Darnel’s Cakes

A Black- and LGBT+-owned bakery in Northern Liberties with a mission wrapped into every cinnamon roll, Darnel’s Cakes was founded by pastry chef Kyle Cuffie-Scott in memory of his cousin Darnel Scott, who died from AIDS-related complications in January 2013. What began as a World AIDS Day bake sale in 2015 has grown into a two-location Philadelphia bakery named Best Bakery by Philadelphia Magazine — and one of the few food businesses in the city where every order helps fund HIV/AIDS awareness and support for underserved LGBT+ communities of color.

The Food

Darnel’s menu is built on handmade from-scratch baking with recipes Cuffie-Scott developed from his family’s holiday kitchen in Springfield, Massachusetts. The signature items are the buttermilk biscuits, brioche cinnamon rolls, and breakfast sandwiches — the last of which The Infatuation named one of its favorites in Philadelphia, praising the creamy blend of gruyere, cheddar, and parmesan that holds the whole thing together. The lunch menu expands into smash burgers, baked mac & cheese, and rotating daily specials, and the pastry case is filled with cheese danish, cookies, brownies, and cupcakes made fresh every morning. Custom cakes are available for order — notably, Cuffie-Scott baked Janet Jackson’s 57th birthday cake in May 2023 when the singer celebrated at the Divine Lorraine Hotel.

The Story Behind Darnel’s

Kyle Cuffie-Scott grew up baking with his mother and grandmother during family holidays, and some of those holidays were spent with his younger cousin Darnel Scott, who lived in Georgia. After Darnel died from AIDS-related complications in January 2013, Cuffie-Scott — a trained pastry chef with a degree from Johnson & Wales University and a communications degree from Temple — turned his grief into purpose. He hosted a bake sale on World AIDS Day in 2015 and donated every dollar of the proceeds to COLOURS Organization, the Philadelphia nonprofit that empowers LGBT+ people of color from the African diaspora. The bake sale turned into a farmers-market business, then a University of Pennsylvania wholesale contract (more than 1,000 cookies a week to Penn dining halls), and finally a brick-and-mortar location at 444 North 3rd Street that opened in May 2020 — just as the pandemic was reshaping the city. A second location at 990 Spring Garden Street followed.

The Mission

Darnel’s isn’t a bakery with a charitable sideline — the advocacy is the point. The shop partners with COLOURS Organization to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and to support LGBT+ Philadelphians of color, and the business has become a regular destination for World AIDS Day observances and fundraising events. Most distinctively, customers can add a free HIV test to any online order — a feature almost no other bakery in the country offers, and one that reflects Cuffie-Scott’s vision of his shop as “a source of light” and a resource for underserved communities. The Philadelphia Magazine Best of Philly recognition specifically called out that “discs of cheese danish and icing-smothered brioche cinnamon rolls taste that much better when you know Kyle Cuffie-Scott’s business supports AIDS and HIV relief orgs.”

Location and Hours

The original Darnel’s sits in the lobby of 444 North 3rd Street in Northern Liberties, open Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 2 PM. The second location at 990 Spring Garden Street serves coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and pastries. Online ordering and delivery are available through the Darnel’s website. Northern Liberties is roughly a 15-minute walk or five-minute rideshare from the Gayborhood, making Darnel’s a natural stop for anyone exploring Philadelphia’s Black and LGBT+ business scene beyond Center City.