I can now live in utopia because my quest to find the best cupcake shop in San Diego is finally done. Hands down, PURE Cupcakes takes the cake.
Located between Vons and Starbucks in Pacific Beach, PURE Cupcakes offers the finest and freshest cupcakes. The talented women behind the sweet works of art are owners Mary Sarain and Nikki Black, who have been friends for more than 25 years.
It’s no surprise PURE Cupcakes won the season premiere of the Food Network show “Cupcake Wars.” The fierce was no match for the local cupcake shop. Even Sprinkles Cupcakes Founder Candace Nelson congratulated the duo.
The “Cupcake Wars” winners described the experience as surreal.
“Facing those judges and hearing my name was amazing. It was a great experience. I would do it again,” Sarain said.
The team was prepared for the pressure of the competition.
“I do handle pressure pretty well when I know what I’m going for, have a set time and a game plan. I do pretty well with that,” Sarain said.
Sarain began baking for her friends and family when she was 10. Her passion stemmed from the cupcake that started it all—a chocolate ganache.
“I created it when my daughter was 1 year old and now she’s 16,” Sarain said. All of Sarain’s recipes, except the carrot cupcake, are based off the chocolate ganache. She prides herself on creating each recipe from scratch and perfecting them throughout the years.
PURE Cupcakes has 27 cupcake flavors, which are categorized as standard, specialty or premium. The shop also offers gluten-free chocolate and vanilla bean cakes with a variety of frosting. From buñuelos and Mayan “Cheri” cupcakes to the classic red velvet and vanilla bean, PURE Cupcakes offers an impressive and ingenious menu that creates excuses to go back for more.
Various flavors greet customers as they enter PURE Cupcakes. The atmosphere is simple yet inviting. No fluff or kitschy decor is needed because the cupcakes speak for themselves.
I ordered the salted caramel cupcake. I removed the wrapper, cut a generous piece, then took a bite. It was as if everything around me paused and the only sense I had left was taste. The salted caramel was amazing. The concoction of rich dark chocolate cake with caramel buttercream and drizzle and a sprinkle of sea salt could only be explained as a culinary masterpiece. The cake, fluffy and moist, was complemented by the buttercream without overbearing sweetness. Within seconds, pleasure passed from my eyes to my mouth.
In a highly competitive field, it’s hard to stand out from all of the cupcake shops in San Diego. Fortunately, PURE Cupcakes doesn’t have anything to worry about.
“I’ve been to all of the cupcakeries in San Diego, Orange County and Los Angeles,” Sarain said. “I always, always went with the intentions of wanting to discover something that was better than mine and I never did.”
Sarain said she trusts her gut and her talent.
“Everything has been organic,” she said. I never spent a penny on advertisement, so for me, that was validation.”
This can be seen from PURE Cupcakes loyal customers. Clientele includes corporate clients, gourmet food trucks, wholesalers and caterers. Word of mouth is what made the home business grow and expand into a fully functioning storefront.
PURE Cupcakes offers a reasonably priced menu, unlike most trendy cupcake bakeries. These pieces of heaven range from $2.75 to $3.75 each—a definite bargain for a gourmet cupcake.
“The only complaint I have is that they’re too small, but that’s just me being gluttonous,” patron Gian Trinidad said.
Thank the cupcake heavens— PURE Cupcakes is open seven days a week. I’ll be back this Saturday to try the Bacon Baby, a vanilla bean cake packed full of yummy bacon, topped with maple vanilla bean cream cheese and sprinkled with candied bacon. Every baker needs to bow down to these cupcake queens.
