The Sugar Cube

I feel somewhat disconnected to Portland. How could I live here for this long and not had the Blackout Cake from Sugar Cube. The best chocolate cake I’ve ever had, hands down. Pair it with a cold glass of milk for ultimate satisfaction. Can’t wait for seconds.

While the sweets offered are worthy of three or four stars, my last venture into the Sugar Cube wasn’t worthy of a single star.
Since the Cube is closing, I intended to use a gift certificate to purchase what I could. As it turns out, the offerings are minimal and the items I wanted to order were no longer being made. I bought a few things, expecting the balance of my gift cert to be returned as a cash buyout. I was wrong.
Disappointed, I left the remainder of the gift cert with the owner, knowing I would not be back before they close. As I am leaving, I hear someone say from within the shop, «I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that anymore!» WTF?
I step back in the shop and asked if what I heard was correct. A tattooed woman sitting in the shop (which I had presumed was an employee) claimed she was talking about something else. She was clearly covering her ass for being called out, but I let it go, apologizing for the misunderstanding. As I left the second time, I hear a voice say with thick sarcasm, «Have a GREAT day!» Are you kidding me?
I’m a pretty fair guy, I think. I can’t imagine what I did that would warrant such rude behavior. I also can’t Imagine how an establishment would leave a customer holding the balance of an unused gift certificate when they are closing.
Perhaps this was just a bad day for everyone, all around. I’ve been to the Sugar Cube before, and service was fine. But on this day, the treatment from the staff was entirely unwarranted and unprofessional — enough so that I wouldn’t want to patronize any of the owners new ventures. Hopefully, this was just an isolated incident.

This place is RIDICULOUSLY good! For my first time I picked up a Big Mama cookie and it’s the best decision I’ve made today. Everything is so fresh, I’m literally listening to her make the whipped cream for the chocolate bread pudding as I type this.

I have been here a few times and its small and quirky.
They had a pudding thing the first time that was amazing. super rich and creamy.
Second time I had a cookie and it was just ok.
3^rd time is the charm as the Ding Dong Cupcake was absolutely decadent, chocolatey and super moist with a perfect chocolate glaze.

Try as I might, I am just striking out with this place. My young mother, who has dementia, fell in love with a slice of the Congo pie in February. For a week, that is all she could talk about. She doesn’t remember a lot these days, but she could not stop talking about this pie. She still brings it up every phone conversation we have.
With her Birthday coming up today, March 12^th, I had planned on ordering it for her! A whole pie, just for her. I phoned the same day that we had that slice of pie in February and asked if it would be possible to order it, and we were told if we gave 24 hours notice, they could make it for us. That’s all they needed!
I am having a little party for my mom on Saturday, so I called this morning to order it. I was informed that it was a «Special» pie they were doing the month of February with Theo Chocolates… and they couldn’t make it because they don’t have all the ingredients. It seemed like the ingredient they were missing was the chocolate from Theo Chocolates. Really? You can’t substitute it with a different brand of chocolate?! That’s absurd! That shop makes a ton of products with chocolate, just choose a different one!
I guess I saved myself $ 40, but I’m going to have to break the news to my mom that she’s not getting any pie.

My wife ordered a chocolate cake. When she picked it up, she realized it wasn’t the cake she thought she had ordered, the one on display on the counter. The owner was quite unfriendly, saying something like, «I explained to you at the time what cake you were ordering» in a condescending tone. No customer service here!
And the cake was OK, nothing special, and cost $ 60! That’s a lot for a chocolate cake!

