Alumni Files: Elena Fox, Cake Ace and Guitar-Playing Romantic

Elena Fox, BHS '97, is a Baltimore musician who worked at Charm City Cakes while the show was filmed for the reality show "Ace of Cakes" on Food Network.

Now that the show's last season has wrapped, Patch checked in to find out what Fox's future holds, both in reality and on reality TV.

She dishes about art, scientists on "Jersey Shore," the current craze for all things retro, and whether or not we will see her on an upcoming "Dancing with the Stars" season.

Give us the brief rundown of everything you've done between BHS and Ace of Cakes: how did you end up on a reality cake decorating show?

After I graduated from BHS, I went on to study fine arts at SUNY New Paltz. After college I had a pretty eclectic array of jobs including waitress, bartender, graphic designer, makeup artist for a cosmetic company, and Halloween costume/toy designer. I moved to Baltimore from Brooklyn in 2006 to play in a band and through a complete stroke of luck and having a few good connections, I took a job at Charm City Cakes as a cake icer. They had just finished wrapping the first season of Ace of Cakes when I showed up. The future of the show at that point was uncertain, so I didn’t really think I’d be on it. As it turned out, The Food Network picked up the show for a second season, where I made my “debut” as a decorator and “reality show cast member.” To our surprise, the network would keep picking it up for four more years.

A lot of us harbor some kind of reality show invention idea. What's yours: if you could create your own reality show from scratch, what would it be about?

It might be cool to see a reality show about rival teams of German entomologists who are brilliant, but have a wild side and like to party late night in the bug lab. Much debauchery would ensue. Picture "Jersey Shore," only with subtitles and insects.  

Why do you think Babylon Village and Babylon High School turns out so many talented artists? What do you think makes a town "artsy" or not?

I really think that Babylon High School turned out so many talented artists because of the talented art and music teachers and all the positive reinforcement they gave us students. They gave me the confidence to take a chance on pursuing a career in the competitive field of the arts. To me, what makes a town “artsy” is the interest of the community in supporting and developing different outlets for its local artists and musicians to take advantage of. 

What do you think made "Ace of Cakes" so popular and resonate with viewers? A show about a small cake shop in Baltimore and its young tattooed staff wouldn't have been an obvious hit for a prime-time Food Network show, yet it had high ratings and returned for so many seasons. What is it about cake shows and cake decorating shows that give them such mass appeal?

I’m not exactly sure what made "Ace of Cakes" so popular. My coworkers and I all thought it was a great idea, but at the same time knew that it might not go over well with the average American viewer. None of us were actors or aspiring models or even that eloquent on camera, yet somehow people liked us. I guess maybe it’s because superficially, we are all unlikely candidates to be working in a bakery. People picture sweet little old ladies or classy French patisserie owners, not young tattooed art students and musicians, so that in itself is kind of weird and different.

The fact that we turned out to be good at what we did gave us credibility, which I think kept people watching. Then we were lucky enough to have the show go on for four years, during which time our audience got to know each of our personalities pretty well and lots of people found at least one of us they could relate to on a purely social level.

What's your take on the way baking, knitting and other traditionally domestic hobbies and occupations are now intersecting with indie or punk rock and feminist cultures? Is it just part of a bigger do-it-yourself aesthetic, a fondness for all things retro, or is there something political about cooking?

I think it has to do with our generation’s fascination with the past, and the twentieth century in particular. It’s easy to romanticize the past, when women wore red lipstick and kitten heels to the grocery store, wrote letters and made most of their own food and baked goods. I know I certainly subscribe to this romanticism. I love retro decorations, vintage clothes and listening to records, and also the idea of making things for myself rather than going out to Target and buying them. Now, you can bake all the meringues and pies you want but also play the guitar just as good as any guy, or do any other sort of male-dominated activity without feeling like you have gender limitations.

Now that Ace of Cakes is over, what are your plans? Will we see you on an all-cake-decorator edition of Celebrity Apprentice (just kidding)? Do you think you will do anything else on television or will you focus on other pursuits?

Now that it's over, I’m not really sure what the future will hold. Charm City Cakes is up to business as usual, it’s just that there are no cameras there. I’m still totally enjoying my job as a cake decorator; last week I got to make a 5-foot-high dinosaur, so I can’t really complain. I’d love to do something else on TV, but those things are really hard to predict. Maybe “Dancing with the Stars" - just kidding!

Babylon Village is increasingly becoming a restaurant scene and downtown is becoming more vibrant every year. What store or restaurant would you open in Babylon? Do we need a live music venue or our own version of Charm City Cakes?

It’s really cool how Babylon Village is becoming more of a restaurant scene with new places to attract people to hang out in our little town. I guess if I were to open some kind of establishment there, it would be a music venue. Baltimore has a few venues that are art galleries with professional shows of local and visiting artists, but also double as rock clubs. I think it would be fun to have something like that on Long Island.

Check back for more interviews with Babylon High School graduates who are enjoying success in the arts, music, sports, entertainment and other careers.