Who We Are
The Joy of Pancakes is an event entertainment and arts company founded in 2023 by the original live pancake artist, Daniel 'Dr. Dan' Drake, and his fiancée, Wella 'Wellamade' Kelly. We specialize in prestige pancake art and artistry; by using colored pancake batter, fine-tipped squeeze bottles, a simple residential electric griddle, nearly 20 years of experience, a boatload of talent and a can-do attitude, we bring transformative joy with us everywhere we go, flipping pancakes in the likeness of portraits, pets, logos, memes, favorite characters, abstract concepts and inside jokes.
Dan's work has been featured everywhere from nationally syndicated television shows (NBC's The Today Show, ABC's Good Morning America, Fox's Hell's Kitchen, the E! Oscars Pre-Show, and the Nickelodeon's Kid's Choice Awards), to international conferences and events (such as Disney's D23 convention, the IGCF in the UAE, and live demonstrations in Hong Kong and Singapore), and viral videos featuring his artistry have been viewed hundreds of millions of times. He is the single most experienced live pancake artist on the planet.
Wella is an industrial and graphic designer and artist, with a whip-smart understanding of branding and a master of making people feel cared for. Their natural empathy makes them an exceptional complement to Dan's raw talent, able to curate our presentation and connect with our guests in ways that elevate our product from goodness to greatness.
Armed with the inspiring philosophy that it's okay to make mistakes (they're delicious, after all), and the warm personality you get from a pair of plucky midwesterners who've traveled the world, The Joy of Pancakes is on the fast track to becoming the finest name in joyful entertainment. Book us today!
Aw, Dang.
We received a trademark violation notice from the pioneering pancake art company that I created and separated from, which I named after myself by putting a 'D' in the place of ‘P’ in the word 'Pancakes'. It claimed that my inclusion of this name in the story below infringed on their trademark. This triggered an automated process that took this page down and, left alone, would have taken our entire website offline, making it much harder for Wella and I to earn a living.
Let it be known: I created that brand, in the sense that it originated with me, my name, and my story. I am (to this day) referred to by that brand name by those who don’t know better. I have exerted no force in controlling their use of the brand since my departure in the summer of 2022, because I believed fighting ran contrary to my values. Instead, I walked with less than I deserved, and set to building something new.
Rather than paying a lawyer to clarify that we have a right to our resume, I have updated this page to change all instances of their brand name to "Dangcakes", as a compromise that will prevent further disruption. Thank you for reading.
- Dan
Finding Our Joy
When co-founder and glorified fry cook Dan Drake was fresh out of high school and looking for gainful employment, he stumbled onto the cooking line at an old-school greasy spoon diner called Courtesy, in his hometown of St. Louis, MO. There, he worked graveyard shifts catering to the short-order cravings of the city’s late-night drinkers, service workers and burlesque performers. He learned the ins and outs of fry cook nobility; how to multitask, how to banter with guests at the counter, and how to send out omelettes, hashbrowns, burgers and eggs hot and fresh every time. His mentors would even go so far as to put round dollops on the pancakes they served, evoking that classic cartoon mouse to make kids smile (and get their parents to tip a bit more generously).
One evening on a slow shift, Dan had a light-bulb moment: if you could put mouse ears on pancakes, why not draw other shapes? Why not smiley faces and cartoon characters? Lines of batter would cook solid on the steel flat-top griddle; the sky was the limit. Eureka moment in mind, the next customer who ordered a short stack from Dan was surprised to see his pancakes staring back at him. That customer left a $15 tip, and that settled it: from then on, every person who ordered a pancake from Dan Drake would get some kind of silly design.
Word spread in the St. Louis underground. Friends from the music scene would make a point to drive by the fluorescent aquarium in which he toiled, excited to see “the pancake guy” standing at the griddle. All sorts of challenges were brought, with patrons asking for faces, renditions of classical art, and the occasional bit of human anatomy. And Dan, being “how he is”, couldn’t say no. For the next 5 years, Dan perfected his craft in these humble beginnings.
Eventually something magical took place. An acrobatic regular named Brent arrived after a late shift with a simple request for Dan: “Make me your finest Dangcake.” Dan set to work crafting his favorite and most practiced design – a mushroom power-up – while posing for Brent’s camera throughout the process. At the end Brent had a smoothly executed piece of pancake art, and a collage that captured Dan’s goofy personality. Seven months later that photo went viral, and in late
2013 it landed Dan on NBC’s The Today Show, making him the world’s first "professional pancake artist."
Over the next seven years Dan was whisked away to every corner of the globe, crafting pancake designs for celebrities and TV shows, billed as far away as Hong Kong and Dubai as the culinary superstar, "Dangcakes". He guested on Hell’s Kitchen with Gordon Ramsay; served breakfast to Katy Perry; and brought John Cena a portrait of his own face behind the scenes of the Kids Choice Awards. He built a brand with his friends and taught others how to make pancake art. He published products, taught classes, and worked with everyone from preschoolers to senior citizens, sharing joy every step of the way. Armed with an attitude of radical openness and humility, Dan said yes to opportunity, and tasted a strange sort of greatness.
In 2022, creative differences with his business partners led Dan to step away from the Dangcakes brand, and forge a new path with his fiancée and best friend Wella “Wellamade” Kelly. Wella’s empathic brand sensibility and the pair’s shared vision is encapsulated in the name of their new venture: The Joy of Pancakes. With a dream of creating a pancake art food truck and restaurant, they are stepping forward to spread joy everywhere they go. We hope you’ll join us as we enter this new chapter of our story.
