Cupcake bakery opens in downtown Antioch

The cupcake craze has hit downtown Antioch.

Kelly Fetzer, who has a longtime love for baking, recently opened Kelly's Cupcakes at 388 Lake St. The shop is filled with sweet and buttery cakes topped with pastel-colored frosting.

"It's a cute little shop," said Fetzer of Fox Lake.

The cupcake craze has been building across the country over the last few years and it's not going away despite the bad economy. "Cupcake stores are really popular in New York and California," Fetzer said.

The Antioch shop features different tastes, from banana to snickerdoodle, on a daily basis. Five flavors, including vanilla, chocolate, cookies and cream, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and red velvet, also are offered daily.

The regular cupcakes sell for $2.25 each while the filled variety go for $3. If shoppers buy five, they get one free.

On the weekends, the business owner adds to the selection offering other baked goods including cream puffs, éclairs, cookies, fruit tarts, coffee cakes and danish.

Fetzer graduated from Kendall College with a degree in culinary arts. She became interested in baking and pastries at a young age and worked in bakeries before having children. "I've always been fascinated with baking and the creativity side of it," she said.

She remembers baking Christmas cookies with her mother. "My grandma, dad and aunt were all very good cooks," she said.

Growing up in Buffalo Grove, the 36-year-old entrepreneur said she has always enjoyed watching cooking shows.

"I've always really liked to cook, even in high school. I was always cooking and baking for my friends," Fetzer said.

For more information, call (847) 603-1130. The business also operates a Facebook page to make fans aware of the flavors of the day.