Cleveland.com's search for the Best Cheesecake in Northeast Ohio revealed that great baking is about more than ingredients, but also about personal experiences. At Messy Aprons & Company, owner Melissa Simon began baking with her grandmother and used it as a form of grief therapy after her grandmother's passing. The business now produces dozens of cheesecakes a week and nearly 200 flavors rotate through the menu. At DS Cakes and Sweet Café, owner Diane Schneider's Polish-style cheesecake is rooted in tradition and is a place where tradition isn't reinvented but preserved. Third place is Sam Lovick's innovative approach to create cheesecake, starting with a Pinterest recipe and tweaking flavors.