Skylar Cook, head baker of Burning Question Bakery: Shoot by, J. Brooker of Off the Grid Greenville

We’ve got a “Burning Question”

September 15th, 2026

There aren’t many people I think about at 7:30 or 8 a.m.
Until Skyler Cook.

By then, Cook is already deep into the quiet, precise work of lamination—feeding dough through the laminating machine, folding and resting it until she has her 25 layers. It’s the kind of work that requires patience, a good eye and, in Skyler’s case, a little obsession.

Skylar Cook - head baker of Burning Question Bakery for Off the Grid Greenville, SC

For Cook, lamination is more than a technique.

“Laminating does feel very much like therapy to me. The repetitive nature of it brings me a similar sense of peace that meditation does.”

She’s not kidding.

The daily steps have become little rituals for her, and the repetition gives her something steady to focus on. There’s also a puzzle to it that she loves: figuring out why something worked, why it didn’t, and what she can change next time.

How It’s Made

Step 1

Butter “sheets” are run through the lamination machine until the desired number of layers is created.

Skylar Cook of Burning Question Bakery for Off The Grid Greenville

Step 2

Dough is measured precisely.

Step 3

Each piece is shaped by these talented hands.

Step 4

Ready to rest

Step 5

Bake

Step 6

Eat

Charla of Burning Question Bakery for Off The Grid Greenville, SC

Skyler started baking young

Skyler grew up baking cookies and cakes after school. Her family showed her good food and her developed palate shows.

She enjoys going through cookbooks and researching techniques. An idea might start with one ingredient, followed by a simple question: What can I turn this into?

A baking career wasn’t really the plan. At 20, she got a job at The Chocolate Moose in downtown Greenville, SC. That’s where things started to click. She liked the people and the work. She gained the confidence to continue.

After Greenville’s beloved Chocolate Moose closed, she worked in professional kitchens as a baker, line cook, kitchen manager, and even a barista before joining Bake Room in 2022.

That’s where she trained under Wade Taylor.
Wade taught her the foundational skills of lamination, and he also gave her something that stayed with her: high standards.

“I realized that lamination is specifically something I’m really good at,” Cook says. “I really enjoy it. I love the problem-solving aspects. I just love doing it every day. I can do it every day for the rest of my life.”

The standards are definitely hers now.

Burning Question grew out of that freedom

Skyler was tired of seeing the same pastry options around Greenville and wanted to make the things she was seeing and reading about from bakeries around the country and the world—things she wanted to eat herself.

“If I were a customer, I would eat every item on our menu and be happy with it.”

At Nine of Cups, she now has the freedom to keep following those instincts. Her personality is in the food.

Her collaborator, Charla, brings that same attention to detail to the kitchen, along with a remarkably even temperament. She’s the person who will hand-clip every last piece of dill from a fresh box and prepare the butter sheets Skyler feeds through the laminating machine.

Nine of Cups

Owned by Nate Warner, Nine of Cups is an independent coffee shop and bakery in the former home of Cosmic Rabbits, creating a welcoming third place for coffee & pastry lovers with a European flair.

And yes, it’s a must-visit.

Nine of Cups interior shot for Off The Grid Greenville, SC

Burning Question pastry shown with Nine of Cups Coffee for Off The Grid Greenville, SC

Bagels with cream cheese and lox/nova (cured, smoked salmon)

“If I can fill that niche for even just one other person, that makes me happy.”

At the end of the day, though, Skyler still wants a chocolate chip cookie.

And tomorrow morning, she’ll be back at it.

Layer by layer.

Ownership model: Greenville-based pop-up pastry concept or micro-bakery located at Nine of Cups, 131 E. McBee Avenue, Greenville, SC.

Contact info: IG @burningquestionbakery. For interviews, quotes, or photography requests, send a direct message (DM) to reach the owner/baker.

Featured Articles.

Be inspired to take action.

Explore Our Stories

Octopus Carpaccio from DeMarco's GF menu - sponsor of Off The Grid Greenville's Gluten Free Guide

Eat. Drink.

Gluten-Free Guide to Greenville

We’ve assembled and continue to update an EPIC list of over 100 locally owned restaurants and bakeries that cater to gluten-free diners without compromising taste...

Community Tap North Main takes home 2026 Flushie from Off The Grid Greenville SC

Lifestyle

The 2026 Flushies, Off The Grid Greenville, SC’s Bathroom Superlative Awards

The 2026 Flushies: Greenville SC’s Bathroom Superlative Awards You feel it. The urge. Primal, undeniable. You duck into the nearest door, bracing for fluorescent...