Everything is wonderful and warm here… well everything but the people.
feels like what you wish your grandmother’s house was but with a TON of different pastry treats to choose from… oh and the strata (not sure how different from quiche) is AMAZING!
Mason jars for water, nice coffee mugs and really good blues/​vocal jazz and downright soul music.
I can’t say enough good things and yet they are only getting 3 stars because people are so much a part of experience anywhere.
The space definitely set expectation for warmth and staff is far from that. Maybe just a Portland thing.
Person who helped us was super nonchalant, not really helpful in terms of explaining items available. Later we met owner and tried to compliment her on space and food and she also was just kind of distracted and uninterested.
Would still go back for great pastries but it feels so much better when you go places where people are warm and friendly and this isn’t that place (even though décor and everything else sets that kind of expectation)

Quiche and cinnamon bun were delish. Crust was so crisp and buttery. Will have to come back to try everything else

I love love love this bakery. I recently moved up to Portland and am pretty much a walking sweet tooth. I had heard about a (now closed) bakery called Two Tarts on the food network and had to go check it out. While we were there my boyfriend pointed out a cook book by The Sugar Cube. I glanced through it and eventually bought it. I didn’t know that previously the SC was a food truck so that was neat!
Once I read in the book that they had a store front on Alberta I just had to go. I’ve gone maybe 3 or 4 times now and am never disappointed.
Awesome customer service, amazing sweets and great coffee. The store is really comfy and cute as well! Really warm for the cold Portland weather!
If you haven’t gone, you should definitely give it a try. Your taste buds will thank you. Oh! And if you are a fellow baker like myself, grab a copy of her cook book! Awesome recipes!

Strata. Strata. Strata. Not gluten or dairy free :-). It’s a tough choice for baked goods, everything looked delicious! I will report back on the almond citrus tea cake w/​lemon curd! Great service and atmosphere. Small selection of tea but good options!

Not exactly sure why I haven’t written a review yet, but here to exclaim that The Sugar Cube is undoubtedly one of the best bakeries in the world.
The staff is friendly, the space is charming and Kir is clearly extremely passionate about what she does. Oh, and most importantly, the pastries are delicious.
You really couldn’t go wrong with anything you ordered here. I would most certainly recommend you order your next special occasion or birthday cake here or holiday pie. When visiting the bakery, you can relax with a cup of fresh Ristretto coffee, savory, cheese-​y quiches and stratas or a variety of sweet, fruity, honey-​dripping toast plates.
My favorite and must-​haves include the Oh Snap Gingersnap (soft, chewy ginger cookies hugging vanilla bean-​infused cream cheese frosting) and the Ultimate Brownie (fudgey goodness kissed with sea salt and olive oil). The Coffee Mallow pie, also incredible, is piled high with pillowy coffee marshmallow mousse and streamed with salted caramel ribbons. The decadent Chocolate Blackout Cake is made with rich stout and complemented by salted caramel and bittersweet chocolate ganache. I mean… are you listening? Are you planning your visit? Cause, hello.
If you’re not in Alberta, you can also pick up TSC sweets at some other local coffee shops like Saint Simon or groceries like Green Zebra Grocery.

Highway To Heaven Cupcake. Chocolate dipped and carmel on top. Although they are super rich, one is not enough. Get six and have your fill!

Just moved to the area and this is my favorite place so far! It’s like walking into my mom’s kitchen. So warm and cozy! The ginger snap cookie sandwiches are dreamy! They truly haunt my dreams. You need The Sugar Cube in your life!!!

Chocolate brownie cupcake with Jacobsen sea salt and olive oil. I should end my review right there, but you might want to know about the cookies, the rugalach, the pie or the cinnamon rolls.
This is a little place further east on Alberta. Nothing like a tiny sweets shop that makes some really great baked goods. It all looked amazing but I gravitate towards anything chocolate. There was a cookie sandwich with crunchy peanut butter that caught my eye and a chocolate stout pie with coffee, but I’m not a coffee person. The brownie cupcake was front and center and was the choice on this day.
Moist, chocolaty, salty and not overly rich. Of course, that wouldn’t have stopped me. I will admit for $ 3.25 it could’ve been a bit bigger but it was still quite tasty.
The Sugar Cube used to be a cart and graduated to a brick and mortar establishment and it’s a good thing for the Alberta district. It’s a great place and I will go back to try some more of the pastries.
Enjoy.

