Maggie’s Cakes & Ice Cream: Designer Yummy

There are few people who dislike cake and ice cream. I am not part of that crowd. Certainly neither is my 11-year-old daughter, who urged me to pick Maggie’s Cakes & Ice Cream for this week’s local business review. She also suggested that either of the Grove’s two doughnut shops would be good picks.

Sugary treats have a powerful pull. If you like yours fresh with real ingredients, then Maggie’s should be your choice. We are talking homemade cakes with fresh fruit fillings, ice cream cakes, customized cupcakes, several dozen ice creams flavors with multitudes of mix-in goodies, and even Julian apple pies.

Owner Maggie Gracia opened the shop almost two years ago, in the former longtime Baskin-Robbins site on Broadway. Gracia’s background includes five years as a cake decorator for the Baskin-Robbins store in Bonita. She also has a lifetime of baking experience, beginning as a child in the family kitchen.

Gracia told me the designer cakes are the special feature of the shop, and what she enjoys doing the most.

“I like to make customs cakes. Whatever the customer wants, and then making that happen,” Gracia says. “It’s the creative part that is fun. I like being the artist.”

Everyone is delighted by the sight of a beautifully decorated cake, yet cake decorating is one of those oft-ignored culinary arts. Here is a little history. The French (who else) started serving dessert in the mid-1800s as a completely separate sweet course at the end of the meal. Decorated cakes were primarily featured, as the cooks had started using temperature-controlled ovens by that time, which made baking much easier and convenient.

Cake decorating is more popular today than ever. There are even cable shows, such as Cake Boss, about the craft. What's not to like about something that looks great, is sweet, and you get to eat?

My daughter talked me into ordering a serving of the hand-mixed ice cream. She grudgingly allowed me a small taste, and it was yummy.

I did not have the chance to try any of the cakes, but Gracia’s teenage daughter, Fernanda Osorio, told me they were “very delicious” (with heavy emphasis on the “very”). The cakes certainly looked good, and I am trying to figure out a reason to order one. Today is Bastille Day. Would that work?

is located at 7963 Broadway, between Grove Street and Kempf Street in Lemon Grove. You can check out their website, or call them at 619-465-0831 to place an order. The store hours are 11 a.m.–8:00 p.m. on Friday, and 11 a.m.– 7:30 p.m. every other day of the week. They also offer catering and delivery.

Maggie’s is a good local spot to buy a dessert for your next special occasion. You’ll get the same value, but with better and fresher ingredients than that big supermarket bakery. Check it out—it’s worth a visit.