Sisters Sweets To Go! Hosts First Saturdays Event in Cameron

The McQueen sisters, Janice Watkins and Marilyn Eaton, started Sisters Sweets To Go as a way to stay busy, doing something they enjoy, during their upcoming retirement. “That was 10 years ago,” laughs Jan. The sisters are still working, Jan as a beautician and Marilyn as a realtor, but they think they are close to making the switch.

The sisters grew up baking in a time when that was what girls were expected to do. “There where five of us the boys got to go outside and work with the animals and we stayed inside and baked and cleaned and mopped floors”. Though they didn’t appreciate the skills at the time, they have really come to appreciate all that experience and say it is difficult for their mother to fathom the scale at which they bake now. “We told her we were making 300 cupcakes one day and she just couldn’t believe it. She said that wasn’t possible to make so many,” recalled a smiling Marylin. Many of the desserts are tried and true family recipes.

The Sisters started their enterprise in 2008 and they started First Saturdays in 2017. Jan had heard about First Friday in Kansas City at different places and they decided to do First Saturdays because that worked better for schedules in the area. They are pleased with how the turnout has grown. “It is really becoming a place the ladies like to get together. We have a couple groups that come every month as their ladies’ outing. They just sit here a chat, eat pastries, drink coffee, and have a lovely time together.” They have had a lot of people, friends and family, help make the monthly event successful. Interestingly, they almost cancelled First Saturdays earlier this year when attendance was down during the summer months but decided to go ahead with it anyway. “That month we almost canceled was our best month ever, so we thought it must be an omen to tell us to keep this going. We have been packed since,” remarked Jan, “this last month really exploded!”. Their shop can seat 20 people.

With the exception of First Saturdays, everything from Sister Sweets To Go is ordered a day or two ahead of time by their patrons and “made fresh from scratch” by the sisters. “We have all sorts of cakes, pies, cookies, muffins, and scones”. Customer favorites include the White Lemon Cake, which is a white cake with a lemon mouse filling, the Triple Berry Pie and the Almond Rocha Cookies. Sister Sweets To Go is located at 811 N Walnut St.