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| Chocolate Espresso Cupcake |
In case you missed the grand opening of House of Cupcakes in Clifton, Jersey Bites and The Cook’s Tour have the scoop! But first, read our interview with Ron Bzdewka, co-founder
of House of Cupcakes.
I was curious how Ron and his
wife, Ruthie, got started in this business. He told me a charming story of how
they were at a street fair, saw a long line in front of a cupcake stand, and
Ruthie’s revelation of “I want to open a cupcake store!” evolved into House of
Cupcakes. Like a smart husband, he went along with her idea. They found a small
storefront in Princeton, not more than 600 square feet, and launched their
soon-to-be empire. The 2008 economy downturn put a temporary crimp in their
plans, but they came roaring back.
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| Clifton Grand Opening |
They reconnected with an old
friend from their days as Party City franchisees who was looking for a new
venture. Steve Mandell loved their concept and put together a franchising plan
to take House of Cupcakes to new heights.
Ruthie is a self-taught
baker, always looking to try new things. And Ron said his background in construction
is not so different from baking – “mixing concrete is the same as mixing
dough!”
They bake 45 different
flavors every day. How do they come up
with the flavors? A lot of the suggestions come from customers. When they first started out, they developed
with a flavor plan – whatever sells, they keep on the menu. Additionally, they
don’t want anybody to walk away disappointed so they don’t rotate flavors, they
bake every flavor every day! And then they add in seasonal cupcakes like
peppermint for Christmas or pumpkin for the fall. They start out with 1,000
cupcakes each day at every store and then just keep going.
Their original store in
Princeton is temporarily closed due to a fire, but they will reopen soon bigger than ever. They will double their store size and have seating for
30. They are planning some big surprises for the reopening so stay tuned.
The Clifton store is their
most recent opening, but this summer a new Wayne location will be on line. I
asked Ron how many stores they plan to open, and he said “as many as we can,
pending the right locations.”
Ron and Ruthie are the
winners of season two of Cupcake Wars
on The
Food Network. One day they received
an e-mail from The Food Network inviting them to audition or the series, but
Ron thought it was junk mail and he deleted it. Luckily, the network called
back. Ron ran out, bought a video camera, they produced an audition tape
overnight and two days later they were on the show. Needless to say, after that, their business
erupted. And they’ve been on a straight shot ever since. They’ve just
introduced cheesecake, ice cream, vegan and gluten-free cookies.
Ron said they want House of
Cupcakes to be the kind of place
where everybody leaves happy. Sounds like a good philosophy to me!
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| Salted Caramel Cupcake |
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
GIVEAWAY!
Now, how about winning a dozen
cupcakes for yourself? To enter, click on over to House of Cupcakes and take a look at
the many fabulous flavors they offer, then come back to tell us your favorite
by leaving a comment here.
Be sure to leave your contact
email in your entry if one is not tied to your user account. If there is no
contact information, we will have to pick another winner.
You can also gain an extra
entry by tweeting or blogging about this giveaway. You must come back and leave
a comment on Jerseybites.com and link to your tweet or blog post to be counted.
Winner must be able to pick up prize at the Clifton or East Brunswick
location. The contest runs from June 20, 2014, to Saturday, July 5,
2014, at 11:59 p.m. The winner will be contacted on July 6. Winners
will be chosen with the help of Random.org. Good luck!
Must be 18 years or older
to enter. Entry must include an email address for notification.
No substitutions allowed and
the prize is not transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash in lieu of the
prize.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER
OR CLAIM PRIZE.
GENERAL CONDITIONS. By accepting the prize, the winner and companion
agree to release and hold harmless The Cook’s Tour, Foxtrot Media LLC.
and House of Cupcakes and its subsidiaries and advertising and
promotion agencies from any and all liability including all claims arising
from, but not limited to injuries or damages of any kind sustained in connection
with the acceptance, enjoyment and/or use or misuse of any prize(s) received in
this promotion. By accepting the prize, the winner is responsible for any
applicable federal, state and local tax in connection with winning this prize.
259
Allwood Road (accessible from Route 3 West)
Clifton
862-225-9536
Summerhill Square Shopping
Center
593 Rt. 18 South
E. Brunswick
732-955-6026
30 Witherspoon Street
(TEMPORARILY CLOSED)
Princeton, New Jersey 08542
609-924-0085
Brentwood Plaza Shopping
Center (COMING SOON)
1655 Route 23 South – Unit 17A
Wayne
973-832-7285
