Page 3 - Dining Out - Nov 6, 2022

Restaurant Insider with Anne Lee
Elvin’s Bakery
1210 Dillingham Blvd. No. 23, Honolulu
808-848-8118
elvinsbakery.com
8 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays;
8 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays- Saturdays; closed Mondays
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AL: How did you get into this industry?
EL: I was originally a photo finish- eratFujifilmbutchangedcareers, as the film industry was slowly los- ing market share. Luckily, I was still in my early 20s, and I start- ed with a local bakery in 1997. I learned how to make breads and pastries with some of the best bakers at that time. One of
my best friends encouraged me to open up my own bakery and found this location in Kalihi. With theirhelpandfundingfromfamily, my wife and I were able to make our dream a reality.
AL: What were the first items that were made at your bakery? EL: What you see here today are the first items. What I found is that
the clients’ palates were different based on what area of the island that they lived, even though we liveonasmallisland.In2007,we opened a second location in Kai- lua Shopping Center and through the years, it was easier with us to focus on one location and less of a headache. We were able to ex- pand our operations in Kalihi and still see our Windward-side cus- tomers. Our two signature items are our Mango Mousse Cake and Strawberry Shortcake, which is our friend Richard Sakoda’s fa- vorite. Our menu doesn’t really change, our customers like us to keep the same items on the menu.
AL: What are some of your bestsellers?
EL: I mentioned the Mango Mousse Cake and Strawberry Shortcake. One of our denser cakes is our Red Velvet Cake. Many red velvet cakes are pre- made, but ours are made from scratch using the best ingredi- ents — our icing is even made from scratch. Our friend, who was a chef at Nordstrom Café at
the time, asked us to make a red velvet cake. I wasn’t very familiar with it, but we made everything fromscratchandputittogether and it was a success.
All of our 8-inch cakes are $43, and a slice is $5.25. We also have quarter, half and full sheet cakes.
The baked goods that are popu- lar are rolls with meat, such as our Portuguese Sausage Rolls ($3.15). Our popular Milk Roll comes in packs of six for $6.50. These are great for sandwiches — perfect to buy for your Thanksgiving leftover sandwiches. Our Raisin Bread ($5.95) is also a top seller, and our Sapporo Sweet Bread ($7.50) is a local favorite. Final- ly, our Blueberry Cream Cheese Scone ($4.15) is great paired with our freshly brewed coffee drinks.
For our full menu, go online to elvinsbakery.com.
AL: With the holidays around the corner, will you offer any special cakes?
EL: We used to make holiday cakes, but we found that our cus- tomers would buy their favorite
1. Blueberry Cream Cheese Scone ($4.15) 2. 8-inch Strawberry Shortcake ($43)
3. Raisin Bread ($5.95) 4.MilkRolls($6.50forsix),Sapporo
Sweet Bread ($7.50)
5. 8-inch Mango Mousse Cake ($43)
cakes no matter what holiday. We do offer special order cakes, cre- ating personalized cakes for any occasion, made with your favorite flavors and designs. Our popular cakes that are on our menu can also be personalized with a cus- tom message.
AL: What was your breakthrough moment at the bakery?
EL: When Kimuraya Bakery closed in 2008, Ed Chang came in and asked for a couple of samples, such as dinner rolls that can be easily eaten on a plane.We started slowly and this helped us start our wholesale division.
You will be surprised to know that we make some of the baked goods that you eat, such as muffins at 7-Eleven Hawaii. We bake about 1,000 muffins a day.
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