.”
Rent for the 1,000-square-foot store is $7,000 a month. That also was attractive, Jo said, because unlike I Am a Cake's takeout-only Markham location, the downtown restaurant has 20-seat dining capacity. The interior is decorated with toys and other colourful features.
“The rent here is really low," Jo said. "For that price, and the potential we see downtown, we decided to open this store."