I can’t believe I haven’t written a review for this place. Staff is friendly, ambiance is über cute, and seems like a place I would sit, study, and contemplate the my existence in the universe. Just kidding. It’s all about the desserts. The only dessert I had was their passion fruit pavlova and it was amazing. The surprised came when I snapped that crust open and it revealed a thing coating of dark chocolate inside. Totally added another dimension to this dish, not to mention the bright passion fruit flavor. I’m going to try the panna cotta next time.

Beautiful little bakery with all sorts of yummy treats. The girl who helped us (see photo) was super nice and kept us company while my daughter ate her cookie and had fresh apple cider.

Two words: BLACKOUT CAKE.
Oh, you want to know about said Blackout Cake? Well, it’s dense. It’s chocolate. It’s filling. And you’ll blackout once you eat a piece.
Or be bouncing off the walls from the chocolate rush.
In any case, it’s delicious.
The owner, Kir, is an absolute delight, and takes ridiculous amounts of care in everything she bakes. And it shows. And tastes. And smells.
I love this place. I wish I could spend all day basking in the smells, but then I’d get fired from my job and that part would suck.
So…go! I don’t even have a sweet tooth and I love it here! You will too!

totally yummy. Get the strata. Just do it.
And some sort of baked good. You won’t be sorry.

Welcome Back Sugar Cube, I’m lovin’ the new digs.
I have always had love The Sugar Cube. It’s just that much more enjoyable now that I can savor these goodies with a roof over my head. It’s all the pastries you’ve grown to love only with a few new additions. Including an adorable breakfast menu complete with savory items. The space itself is quaint and welcoming with an open kitchen overwhelming the dining area with heavenly smells. Overall, a nice place to meet a friend for treats or just take time to spoil yourself.
On my recent visit I got a little cray and had both the Marionberry «Crack» Coffee Cake and Bourbon Brown Butter Honey Pie. Let’s just take a second and examine the words I just strung together (1) Bourbon (2) Brown Butter (3)Honey and (4) Pie. Oh yes, I did. It’s as glorious as it sounds. Lets back track to the Marionberry coffee cake — one bite and you’ll understand the «crack» part. I paired this all with a nice Ristretto Roasters coffee (one free refill!) — lovely way to start the day if I do say so myself.
Honestly, I’m a savory person. The Sugar Cube is where I want to go when I need to get my sweet on. I have the pleasure of knowing owner Kir personally and she’s as sweet as the deliciousness she serves up. You can just tell these pasties are made with love and expertise. What sets The Sugar Cube apart in my mind is that the flavor is never overwhelmingly «sweet» or «sugary» which is my gripe with most desserts. Take the Marionberry Coffee Cake for example. The top is not just sugary-​typical-​coffee cake crumbles. There are nuts and the perfect amount of sugar and spice to bring out the taste. You can really taste all the flavors which is what tugs on my savory heartstrings.
I took a Highway to Heaven Cupcake to go because, I had too. It’s a chocolate stout cake dipped in bittersweet ganache and doused with salted caramel — ACK! Buttery, sweet, salty goodness. No matter what I get when I come I have to get one of these bad boys to go. I suggest you do likewise.
The Sugar Cube also catered the desserts for my wedding — only the best for my guests! I ordered a Le Almond cutting cake as well as cupcakes. The Le Almond is a citrus almond tea cake topped with fresh lemon curd and seasonal fruit. During our tasting I just about hit the floor. Yup, It’s a wrap! The lemon curd! Alone, I want drink it. With the almond cake it’s such a light and refreshing pairing. Kir showed up on time, of course, and created a beautiful cupcake display. Whatever your vision Kir is the sort of lady who can bring it to life.
Treat Yo’self, you deserve it.

The first time I came here, I had stopped in to check out the place and grab a cup of coffee. Coffee was pretty decent and I figured it will be nice to have this place right next door to my apartment. But the real excitement was when I saw these personal-​sized almond cakes on display! With a huge effort of restraint I didn’t go for one because I had just had lunch. Big mistake because the next day I went back and they had already sold out!!!
I went back this morning and wow was I glad. The almond cake is so delicious! It was moist and sweet and just heavenly with a little powdered sugar dusted over it and a dollop of lemon curd in the middle. New favorite pastry:)