our Story

At Sweet Emmaline Cheesecakes, we are fully-focused on handcrafting THE BEST cheesecake to be found, serving it up in all the creative flavors a sweet tooth could dream! 

Come join us in any of our locations to sit down for a slice or you can take a piece or two, or three, or four… home with you. Or, let us cater your dessert party. We aim to please. So, please let us serve you!

What sets us apart?

Our one of a kind recipe, combined with the absolute best ingredients, has helped us to create the perfect cheesecake for any dessert occasion. Whether you need to grab-and-go, enjoy your dessert in our store, or place an order for pick up, we have you covered. Is it customer service you’re looking for? Our staff is trained with the customer as our number one priority. It starts in the kitchen and continues with each bite you take. 

How we got Started

In the midst of 2020 pandemic, eleven year old Emily Caroline Patterson began developing a passion for baking. By day, she would watch the kids challenges on The Food Network. By night, she would dream, all things baking. She began creating her own recipes and baking cakes at her Nana’s house every Sunday. 

One day, her little brother, Liam, asked if she could bake a cheesecake. Emily was up for the challenge, but she quickly realized she didn’t own the MUST-HAVE spring form pan. So, she and her mom went on a shopping spree. 

Cheesecake recipes aren’t all that difficult – cream cheese and sugar take up a lot of the space! But Emily brainstormed a few additional ingredients to make her cheesecake the best.

Her first attempt turned out to be the recipe used today for all of Sweet Emmaline’s Cheesecakes. 

Becoming A Business

Sweet Emmaline’s was never intended to be a business, but God had different plans. 

As Emily shared her cheesecakes with friends and family, everyone LOVED them. So, this crafty 11 year old came up with an idea — she was eager to buy a new KitchenAid mixer to replace her handheld. So, she had a goal and set a plan to sell 9” cheesecakes for $25. Her first customer was a local friend named Mike Baum – two days later he purchased his second. And the orders flooded in… 

Emily’s dad, Brian, was setting alarms to take cheesecakes out of the oven at 3 a.m. They definitely had something special… But this was not sustainable! 

The First Retail Store

The Pattersons searched for months for kitchen space. 

A Mexican restaurant had closed at the Cleveland, TN mall. They took the leap of faith and rented it with the intention of baking and offering weekly customer pick up. As they began fixing up the space, requests were flying in to open the doors to the public. 

On August 19, 2021, they celebrated the grand opening of “Sweet Caroline Cheesecakes.” We will explain the name change later.

Over 600 people walked through the doors that day! The following was just as busy. They had to close for three days before they could bake enough cheesecakes to reopen. 

With continued growth, Brian and Laura saw the need to take this venture on full-time. They left their jobs as teacher and school nurse.

After a year of operating from the mall space, the Pattersons found a new retail location that would allow them to keep growing. In the summer of 2023, they added a food truck. 

The Name Change

Once the Pattersons made the decision to franchise, they received some bad news that someone in the baking world already owned the federal trademark on Sweet Caroline. 

They did what any good business would do and polled their customers for suggestions on new names – winner to be granted “cheesecake for life.”

From the thousands of suggestions, one name stood out the most – Sweet Emmaline Cheesecakes. The name was perfect as it finally brought Emily Caroline to the forefront. 

The rest is history!