Bliss Cupcakes and More offers cupcakes and cakes that are as much a work of art as they are a dessert.
I have to admit, I am a bit of a cake snob.
There’s just something about the typical grocery store cake, with its foamy frosting and bland flavor, that disappoints me. That’s why I was so thrilled the first time I feasted on a beautiful, perfect cupcake from Bliss Cupcakery & More in Yulee.
The moment you take a bite, you know you’ve entered a world way beyond cake mixes. And the frosting — which I think is just as important as the cake, itself — has that rich, from-scratch flavor that you just won’t find on a store shelf.
We hired Bliss Cupcakery to make my baby shower cake when I was pregnant with my daughter, and what I ended up with was way more than a cake: it was a work of art. The cake was designed to look like a bassinet with a baby sleeping, tucked under an elegant blanket. Bliss Cupcakery used fondant to make gorgeous details, including flowers, a teddy bear and an incredibly beautiful little baby.
I overheard the ladies at my baby shower whisper more than once, “It’s just too pretty to eat.”
But this girl can eat more than a linebacker when she’s pregnant, so I had no reservations about cutting into it once I’d taken pictures. It tasted just as wonderful as it looked.
This Toy Story birthday cake was a hit at my son's third birthday party.
The cupcakery also made my son’s third birthday cake, a Toy Story cake made to look like it had a cow pattern on it. They made a little hay stack on top and sat a Woody doll on it. My son — dressed in a cowboy hat for the event — was very impressed.
In both instances, it all started with a simple idea: I approached Bliss with pictures of pretty cakes I found online, and then they designed their own unique creation, building off the ideas from the pictures. They told me they can do pretty much anything, and I’d say they have proven it: they have galleries of photos on their Facebook page showing everything from elegant wedding cakes to a whimsical cake shaped like a giant flip-flop.
A friend at my son’s birthday party asked me, “Isn’t Bliss Cupcakery pretty expensive?” I guess it depends on how you look at it. If you’re comparing prices to the standard grocery store cakes with the foamy frosting, then, yes, it costs quite a bit more. If you consider the quality of the cake you’re getting, the beautiful “centerpiece” you get for your party, and the work and love that goes into it, perhaps the price will sound quite reasonable.
The Bliss Cupcakery & More shop always has platters of cupcakes piled high with frosting on display and ready to eat. You can buy them on the spot to take home or eat in their small-but-spacious dining area. And they’re especially beloved in Yulee because, even though the shop has only been there for a year, they’re very involved with the community. They were a big supporter of the Relay for Life event in November.
I love their classic cupcakes with buttercream frosting. When I gushed about them to owner Karen Ray one day, she told me she has a great team that works very well together, and they’re constantly coming up with new ideas.
New flavors are introduced on a regular basis. In fact, Bliss has over 40 choices as of this writing. A few examples: Chocolate Truffle, Mint Dream, Coconut, Orange Creamsicle, Pina Colada, Chocolate Salted Caramel, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Red Velvet… you can see more choices in the information section on Bliss’s Facebook page.
If your stomach is starting to growl, here’s how to reach them:
Where: 464073 State Road 200 #9, Yulee (Just east of Super WalMart in the Verizon shopping plaza)
Parking: There is plenty of on-site parking right in front of the shop.
Contact: Call 904-849-7229 or email blisscupcakery@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.blisscupcakery.net/ and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bliss-Cupcakery-More/162617693772852
