SHOREWOOD — There's a new bakery that you may not know about, but you probably need to know about it.
It's called ube MKE. It’s a family-owned bakery in Shorewood that makes Filipino sweet treats. The key ingredient to many of its baked goods is ube, which gives each item a distinct purple color. Ube is purple yam and a common Filipino ingredient. It’s boiled, mashed, and then turned into a paste and used in the baking process.
“I like sharing the culture. I think it's cool to, like, let people, like, learn about Filipino culture," 12-year-old Miles Quimpo, who helps with the family bakery, said.
Ube MKE doesn't have a storefront, but does pop-ups, farmers markets, and delivery for online orders. Go to ubemke.com to find out where they'll be next or place an order.
“I like kind of, like, providing to other people. It's kind of, like, satisfying to see them, like, say they like your food," Quimpo said.
The Quimpos just started baking in March, and business is already growing. They upgraded from their home kitchen to a commercial space to increase the amount they can bake.
“The most gratifying thing is when people learn what ube is, learn what Filipino flavors are. Especially being in a farmers market, seeing the smiles on people's faces. That's awesome," Mike Quimpo, the founder of Ube MKE and Miles' dad, said. “One thing that I really love about it is we get to do it as a family.”
You may have heard of ube being in lattes at places like Starbucks. Large chains are cashing in on the new popularity of Ube. Some local cafes offer drinks with Ube, but there aren't many places making ube baked goods.
“We noticed there weren't a lot of Filipino businesses. So coming from Southern California, where, you know, it's dime a dozen, we wanted to bring that Filipino flavor to Milwaukee. So we said, why not start ourselves?” Mike Quimpo said.
It’s been successful so far, hence the kitchen upgrade. And now, Miles Quimpo is starting to think even bigger.
"It would be really cool if we could get like a storefront someday, eventually," he said.
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