Agave and Rye founder Yavonne Sarber is bringing her signature flair and eye for innovation into a new arena with the upcoming launch of BITE ME Cupcakery, an upscale dessert and cocktail bar that’s set to open March 28 in Huntsville, Alabama.
“I’ve always had an obsession with cupcakeries—I just think it’s such a canvas and there’s so much opportunity to do art on it, which our brand loves,” Sarber explains.
Sarber’s EPIC Brands portfolio, which is proudly 100 percent woman owned as of this year, also includes 18 Agave & Rye restaurants; Cowboy Sally’s and Loco Social which launched last year; and Son of a Butcher (SOB) Steakhouse, a high-end, yet accessible steakhouse concept. BITE Me Cupcakery will be the restaurant group’s 23rd store.
SOB Pastry Chef Cristine Muckenfuhs helped Sarber develop the recipes for BITE ME Cupcakery and is overseeing training for the new concept, which is starting out with 12 flavors of cupcakes with over-the-top flavors like Drama Queen, a lavender-lemon cupcake with a drippy pastel pink ombre buttercream crown; Nut Job, a chocolate chip cookie dough cupcake with Nutella buttercream and drizzle; and the signature BITE ME, a vanilla cupcake with half black, half white buttercream swirls and topped with a flavor pipette filled with raspberry syrup.
BITE ME will also serve craft cocktails, private-label wines with playful names such as Blush & Boujee and Rich B., bubble tea, and barista-made coffee, “because cupcakes deserve the perfect pairing.” The storefront will seat 40 to 50 people, plus about 20 additional guests outdoors.
Despite diners becoming more health-conscious overall, Sarber thinks people still love to indulge and treat themselves. Plus, it’s easier for guests to justify buying a cupcake versus a whole cake, she says, especially when that cupcake is gourmet and uses the highest quality ingredients, and is priced relatively affordably at $6.50 a pop, with discount deals the more cupcakes you buy. “I think it’s just a special thing that people can use to indulge, and it’s still affordable.”
All cupcakes will be baked on-site and flash frozen for BITE ME’s local shipping program, which is set to expand nationally shortly after opening. Sarber expects the majority of sales to come from shipping cupcakes versus dine-in. “I really want to go heavy on national shipping,” she reiterates. “I think that’s the majority of where our income is going to come from versus walk ins. I think there’s a big opportunity for backdoor sales with this.”
The cupcakes and cheeky names are designed to be the perfect gifts for friends, family, and spouses—while still being appropriate for parents with kids to come in and comfortably order.
As far as why Huntsville was the right spot to launch the concept, Sarber notes there was already an Agave & Rye location on Bridge Street, so when the 1,500-square-foot space became available down the street, Sarber leaped at the opportunity. Even though the idea for a cupcakery was sparked nearly five years ago, Sarber has really only been working heavily on the project for the past six months.
“I think the cupcake market in general, there’s room for it in Huntsville,” Sarber says. “Huntsville has been exploding with people moving into the area. In addition to the aviation and rocket science that surrounds us and the military, there’s a very diverse community down there. The locals are some of the nicest people that you’ve ever met.”
The lifestyle mall has nearby hotels with many travelers visiting, which Sarber thinks will lend itself well to stopping in for a cupcake and coffee or bubble tea during the day and speciality cocktail or wine in the evenings. A few beverage offerings include the BITE ME Espresso Martini; the Pink Velvet with raspberry vodka, pomegranate syrup, and cream soda; and the Coconut Kiss with coconut rum, pineapple juice, cinnamon, and toasted coconut flakes.
The eventual goal is to expand the concept nationally, depending on how well it’s received. “Once we start to scale, we’ll see how well it does with the cocktail side of it and we’ll make a decision if that’s something that we’ll do as we scale. But I have a feeling that it’ll do pretty well,” Sarber predicts.
READ MORE: Inside Yavonne Sarber’s Epic Vision of Hospitality
Amanda-lyn Clark will serve as BITE ME’s general manager, and will work closely with pastry chef Muckenfuhs. “I cannot tell you how many times, with a lot of the great women in leadership … especially in pastry, in kitchens, that divide that happens and they aren’t given opportunities,” Sarber notes. “I’m not hiring you because you’re a woman, I’m hiring you because you’re the best person for the job.”
On the topic of taking care of her team members, Sarber prioritizes providing healthcare to salaried managers and supervisors at affordable rates, which has always been a looming issue in the restaurant world. Another source of pride for her is launching a 401k retirement plan and health and wellness programs for employees, which she hopes will become the norm in restaurants. She also advises restaurant leaders to speak about their values loudly and proudly. “That’s why we do this, is to give opportunities, and so as long a we’re following our core values and our promise, then we achieve our dream,” she says.
She also advises restaurant leaders to listen vigilantly to team members, “because if you don’t have a team that works with you to follow that dream, it doesn’t happen. If you have one bad leader at a store, it just totally corrupts everything that you’re trying to build, and then they lose faith in what you’re telling them of who you are,” Sarber says. “We’ve had our own challenges with that and learning about the people within each location, but first you say it out loud, then you listen to where you misstepped, and then you fix it. And a lot of times, what we found is taking care of your team outside of the things that you just talked about, with wages and benefits and all of these things that are so important, but it’s also making sure that you’re giving them the tools they need to succeed.”
BITE ME Cupcakery’s grand opening is set for March 28 at 9 a.m. with festivities and giveaways. The first 100 guests will receive a free Iconic Cupcake, and five golden tickets will be given out throughout the day, with winners receiving 12 free cupcakes every month for a year. Guests will also enjoy the full menu of gourmet cupcakes, specialty drinks, and a vibrant, Instagram-worthy atmosphere.
Ahead of the grand opening, BITE ME Cupcakery will host exclusive invite-only soft opening events on March 26, featuring samplings of the full menu, giveaways, and an exclusive first look at this cheeky and modern cupcakery.
