The veteran pastry chef Casey Renee has long operated an eponymous, by-appointment-only space in Wilkinsburg. Now she’s moving to Regent Square with an expanded and rebranded bakery and cafe.
Confections by Casey Renee Takes Her Sweets to Regent Square
Renee plans to close her longtime home base after relocating to South Braddock Avenue, where she will offer even more of the specialty cakes, cookies, scones and other treats that have earned Confections a following.
“We were at capacity, and I wanted to do more retail,” Renee says. “I’d been keeping my eye out for something to open up in Regent Square, and when the right space became available, I jumped on it.”
Working with an architect, Renee transformed a former wellness studio into a pink-and-white patisserie with pendant lighting, a checkerboard floor and seating for about eight. “I wanted the space to be happy and cute everywhere you look — even the production kitchen,” she explains, “because I spend so much time there.”
A New Name for a New Location
The shop’s colorful new logo does not include her name because the business, she says, “has become more than me.” A two-time James Beard semifinalist who cut her teeth in New York, Renee began working locally at the Ace Hotel before going solo with her custom-designed cakes and pastries.
With three part-time bakers to assist, Renee is constantly developing new recipes and elevating old favorites to ensure a rotating assortment of treats — including vegan and gluten-free options. “We make a chocolate chip cookie people can’t even tell is vegan,” says Renee, who swaps applesauce, flaxseed, coconut milk and other plant-based ingredients for butter and eggs.
Signature items such as vegan blueberry muffins and olive-oil chocolate cake with buttermilk frosting and dark chocolate glaze are perennial staples. Custom orders range from ornate vintage cakes to those that begin with a client’s vision. “A lot of times I’ll get a Pinterest board, or I’ll be asked to work with a certain decor,” she says. “I’ll use those things for inspiration.”
Everything she creates is worth the splurge, she says.
“I crave sweets, too, and if I don’t love something I make it’s not going on the menu. Dessert is special. You don’t need it to survive. I never want you to feel you’ve wasted calories on something not worth it.”
Story by Deborah Weisberg
Photography by Dave Bryce