We Got the Inside Look of the Newly Remodeled Neighborhood Favorite With Owners Paul and Tania Taddeo
Written By: Jordan Smith
Photographed By: Erik Hale Newly Remodeled Haute Cakes Caffe
The wait is over, as Haute Cakes Caffe will reveal its new look this October! With the cafe’s 28-year anniversary around the corner in November, owners Paul and Tania Taddeo set out to give their beloved cafe a refreshing revamp without losing the heart of its history.
Haute Cakes Caffe has become an Orange County staple, and both Paul and Tania attribute that to their own focus on the community. “We set out to be a part of the community, so [we feel] blessed [that] we’ve become a neighborhood favorite,” says Paul.
A neighborhood favorite, and also a family favorite, the cafe has housed special memories that the Taddeos have shared with each other and the rest of the community. “With our girls practically being raised in the restaurant, we held everything from birthday parties to prom dinners here,” says Tania. “Many of our long time regulars have been coming in with their kids since they were little, and then as teenagers, [they] get their first jobs with us, which is really special.”
The remodel won’t lose any of that signature magic. “We don’t want people to think ‘oh no they’re changing it and it’s going to look different.’ We want to look like we’ve grown up a little, it’s the same heart and soul, just a different body,” says Tania.
And just like the cafe played host to many of their family’s treasured memories, the remodel has become another family affair. Olivia, the older daughter, helps manage the front of the house, and Sofie, the younger daughter, went to culinary school in New York. She came back to help develop new menu items to go along with the new look. Tania is the design brains behind the project, and she and Paul are involved in the process every single day. “We both knew what we wanted, but [Tania] was able to take her design background and apply it to space design,” says Paul.
Expect to see the cafe more refined. You’ll see different curb appeal—like new doors and windows—but without losing the feeling of being home. There will now be a place where you can enter to go straight to the coffee bar and bakery, and one spot where you can go to the counter to order breakfast and lunch.
The cafe will retain that familiar feel so many people have come to love. However, the final details will remain a mystery until Haute Cakes Caffe reopens in the beginning of this month. Another thing that will remain the same is the core menu—everyone’s favorites will still be available, and as usual, the menu will change with the seasons.
“We just want people to know that we are very grateful for all their support all these years and we hope with this new look they’ll enjoy their experience even more,” says Tania. “Our core values are still great food, great service, a clean and welcoming environment—and community.”
Haute Cakes Caffe
1807 Westcliff Dr
Newport Beach, CA 92660
949.642.4114
Erik Hale is the visionary and publisher behind LOCALE Magazine. He launched the magazine in 2010, wanting to give the community of OC a premiere lifestyle magazine that knew all the native knowledge behind OC. “Six years ago Ashley and I sat at a table scratching the name LOCALE (among some other names) onto a sheet of paper,” says Erik, “coming up with story ideas and basically dreaming. Everything we imagined has happened and we have been blessed with so much more. I am so grateful as we start another year for my family, my two wonderful children, my health, our amazing writers, designers and photographers, our advertising partners and you.”
