Sugardaddy's in Lewis Center serves edgeless brownies with star quality

October 28, 7:07 PMColumbus Family Travel ExaminerWendy Pramik

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Photos by Wendy Pramik: Tom Finney (left) and Mark Ballard are
the brains behind the Sugardaddy's business and its brownies.

I’m a sucker for sweets. So when I recently learned about a bakery in central Ohio that’s getting national recognition for its delectable “edgeless” brownies, I headed out in search of a sugar rush.

Sugardaddy’s Sumptuous Sweeties in Lewis Center is a locally owned bakery and retail shop that makes gourmet brownies and brownie-inspired confections including brownie cheesecake, brownie truffles and brownie biscotti.

The 4-year-old bakery is somewhat famous because TV talk show hosts Ellen DeGeneres, Rachael Ray and Bobby Flay have embraced its brownies. DeGeneres gives them as gifts to her guests, Ray featured them on her show as the “Snack of the Day,” and Flay of the Food Network challenged Sugardaddy’s to a “ThrowDown” challenge two years ago and the Columbus bakery was crowned the winner.

Food Network also has named Sugardaddy’s brownies and blondies the “Best of the Best.”

Sugardaddy's Tahiti blondies

At Sugardaddy’s, taste and tastefulness go hand-in-hand. First, the goods are scrumptious because they’re made from fresh ingredients. While I liked the Dark Berry brownie, my husband was impressed by the “ThrowDown” winner, the Tahiti blondie. It was packed with toasted coconut, white and dark chocolate chunks, pineapple and roasted cashews.

But the presentation sets the snacks apart. The “brunettes” (chocolate brownies) and “blondes” (lighter blondies) are hand-cut from a baking pan with a circular cookie cutter, so there are no crusty edges to bite into. They’re also nicely wrapped and can be carefully packaged in circular, see-through acrylic containers. Packed for shipping, they cost $4.75 each. Otherwise, they’re $3 apiece.

Sugardaddy’s has a posh feel, with lots of pink. There’s a comfortable seating area in the back, where you can relax and enjoy a cup of coffee and a brownie that’s tasty all-round.

“Brownies and blondies are my favorite things in the world to bake,” said Sugardaddy’s executive chef Tom Finney, who co-owns the business with his partner, Mark Ballard.

The store at Oak Creek Center

Sugardaddy’s is a classic business-meets-opportunity story. Finney worked in marketing and loved to bake as a hobby. Ballard worked in retail and often traveled. After one trip he told Finney: “Your brownies are better than anything I’ve ever tasted in New York City.” They wondered: “How do we develop them and put our own spin on them?”

Finney and Ballard found their niche in what they call “luxury” desserts, starting Sugardaddy’s as an online business in 2005. They settled on the round shape to make every bite taste middle-of-the-pan fresh. Ingeniously, they use the “scraps” to make other dessert items such as brownie biscotti.

Finney and Ballard opened the retail store in the Oak Creek Center off Polaris Parkway in February. Business is booming, they say — so much so that they have plans to open a store in downtown Columbus in January.

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