The Sweetest Mistake We Ever Made

Our journey didn't start with a whisk and a springform pan. It started with a smoker and a passion for barbecue. As the owners of Jr's No. 19 BBQ, we spent years mastering the art of flavor. Then, a simple twist of fate—a wrong delivery of cream cheese—opened our eyes to a whole new world. It was an unexpected detour that led us to our true passion.

We took our obsession with flavor and applied it to dessert. We asked ourselves: what makes a cheesecake truly great? For us, the answer was simple: an uncommonly good, light, yet rich and creamy taste. And so, U.G.L.Y. Cheesecake was born.

That happy accident has since grown into a thriving enterprise. Today, from our home in Pine River, we have the capacity to bake up to 600 cheesecakes a week, supplying dozens of restaurants and retailers who agree that taste is what truly matters.

Led by owners Jason and Ryan, our mission is to make U.G.L.Y. the most sought-after dessert in the state. Their hands-on approach and passion for the business have helped us disrupt the Minnesota dessert scene, earning us features on Lakeland PBS and in Dairy Star magazine.

We're incredibly proud of our "ugly" creations, and it turns out, others are too! We've been honored to be named Minnesota's Best Dessert multiple years in a row and were a finalist for the Best of Minnesota awards in both 2023 and 2024.

Today, we're proud to call Pine River our home. We’re a small-town business with big-time flavor, dedicated to serving our community and sharing our passion for uncommonly good cheesecake with all of Minnesota and beyond.