Cupcake Cache Offers Unique-Tasting Treats

Michael Dobbins had an idea when it came time for him to monogram the shirts for his new business, Cupcake Cache, which he owns with wife, Eve.

Instead of having their names embroidered on the polos, he had “Mr. Boss” stitched on his and “Mrs. Boss” stitched on Eve’s.

“I want the customer to know this is where it stops,” said Michael, explaining he and Eve are the only employees. “Be it a complaint or be it a compliment, you’re talking to the right people.”

Michael and Eve opened Cupcake Cache at 4202 E. Busch Blvd. (formerly , near ) earlier this month. They offer 28 flavors of stuffed, oversized gourmet cupcakes.

“Each one of them has its own unique taste,” Eve said.

There are commercial flavors, like Peanut Butter Cup, Cookies-n-Cream Overload and M&M’s Gone Wild. And then there are flavors for more adventurous types, like Sweet Po’tater, pumpkin-based Linus’s Temptation and The Pepper Pirate, which is spice cake filled with white chocolate and pepper jelly, covered with rum-based icing.

“Gaspar may have gone to the Caymans more often if this was in the treasure chest,” the description on the Cupcake Cache website reads.

“I like coming up with the different ones,” Eve said.

Each cupcake is stuffed with a taste that compliments the overall flavor. The Night Howl, a chocolate cupcake, is stuffed with caramel and brewed coffee. The Snicker Doodle Dandy, another chocolate cupcake, is filled with melted a Snicker’s bar. The Kookie Monster, a dark chocolate or white cupcake, is filled with a large chunk of raw cookie dough.

Stuffing the confections helps Cupcake Cache’s sweets stand out from other cupcakes, Michael said.

“The treat doesn’t stop at the cake or the icing,” he pointed out.

If you had talked to the couple a few years ago, they probably wouldn’t have told you about their love of cupcakes.

Michael, who has a master’s degree in international business, worked for T. Rowe Price.

“After five years, I was getting burnt out and decided to leave corporate America,” he said.

Eve was an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teacher and spent last year teaching in Abu Dabi, which she said is home to beautiful malls with cupcake shops inside.

“I like the cupcake stores over there,” she said.

Michael spent 18 years in the Army—the first three as a baker. The couple, who have lived in Temple Terrace for 10 years, began their business under the Florida Food Cottage Act, selling their treats at Bearss Groves in Carrollwood and in Tampa. They did a lot of research before opening their own shop.

“There are so many things to learn and know about opening a small business,” Michael said. “Having an MBA doesn’t necessarily help you.”

Cupcakes seem to be gaining in popularity these days. TV shows like Cupcake Wars on the Food Network present bakers who create innovative flavors with bacon, basil and cayenne pepper. CBS’s 2 Broke Girls chronicles the adventures of fictional diner waitresses with dreams of starting their own cupcake business.

, a home-based cupcake business in Temple Terrace, has been creating treats for a few months.

Michael and Eve said they think cupcakes are popular because people prefer the variety.

“A cake is one flavor, but a dozen cupcakes can be a variety of flavors,” Michael said.

And they’re not just for kids. Cupcake Cache’s target market is adults. The inside of the shop is filled with movie posters from the 1940s to present day and old film camera equipment. It’s meant to be nostalgic. Kids love cupcakes, and when you’re reminded of your childhood, you’re more likely to want a cupcake, Michael explained.

Cupcake Cache is currently open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. The couple, members of , said they’re thinking of also opening on Sunday afternoons to accommodate the church crowd.

Michael and Eve are also community-minded. They said they hope to increase their offerings to 35 flavors, and they’d like ideas from the community.

“If you think of a flavor you’d like to have, we’ll seriously consider giving it a whirl,” Michael said.

In the same vein, Cupcake Cache is offering 25 percent off to anyone who brings in a receipt from a small business on Busch Boulevard between 40th Street and U.S. 301. The receipt must be from the same day the customer visits the shop.

“We’re just really big on supporting the small businesses up and down here,” Michael said.

For more information about Cupcake Cache, including a full list of cupcake flavors and details on PTA orders, visit the Cupcake Cache website, call 813-280-9953, email cupcakes@cupcakecache.com, like the shop on Facebook, or follow on Twitter: @CupcakeCache.