Interview: Giselle Pinto from Sugar Yummy Mama

Sugar Yummy Mama (aka Giselle Pinto) has made a name for herself in the Miami food truck scene with delicious cupcakes, cake pops and other sweet treats. Miami Food Pug chatted with her at a recent food truck meetup in Brickell to discuss the  Sugar Yummy Mama concept, menu and future plans.

MFP: How did the idea for Sugar Yummy Mama come about? You started out with an advertising background and got into baking. That’s a pretty big jump.

Sugar: Yeah, I worked for about 17 years in the advertising industry. I had to travel a lot — different cities like L.A., Austin and New York City. All this travel led me to start learning about food trucks. My last job was in D.C. actually. I worked as a food service director for the public schools. That was a transition that was obvious to me — I really liked it. I started thinking about the concept long before, though. The idea was to bring in gourmet dessert in biteable sizes to people. Having a truck was a way for me to move easily around the city. Also, I came back to Miami around the recession. The economy was terrible — it wasn’t the happy Miami it was when I left. So I said, “I need to do something related to desserts.” That’s when I started preparing. I went to school at Johnson and Wales and graduated with honors as a baking and pastry chef.

MFP: I was about to ask whether you were self-taught or you went to school.

Sugar: No, I started working with an amazing pastry chef who used to be in Truluck’s in Downtown. He helped me with the first menu for Sugar Yummy. After I went to school, I revamped the formulas just a little bit since they were pretty good. I was only doing cake pops and cupcakes before. Now my menu has push pops, macarons, pies — it goes beyond the typical sweets. I’ve been doing a lot of sorbet pops, too. So I’ve done many different things because of the knowledge I gained through Johnson and Wales.

MFP: What’s the story behind the name? According to your site, it seems Sugar, Yummy and Mama are actual characters.

Sugar: Yes. Sugar is a little dog, for example. Each one has a different story. A French guy is Yummy. The truck is Mama. It’s funny because I wanted to call it Sugar Mama in the beginning. It was kind of inspired by the South. Their expressions like “Sweetie Pie” — I love that. When I registered the company name, there was this lady at the front who asked me what I was selling. I told her I was gonna have cupcakes and desserts. She was like “Well, you should call it Sugar Yummy Mama” and she did a funny dance. [laughs]. After that, I told her to register the name with the Yummy included. I then gave the identities to each of the characters.

MFP: What would you say are the go-to Sugar Yummy Mama flavors?

Sugar: I make flavors that I like, so guava is one of my favorites and a signature flavor. It’s a guava cake with homemade marmalade and topped with cream cheese. So I think it’s amazing and super Miami. That was another thing I wanted to do with my desserts. Its nature is very American, but I wanted to combine different things. One of my favorites is the bacon with maple sauce and green apple. I make a buttercream that’s cream cheese and maple sauce. It’s different. In the fall, I do different flavors like jalapeño. People are already requesting it. I think it’s too hot for jalapeño right now, though. It’s an amazing combination of jalapeño with chocolate mousse inside strawberries. It’s a nice balance of spice, sweetness and tartness. Summery flavors like pineapple and coconut are great, too.

MFP: I’m guessing pink is your favorite color?

Sugar: No, not really [laughs]. When I was doing market research, one of the things I wanted was to appeal to younger people. Something that appealed to moms and girls. I was going for a homemade feeling. Pink just suits the concept.

MFP: Do you do catering?

Sugar: Yes, I do a lot of catering. Wedding cakes and corporate parties. This year, I’ve been doing a lot of breakfasts. I’ve been doing quiche and other items — muffins. Sometimes I do healthier options like granola bars and lighter than the usual food. But I include a little cupcake or something sugary. Cronuts, too, with my own touch. I’m diversifying a lot.

MFP: More and more food trucks are opening a brick and mortar location. Is that something that’s in Sugar Yummy Mama’s future?

Sugar: I have this idea about being different from the crowd. I’m coming up with a good idea that’s not necessarily brick and mortar, but it’s happening later this year. It’s schedule-based. You’ll be able to go to a place from like 9 AM to 7 PM to buy my goodies. Definitely something that’s happening this year.

 

MFP: Another thing I’ve noticed: Your food truck isn’t really a food truck. It’s more like a van.

Sugar: Yeah, it’s definitely more like a van. People were debating whether or not I was really a food truck. From the beginning, I wanted something that was easier to move than the typical food truck. I can come and go as I want. The reality and the soul of this idea was to come up with a concept that was very movable so I can provide people with desserts easily. Now everyone is coming up with the same concept. That’s why the brick and mortar idea doesn’t really work for me — it’s too obvious. I just want to do something different than the typical cupcake vendor.

MFP: Your van is full of merchandise. Is it all for sale?

Sugar: Yes. I have a lot of book bags… t-shirts… aprons. [Holds up mailbox] This is an amazing present. It’s an artifact of my brand — it implies a sweet message. For me, the mailbox is like getting a love letter. When you open it, there are two cupcakes in there. Some people might find it random, but I love it.

MFP: Can you buy these items through your website?

Sugar: The website is getting fixed up, so that you can eventually order merchandise. We’re also revamping the site so you can order dessert, too. So yeah, it’s in the works.

MFP: What’s the best way to keep track of Sugar Yummy Mama’s location?

Sugar: I post every single day on social media. I use the Burger Beast application a lot. You can go on his website and find out more about it. But of course, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram — all of them are updated daily. My website also has my weekly schedule along with special events like Iron Fork.

For more information about Sugar Yummy Mama, visit sugaryummymama.com. Photo Credit: facebook.com/sugaryummymama and sugaryummymama.com.