By Khalida Sarwari
Saratoga is getting a new bakery in town–make that the only bakery in downtown–and with it, a celebrity chef. Well, she might as well be after blowing away the competition on the Food Network’s Cupcake Wars last year, taking home a cool $10,000 for creating such concoctions as a rocky beer float cupcake–in fact, 1,000 of them in just two hours.
Natasha Kuo, a 36-year-old from San Jose, is the sugar and flour genius behind Minicakes by Tasha, a new bakery that’s replacing the space previously occupied by Planet Juice.
Starting Aug. 30, people can walk in the unconventionally blue and white shop and order the traditional cupcake fare–vanilla, chocolate and red velvet–or branch out and try such flavors as toffee crunch, apple cider, lemon vanilla bean, ultimate chocolate and s’mores.
“I think what sets us apart are the cupcakes themselves,” Kuo said. “They’re kind of a homemade quality.”
For those who want to really get adventurous, Minicakes will also carry the flavors featured in the November episode of the ninth season of Cupcake Wars–mojito, sweet potato and salted caramel mocha.
Each episode of Cupcake Wars has a theme. On the episode Kuo in which appeared, contestants were asked to make cupcakes that were “his and hers themed,” Kuo explained. In other words, the bakers would have to unite men’s favorite foods like cheeseburgers or jalapeno poppers with women’s favorites like chamomile and chocolate-covered strawberries.
As if that wasn’t challenging enough, Kuo and her fellow competitors were instructed to create 1,000 cupcakes in two hours, fortunately with the help of four assistants. Kuo also had help from her cousin, Caroline Sienknecht. The winner would not only be awarded $10,000 in prize money but also given a chance to bring their treats to one of Match.com‘s Stir events in Los Angeles.
“It’s crazy and it’s intense and you’re stressed the whole time, because you’re baking against the clock,” Kuo said of the experience. “It was a lot of fun, but a long day.”
Kuo, who previously operated a cottage food business out of her house while working as a market researcher for a consumer electronics company in Cupertino, quit her job in June to focus on her business, which she’ll run along with her husband.
Winning Cupcake Wars not only gave her a financial boost but also a confidence boost to pursue her hobby full time, she said. “I like being in the kitchen; I like baking and cooking,” she added.
It started with her using friends’ birthdays as an excuse to experiment with different recipes, and eventually when she found herself with more cupcakes than she knew what to do with, she’d give them to her husband to take to work. A side business selling cupcakes from her home soon emerged, and later, Minicakes by Tasha.
Kuo said she chose Saratoga because she wanted her bakery to be part of the type of community where people know each other by name.
“I was really looking for a smaller community and a nice walkable downtown area,” she said. “We looked at a lot of cities in the area: Cupertino, Los Gatos, Campbell. But this is a great spot, a lot of walkable area. We’re really glad to be a part of Saratoga.”
Kuo has spent the past three months overseeing the construction of the store, getting it up to par for county health inspectors, and hiring her staff. She wanted an open kitchen design that makes customers feel as if they’ve dropped by her home.
“Everyone can see what’s going on,” she said.
Eventually, she said, she’d like to expand to other cities in the Bay Area where her bakery can be a part of the community and where she is capable of helping the people of that community.
“If I can do those two things, I’ll be really, really happy,” she said. “‘I’ll feel successful.”
The bakery will have a soft opening on Aug. 26, with the goal of giving the Saratoga community the first look at the place, Kuo said. For the grand opening on Aug. 30, Minicakes by Tasha will give away a box of four cupcakes to her first 25 customers.
Operating hours will be from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. The bakery will be closed on Mondays. Kuo noted that these are only experimental hours for now; she plans on polling the community to determine what hours people prefer.
Aside from cupcakes, Kuo will also sell mini cupcakes, cookies, quick breads, cake pops, artisanal ice cream, and coffee and tea. Additionally, the menu includes ice cream sandwiches, milkshakes and floats.
To get a taste of Minicakes by Tasha before its grand opening, visit minicakesbytasha.com.
