BEAUTY IN BOLDNESS
AUDREY’S PASTRY BOUTIQUE PAOLA PASCUA-TUMAMBING
Chef Paola of Audrey’s Pastry Boutique may know a thing or two about cakes, but her overflowing bravery is what earned her a spotlight in today’s wedding industry
In every wedding, there is a tradition a couple goes through to symbolize their union—the cutting of the cake. As small as the gesture might seem, the fact that it’s still practiced today shows that even the smallest detail can play such a pivotal role. Which is why Chef Paola Pascua of Audrey’s Pastry Boutique goes to incredible lengths to bring a touch of sweetness to her clients’ celebrations.
Having gone full-fledged since 2018, Audrey’s Pastry Boutique has crafted cakes inspired by elegance and femininity. Chef Paola says that in building the brand and business, she was spurred on purely by passion.
“It was in year 2012 that I came across cake decorating through Wilton. I immediately got obsessed with how the artists were able to pull off such edible creations. I enrolled in a Wilton cake decorating class under Chef Peachy Juban. After that class, I decided to explore the field. I said I needed another workshop—one after the other—until I finally found myself enrolled in Professional Baking and Pastry Arts while I was working in corporate full-time. I worked daytime, and studied at night just to keep my hands on it. In 2016, I finally decided to stop working and start building Audrey’s in our backyard from scratch, and now we serve hundreds of events from our humble studio in Laguna.”
In an industry overflowing with cake artists and bakers, it’s a challenge to stand out, but Chef Paola admits that her success isn’t found in a secret ingredient. Rather, it comes from the willingness to try and in their flexibility.
“We once had a wedding in Palawan: it was one of the firsts for the team. We couldn’t believe flying a cake was even possible! But hey, making and packing a humongous cake for a flight was insane,” she recalls. “Imagine we were a very lean company, it was just me and my senior artist who went to the event. Me and a petite girl carrying a six-foot-tall wedding cake, all the way to Puerto Princesa.”
To spoil the story for you, the clients were thrilled once the cake arrived.
Don’t be fooled, though, While Chef Paola isn’t shy of entertaining urgent requests, she shares that the production of one of her creations can take months.
“We have celebrants who are specific with their details, and we love that! We begin with collating pegs, detailing the color palette, and eventually start consultation. After we decide on design and flavor options, we finally start with the production.”
With persistent trends such as minimalist or organic-looking cakes, Audrey’s Pastry Boutique has mastered their own version of such desserts. Polishing the most minute of details on their naked cakes or five-tier creations, they also play around with flavors: blueberry, caramel, lemon, and strawberry. All, of course, topped with delicate replicas of flowers, peonies, roses, and even carnations.
Her advice for couples looking for a cake artist on their big day?
“Don’t be afraid to discuss with your designer! Let them understand your taste and preferences so they can easily tell what you would love.”
Their cakes certainly mirror the very trait that has kept the business going for the past years: beauty in boldness.