The reason I waited so long is because I wanted Oh For Sweets Sake to perfect their business before I gave them a try. It's tough on a business to review them when they've just opened. Five months was plenty of time to give them a fair review. Here it is!
As I mentioned before, Oh For Sweets Sake is Orange County's first mobile cupcakery. I'm addicted to food trucks, so I was ecstatic when I heard about a cupcake truck.
Oh For Sweets Sake sells cupcakes (of course) and other desserts such as whoopie pies. Their website doesn't list the other desserts, as I think they change on a daily basis. Recently, Oh For Sweets Sake has expanded their late night menu to include savory foods such as fried chicken, macaroni & cheese, and shrimp po'boys.
The night that I visited Oh For Sweets Sake they were parked in Santa Ana, as they commonly are on Saturday nights. I was happy to find no line when I approached (my husband and I were in a hurry to catch a movie). There was a group of four women who had just purchased a few cupcakes. I talked to them a little bit about the cupcakes. They liked the Red Velvet so much that they bought another.
I was pretty stuffed from dinner, so I only had room to try two cupcakes. I chose Almond Joy and Red Velvet.
Almond Joy: dark chocolate chunk cake, filled with creamy coconut filling, topped with toasted, salted almonds and dark rich buttercream frosting. My first thought after taking a bite was grocery store. The cake was light, but nothing special and the frosting was way too sweet. The reason I thought grocery store is because the frosting tasted exactly like the frosting you'd find on a cupcake from a grocery store. I did not like this cupcake at all. I didn't even finish it.
Simply Red Velvet: delicate southern style light chocolate cake with fluffy cream cheese frosting. The cake was so dry, it almost had a powdery texture to it. Surprisingly, the frosting was pretty good. The cream cheese frosting had a good tanginess to it and was the best part of my whole experience. I ended up scraping the frosting off and throwing away the rest of the cupcake.
Besides the below-par cupcakes, there were a few other things worth noting.
First: the service. When I asked what is the most popular flavor, the owner's husband, Al, said he didn't know, nor did he seem to care. One thing I've noticed about successful cupcake shops is their passion. They lacked this. The owner, Lisa, was hiding in the background and wasn't interacting with the customers either.
Second: the truck. The truck seemed a little dirty and the cupcakes weren't displayed very well. Presentation is very important, especially when you're trying to catch business from people that are walking by.
Third: the price. You would expect the price of cupcakes to drop since there's no overhead of a store, but the cupcakes from Oh For Sweets Sake were $3.00 each. Come on, you're not Sprinkles.
Fourth: food integration. Cupcakes and soul food? I don't get it. Oh For Sweets Sake started by selling cupcakes only, but business must not have been doing so well because now they sell savory foods too. The combination is too weird.
Sadly, Orange County's first mobile cupcakery is a disappointment. I would definitely like to give them another try to taste some of their other desserts, but I'm in no hurry. If your opinion differs, let me know and tell me what you like.
If you're looking for some great cupcakes off a truck in Orange County, check out Morsels Baking Company. Not only do they have pretty good cupcakes, their other desserts are delicious too.
