Meet Quentin Brooks | Engineer, Cheesecake Baker & Party Game Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Quentin Brooks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Quentin, how do you think about risk?
Risks are absolutely necessary. It is quite simple and cliche, “no risk, no reward.” The difference between every successful business person, the small minority, and the everyday person, the large majority, is that the successful business person took a risk. They risked losing money, losing sleep, embarrassment, rejection, etc. They decided to take a risk and lead the pack instead of running with the herd. While listening to a sermon online recently, I heard something regarding entrepreneurship that has been truly thought provoking. It was a road map from an idea to wealth; first there is “conception”, then “creation”, then “commitment”, then “commerce”, and lastly “wealth.” The average person avoids taking risks and stops after “conception.” God has gifted everyone with creativity and imagination, but most people keep their visions to themselves. So, in these last few years, I’ve been more intentional about actually bringing my visions to life and taking risks, and the risks have paid off. I produced something, people liked it, and they paid me money because of it. I’m not a multi-millionaire or even a multi-thousand-aire but I’ve taken risks and I’ve made it to “commerce.” It’s a long way to “wealth”, but I’m a lot closer than I was when all I had was an idea.

What should our readers know about your business?
I like to think of myself as an entrepreneur trapped in an engineer’s body. I am an engineer by day and after work I’m a cheesecake baker and I’ve recently developed a musical trivia card game launching March 2024. I started Q York Cheesecakes during the height of the pandemic when I couldn’t go out to restaurants to eat. So, I started making what I loved from different restaurants at home. I made a cheesecake one day, several people loved it and that’s how I started. My websites give a little more detail on the story, QYorkCheesecakes.com.

I recently came up with the concept for a musical trivia game while listening to music and being my secretly goofy self. As I listened to the song, I thought, “what would the lyrics be if there was no slang?” From that thought, “What’s The Hook?” was born. I created a musical trivia game that requires you to identify the original lyrics of a song based on a formal translation of the lyrics, WhatsTheHookGame.com. While I type this, manufacturing has begun, and my first order of 1000 decks of cards should be received in 45 days.

I think my computer science degree taught and conditioned me for methodical, systematic thinking practices and I tend to approach Q York Cheesecakes, and “What’s The Hook?” in that manner. I approach my businesses with a technical “if this, then that” mentality. For instance, “do people give me good feedback?”, if yes, then keep it up, if no, then refactor and retest. This was problematic in the beginning of Q York Cheesecakes. Sometimes my thinking is black or white, zero or one, success or failure. I wanted every single person who tasted my cheesecake to love it, but I had to come to terms with the fact that I could not please everyone at the same time. Instead of trying to win EVERYONE’S approval, I had to recognize that I actually had repeat customers comprised of family, friends and most of all, strangers. I highlight “strangers” because when you start a business, your family and friends will support just because of the relationship you have. It’s when those same people and the addition of new unknown customers patronize and keep coming back, that tells you, “They love this, not because they love me, but because they REALLY love this!” This was one of the first lessons I learned when I got started baking cheesecake. I didn’t understand what repeat customers meant. I was chasing the one person that thought it was “just okay” because, in my engineering way of thinking, my code compiles successfully or it fails. I had to learn to shift my idea of success and focus on the 90% of satisfied customers and not the 10%. Once I realized this, it boosted my confidence and I was able to embrace and even repeat some of the things I had heard my customers say, “this is the best cheesecake you’ll ever taste.”

I like to say that Q York Cheesecakes is so good that it changes tastebuds. My biggest compliment comes from the person who doesn’t like cheesecake. “Q, I’m not a huge fan of cheesecake, but I love yours!” If I’m making non-cheesecake fans reconsider their dessert preferences, I know I’m doing something right. If you love musical trivia, look out for a new way to play. “What’s The Hook?” will challenge your knowledge of lyrics from hit songs and your vocabulary at the same time.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
As fun and outgoing as I might appear, and as well as I can thrive in those environments, I’m really into simplicity and just enjoying being around the company of people I have love for. So my recommendations would revolve around scenery and food. Not only that, I’m huge on Long Beach. Not my hometown, but certainly the next closest thing. My favorite beach is Sunset Beach, located between Huntington Beach and Seal Beach. Nice waves without all of the people. For some outdoor exercise, running along the beach in Long Beach, from Shoreline to Los Alamitos Bay. People watching on Second Street, Belmont Shore, and a warm cinnamon roll from Sweet Jill’s while we’re down there. Long Beach has great Thai Food, so we would have to eat at Panvimarn for sure.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am appreciative of all of my family and friends who have supported me and been in my corner cheering me on. I won’t name everyone, but there are two recent instances of affirmation that deserve mentioning. So let me first start out by giving my wife a big thanks for being a tremendous catalyst. In December 2023, we were on “Let’s Get Intimate,” a relationship-centered talk radio show on KBLA, and she was asked the question, “When is Quentin your hero?” During the course of her answer, she said, “I don’t ever see Quentin as a Black Man who is going to fail.” Hearing her say those words instantly increased my confidence and let me know she not only supports me, but she trusts in my ability to succeed. The next incident occurred around that same December 2023 time frame. I was talking to my dad, and he told me he was proud of me and that he saw a confidence in me that he didn’t have at my age. I’m no psychologist, that’s my wife’s profession, but I do know that deep down inside sons, no matter the age, are looking for the approval of their fathers. Hearing my dad tell me how proud of me he was, was a confidence boost like no other.

Website: www.QYorkCheesecakes.com, www.WhatsTheHookGame.com

Instagram: QYorkCheesecakes, WhatsTheHookGame