A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from famed food critic Keith Lee is forced to move after a zoning complaint was filed following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
On April 5, Lee visited Biscuits to Baskets, a small dessert shop located in the backyard shed of a house in a quiet residential neighborhood of Ajax.
The business saw a huge increase in customers immediately after Lee posted a TikTok video to his 16 million followers, offering a positive review of the local store.
“We’re excited to see a lot more new faces,” Victoria Fliegel, manager of the Biscuits to Baskets store, told CP24 last month.
But just weeks after Lee’s visit, the township told the company it could no longer remain in the backyard building where it currently operates after a zoning complaint was filed with the township.
“Due to a recent visit from the city, we have realized that our backyard is not a suitable space for doing business as it is separate from the main house.” Biscuits to Baskets said in a statement posted on social media..
“This went unnoticed and had not been addressed to us until now.”
The post went on to explain that in order to continue operating, they will now have to operate the store from the property’s main house starting June 1.
The owners said they have been operating as a home-based business for 20 years and five years ago decided to move part of the business to the backyard shed. They added that they were following all protocols “to the best of our knowledge and belief.”
In the post, they told customers that hours will not be affected and the only change is where customers will have to pick up their treats.
In a statement sent to CP24.com on Thursday, the city of Ajax confirmed that a letter had been sent to Biscuits to Baskets from the city’s bylaw services division.
According to the release, the letter indicated that they “were not legally operating within the city’s zoning regulations due to operating their home business in an accessory building on their property.”
They confirmed that this letter was sent after a complaint was filed with the city’s bylaws department following Lee’s visit.
“Since then, Biscuits to Baskets has been provided with several options to ensure they can continue to operate successfully out of their primary home, or pursue other options to expand into a commercial store,” the statement reads. “The city has been in contact with Biscuits to Baskets and expressed a willingness to work with them in the future.”
In a video posted on social media this week, Lee responded to the complaint, And he added that he reached out to the family that owns the business to see how he could help.
“The fact that my family and I had a hand in this… it didn’t sit well with me,” Lee said in the video posted on TikTok.
Lee said the store is now selling T-shirts inspired by his visit to help raise funds to move to a new location. She added that, with the family’s permission, she opened Cash App and Paypal accounts so people could donate to support the business.
“If you want, or someone you know wants to help fund a new building for them, fund a food truck, fund a food trailer, wherever this journey takes them… we just wanted to give everyone who wanted help to help,” he said.
“This business, not just from a food perspective, but from a customer service (perspective), from what they stand for to the spirit of the people who work there, is amazing in my opinion.”
Lee’s food reviews have established a phenomenon known as the “Keith Lee Effect,” attracting hordes of new customers to businesses that receive a thumbs-up from the food critic.
Lee’s stops in the GTA in April for the “FamiLee Food Tour” marked the first time he ventured outside the US to do video reviews.
In the statement posted on social media, Biscuits to Baskets acknowledged that while Lee’s overhaul has helped grow their customer base, they still don’t have enough cash for a big move.
“Keith’s visit was a blessing and has definitely given us a push in the right direction, but we are still a long way from funding anything bigger than what we have now,” the post read. “We are working hard as a family to find commercial space for the fall, but it is not guaranteed. It has to be right for us and it has to be right for you. We want to stay at Ajax. This is our house.”