One taste of UBAE bakery’s cheesecake in its vibrant purple hue will leave an indelible impression of the Filipino yam (ube) used to make it. While its intriguing color may be cause for some hesitancy — as few foods bear such a striking shade — it tastes as tempting as it looks.
Jeremy and Adrienne-Joy Jataas have enjoyed ube since childhood in all kinds of traditional Filipino desserts, mainly ice cream. “We grew up with ube, but it wasn’t very exciting stuff,” Jeremy said. “We wanted to make a whole bunch of different stuff. That’s how the cheesecake came about, then the tarts; and we have rolls, cream puffs and our own ice cream now.”
Joy (as she is known) said their first product was the cheesecake, created in 2015 to meet a craving of Jeremy’s. “We wanted something creamy and tried it with the cheesecake, and it came out good.”
Once it was perfected, they started selling the cheesecake to family, friends and co-workers. The circle of enthusiasts swelled when they advertised it on Instagram in 2016, enough to open the bakery in 2017 in City Square Shopping Center in Kalihi.
It was Jeremy’s inspiration to name their bakery UBAE, an acronym for Ube Before Anything Else, a play on the slang word “bae” (babe) that summed up the essence of their business. (They’ve even named one of the tastiest items “Flanbae,” an ube chiffon cake with a layer of leche flan with a caramel topping.)
>> RELATED: Food We Crave: Scratch Kitchen, Farmhouse Cafe, Big Island Candies
The Jataas like to think they might be part of ube’s popularity as a food trend in certain areas of the U.S.; a Facebook video posted in 2017 to the Insider homepage garnered 2.4 million views. They’d hoped their cheesecake, with its eye-catching color, would spark curiosity about the Filipino culture and lead people to try other Filipino foods.
Social media has been their biggest marketing tool from the beginning, Joy added.
The two have maintained close ties to their roots, and are raising their three children to appreciate their parents’ homeland, the way their grandparents lived and other cultural connections, Jeremy said. “When we were growing up, we remember our parents talking to us in Filipino — that’s how we understand it now. We try to pass that on to our kids as well.”
Obtaining the ube was a challenge, as they don’t know of anyone growing the root vegetable in Hawaii. In the beginning, they flew to the Philippines, where ube is a major crop, to get it in any form they could (raw, powdered or grated and frozen), and it took about two years to acquire reliable sources. Relatives in the Philippines helped them smooth over language barriers and red tape to make contact with distributors and other sources, Jeremy said.
Ube is often confused with purple Okinawan sweet potato, because of its similar color and taste, Joy said, but ube is less starchy, with “more vanilla and earthy tones.” It’s hard to define a distinct flavor when describing ube because of its subtlety, but the creamy, smooth texture of the cheesecake items and ice creams is a winner, and the eye-popping color makes everything attractive.
While Joy started out doing the baking, Jeremy soon pitched in to help however he could: “I crack the eggs and whip it up.” Both have a hand in all aspects of the operation, with the assistance of 11 staffers.
When they started out, Joy had given up her job as a health administrator to care for their children. With the bakery doing so well, Jeremy was able to give up his job as a carpenter in 2017.
About a year ago, UBAE added a few non-ube flavors in response to customer suggestions. Little cheesecake tarts, each with a flaky shortbread crust, now come in haupia-chocolate and chantilly- chocolate, and have sold really well.
A coconut-flavored ice cream incorporates extract of pandan (screwpine) leaf and takes on pandan’s bright green color and sweet, floral notes. It’s based on buko pandan, a popular Filipino dessert made of young coconut, pandan-flavored jelly cubes and tapioca pearls. The ice cream is available in addition to an ube ice cream, and the two flavors can be combined in a swirl of contrasts.
Much of UBAE’s business depended on tourists, so when the pandemic hit last year, “we had to change our game plan,” Jeremy said. “If it weren’t for wholesale accounts and local support (including walk-ins), there is no way we would still be afloat,” he said.
UBAE products are carried at 7-Eleven, Aloha Gas stations, a few Texaco stations and KTA Super Stores on Hawaii Island. Smaller outlets include Sweet Treats by Kris at Pearlridge Center, Island Shave Ice and Creamery in Kapolei and a few others. UBAE products will also be available in Japan later this year.
UBAE (Ube Before Anything Else)
1284 Kalani St.; 439-3224
Open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays
ubaehawaii.com
