PORT TOWNSEND — Some occasions require a fancy three-tier cake, while others make do with something a bit less dramatic, like a cupcake.
“A lot of times, people don’t want a whole cake and prefer something small and light,” said LaTrecia Arthur, who relocated her Perfect Endings Cupcakes to 909 Water St. one week ago.
“So a cupcake is just enough.”
Perfect Endings Cupcakes is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with plans to open Monday during the tourist season.
Arthur, 40, who grew up in Port Townsend, landed into the cupcake business by accident, after she started baking as a hobby and several of her friends began asking her to bring her wares to social occasions.
Two years ago, she was looking for a creative way to make money, and opened a small shop inside Wild Sage World Teas on Washington Street.
After running the business for about a year, Arthur gently was asked to relocate so the tea business could be sold, and she found the Water Street location, which had just been vacated by Finders Keepers, an antique store.
It took her about two months to prepare the new store, which has about twice the space as her previous location.
It also could draw at least twice as many people.
Since opening in the new location, Arthur has baked about 150 cupcakes a day, about the same as she did on Washington Street and has sold out every time.
This is good news for Arthur and her customers, but perhaps not so good for the Port Townsend Food Bank, which always got the leftovers.
Ten varieties
Arthur bakes 10 different cupcake varieties in two sizes, each with a special blend of cake and topping.
A popular combination is poppy seed cake with an almond cream cheese topping, but nothing can compete with chocolate, she said.
“If someone comes in here for a chocolate cupcake, nothing else will do,” Arthur said.
Arthur said her cupcakes’ secret taste ingredient is “lots of butter,” which pumps up the caloric numbers.
“People who are overly health conscious won’t come in here in the first place,” she said.
“I tried to make a sugar-free cupcake, but it didn’t taste very good.”
She does offer gluten-free and vegan cupcakes as special orders, but those recipes still include a lot of sugar.
“I think Port Townsend is a pretty healthy community that eats in moderation,” she said.
“But they will come in here when they want a special treat.”
Arthur will work with customers to develop special recipes, and last week prepared a special green tea cupcake for a local restaurant’s anniversary celebration.
Her current mission is to produce sweet and not savory cupcakes, and has so far resisted customer suggestions to offer a cupcake that includes bacon bits.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
