
3

"Now open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., the first eatery at the new Piazza della Famiglia in the heart of Little Italy brings Frost Me Café & Bakery to the neighborhood. Founded in 2011 as a cupcake catering and delivery service by Audrey Hermes and Jon Parker—who placed second on Season 7 of Cupcake Wars and then won the championship on Season 9 in 2013—the partners opened their first storefront (Frost Me Gourmet) in Seaport Village in 2014 and have expanded with this 1,580-square-foot café that includes an outdoor patio. With Hermes as head pastry chef, I found a rotating selection of cupcakes, cake truffles, tarts, pies, and custom cakes alongside butterscotch custard, seasonal fruit crumble, scratch-made ice cream, and an array of gluten-free and vegan sweet treats. The all-day, European-styled menu features morning pastries (croissants, cinnamon rolls), toast topped with ricotta and orange marmalade or smoked trout with cream cheese and capers, daily French quiche and galettes, Italian sandwiches on locally-baked Prager Brothers bread, salads, and cheese and charcuterie boards. It is also the only spot in San Diego to serve San Francisco’s award-winning Ritual Coffee Roasters, and it pours draft beer plus a large selection of wines by the glass." - Candice Woo