It is the day before my son’s 13th birthday and I am wandering around San Diego trying to curb a sugar craving. Thinking about birthdays triggers my desire to find the best cupcake in San Diego. I remember my hairstylist Pam telling me about her friends’ new cupcakery Pubcakes which is nearby my house, so I decide to pay a visit to this little shop on El Cajon Blvd. You would never of guessed that a cute little cupcakery/microroast coffee shop would belong on a street surrounded by strip malls and vacant businesses but it does and what a gem it is. I spoke with the Pubcakes owner and sole operator Misty. She just opened the storefront in the beginning of February after answering a Craigslist ad to share a space with Mandi the owner of Treehouse Coffee Co. The two work really well together. Misty even uses Mandi’s microroasted coffee in one of her cupcakes the “Stoned Portzilla.” A delicious cupcake made from Stone Smoked Porter, coffee ganache and carmelized coconut. I spoke to Misty about her cupcakes and her exciting call from “Cupcake Wars” to become a contestant. Misty says she started her business baking off hours and then delivering to resellers. Besides her bakery, she currently sells her Pubcakes at Toronado in North Park, K&B Wine Cellars in Del Cerro and most recently at the Coffee Carts on the University of California San Diego (UCSD) campus. What makes her cupcakes unique is the use of local beer in her batter. She is even collabarating with Karl Strauss to develop a special cupcake recipe using their 22nd Anniversary Stout. The only beer that is not local is the Guinness used in the “Irish Carbomb”, the classic “Irish Carbomb” is made with Guinness, you can’t substitute that, she says.
Pubcakes/Treehouse Coffee Co.
7229 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego
(858) 952-8523 for Pubcakes
(858) 366-2326 for Treehouse Coffee Co.
Cupcakes at Pubcakes
Irish Carbomb- Guinness Irish Cream frosting, and chocolate whiskey ganache
Top Ten Cake – Karl Strauss Tower Ten IPA, cayenne carmel, cherry, and ancho chilies
Stoned Portzilla- Stone Smoked Porter, coffee ganache, and carmelized coconut
Cup O’Hefen- Ballast Point Wahoo Wheat, coriander, and citrus buttercream
Beer for Breakfast- AleSmith Wee Heavy, bacon and maple cream cheese frosting
Punkin’Vegan- North Coast Brewerys Old Stock Ale, pumpkin, and maple topping
Treehouse Coffee Co. – Mandi microbrews her coffee daily in a specialty 2lb roaster.
