Meet Robert “Bobby” Shindo | Owner/Baker of Chiisai Cakes

We had the good fortune of connecting with Robert “Bobby” Shindo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Robert “Bobby”, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risks are just actions that are out of your normal lifestyle. Taking risks and jumping out of that comfort area that most people are content with, will help you expand your lifestyle and your career. You just have to take a chance. However, there are two types of risks, in my opinion, the good and the bad.

When I was younger I decided to take “bad risks,” where I was risking myself getting into trouble, which ended up happening, but at the time, I thought I was invisible and would never get in trouble. By doing so, I put my family and loved ones through a lot of stress and disappointment.

Once I got out of my adolescence stage, I decided to take the risk of becoming, myself. Not listening to others, to do the “cool” thing or be with the “cool” kids. At the age of 17, I started to do my own thing, I started teaching myself how to cook/bake and I started getting tattoos. I knew I was taking a risk getting tattoos because my mom always told me, “Do NOT do that to your skin” “Can you imagine what they are going to look like when you get old,” things that most parents would say to their children. Long story short, I am 32 now and I have collected a lot of tattoos over the time (Hehe, Sorry, Mom).

Taking the risk of getting heavily tattooed and my love for being a chef/baker is the reason behind starting my own business Chiisai Cakes, the good type of risk. I say that me being a heavily tattooed baker is a good type of risk because I am stepping out of my comfort zone of always being judged because of my physical appearance. Things say to me all the time are “You made these?!” “You’re a Baker?” “You don’t look like a baker!” and besides everything I want people to see that “you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover.”

What should our readers know about your business?
My Mom and Brother actually started Chiisai Cakes a while back, just on the side, more of a hobby. They would make cupcakes and custom little sushi cakes. After a while they phased out of doing it and then a few years later. I decided to bring it back and put my own flavor to it and now Chiisai Cakes LLC has been going for a little over a year now.

I feel like what sets me apart from others is my appearance, most people think of bakers or chefs with the checkered pants, chef coat, apron and toque. To be honest, I wear sweats that a pulled up on my leg, high black socks, a black t-shirt and a beanie or hat. On top of that, all my tattoos just adds a little touch to everything. The reason I like having a certain appearance is because like I stated before I don’t want people judging people by the way they look. I know I have tattoos all over my body, I even have them on my palms and armpits, but just because I have them doesn’t mean that I am a horrible person or that I can’t bake a delicious cookie because there’s tattoos on my body and I don’t have checkered chef pants on.

I am also based in San Fernando Valley, and there are plenty of talented bakeries out here, but I am actually currently working on different Japanese desserts to add to my menu so everyone can try something a little different. I have other items on my menu as well, such as cookies (oreo cheesecake, stuffed red velvet, cinnamon waffle), li Hing Mui candy, Vietnamese coffee, etc.

I got to where I am at today with Chiisai Cakes with all of the support from my friends and family, them helping me get the word out there and everyone supporting small business has been a great help. Also, the whole covid-19 pandemic I believe helped me out as well, because it put my mindset to where it needed to be to push to get this business up and running.

Getting to where I am at today has not been an easy task. I had to teach myself how to balance my personal life with my current job (I am a General Manager of two restaurants) with Chiisai Cakes. I roughly work around 100+ hours every week, but I have taught myself how to schedule and plan everything accordingly. I have also taught myself to always look on the bright side of things and to always keep pushing. I read a quote a while back, from Bob Parsons ” If it was easy, then everyone would do it and you wouldn’t have an opportunity.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I like to just go with the flow. The most fun, that my friends and I have are very spontaneous. We have no idea where we are going or what we are going to eat and everything just kind of falls into place, but most of the time, the best places to go out to eat in my opinion are either in Downtown Los Angeles or near the beach. There are plenty of places in San Fernando Valley but it is always fun to adventure out of your own city.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My Family & Loved Ones… Without my Dad, Mom and Older brother. I wouldn’t be where I am at today. I am lucky to have such a loving and supportive family. They deserve the world. I love them to death and I would do anything for them.

Website: www.ChiisaiCakes.com

Instagram: @Chiisai.Cakes