Twelve months ago, Andre Walker and Victor Delacruz were celebrating the opening of their Dominican-themed restaurant on South Belair Road.
Now, they are looking forward to franchising the Funnel Cake Lounge, which sprang up after the first venture faltered, with eyes on expanding into Columbia early next year.
MORE: Funnel Cakes Are New Area Dessert Craze
“I went and looked at it. The location is a former Japanese restaurant. It is next level,” said Walker.
He’s had about 60 inquiries into franchise opportunities, he said.
The duo gained a few fans of his empanadas and other Dominican-inspire cuisine, but it wasn’t enough to keep the doors open. By spring, they’d switched gears, targeting people’s sweet tooths.
After seeing other over-the-top desserts, Walker picked the humble funnel cake as the base for his designs, even though he wasn’t necessarily a fan of the fried dessert.
“When I went to the fair, I went for the rides. My parents really liked the funnel cakes,” he said.
He combined his culinary background with his parents’ love of funnel cakes and has tried every imaginable confection to top it with. And he likes to come up with catchy names for all his desserts.
The menu has rotated and been expanded since he reopened as the Funnel Cake Lounge. New desserts are added regularly. The newest additions are over-the-top milkshakes.
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When they first opened the most popular one was the chocolate craze, but as time has passed, the new favorite is Miss Peaches. Another popular one is Thicker than a Snicker.
“I think a lot of kids just like to say it,” he said.
He’s planning on adding some seasonal treats related to the upcoming holidays including one inspired by sweet potato pie.
And for the empanada fans, the lounge will host an empanada crawl Oct. 22-24.
Not only are they looking at branching out outside the Augusta area, Walker said he hopes to expand into Aiken and open another restaurant in Augusta as well. He doesn’t have any specific locations in mind yet.
Located at 212 S. Belair Rd., Suites 194-196. The Funnel Cake Lounge is open from noon to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com.
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