We chatted with founder Lester San Luis about his background in baking, his views on the city, and even asked him to create a social-distance approved Smooch date for us to try out this weekend.
Tell us the Smooch story, the best way you can. When did the love of pastry and confection emerge? What about this process of creation is different from anything else, and necessary in wild, uncertain time such as today?
Smooch represents the confluence of a number of experiences and interests from both myself and [my] husband, Peter. I for one love food, and if that food happens to be pretty and sweet, I’m even more interested. As a young child my mom used to work at a cookie shop in Alameda. Whether it was the day old leftovers, a broken cookie, or if I was lucky, a perfect sample—she would always return with something that made me happy.
I think this sowed a hidden seed in my head, which little did I know would emerge later in life when I was given a kitchen mixer by my boyfriend at the time, Peter, in 2012. Things moved on quickly from there… drawing upon some of Peter’s beloved English puddings, and a keen obsession with my cookery idol, “Mary Berry,” I worked through both the disasters and successes of every type of sponge, pastry, and bread dough to become a self-taught baker.
Fast forward to 2018 via thousands of pounds of butter, eggs and flour, I decided it was time to give up a career in finance that I really wasn’t passionate about and get my baking business off the ground. Tarts weren’t the obvious choice; I toyed with the idea of choux buns, then doughnuts, but really wanted to bring something new and innovative which you don’t see on the US high street. Tarts it was, and I’m so happy with that choice. One simple, crisp but flakey tart shell is my window of endless opportunity for exploration and accomplishment.
Tell us more about how your company loves and accepts its customers and San Francisco as a whole. What does that look like in execution and how you propel your business forward?
As a proud married couple and members of the LGBTQ family, we know what love and acceptance is all about. I was born in the Philippines and emigrated to the US at the age of six, and my husband Peter was born in the UK, travelled the world for work, and finally landed in San Francisco in 2010.
We’ve both enjoyed engaging in many different cultures and environments in our lives to date, so in a global city like San Francisco, we truly admire the diversity and character on offer. We started Smooch Tartshop in early 2019, and as an extension of our own passions, it too relishes in diversity and shares a love and acceptance of all. In terms of execution this means we develop tart flavors which nod to various tastes and global origins; and in terms of propelling us forward it enables us to build relationships with our customers. We feel very lucky.
What have you learned about the Bay Area in your mission to feed its sweet tooth? What do you love about it? How does it inspire the work you do?
The Bay Area is a true community. People here encourage, support, and love each other without boundaries. It’s easy to take this fact for granted, but going through the scary process of starting a new business has really helped us to recognize how valuable community is and how much it should be treasured.
The underlying mission of our tartshop has always been to produce high quality, extremely tasty, beautiful looking tarts in all sorts of globally inspired flavors. However, the public engagement we’ve received from the very outset has inspired us to deliver to an even greater goal, dedicating ourselves to relationship and community building—listening, making people smile and always going the extra mile. This is Smooch Tartshop!
Aside from the obvious beauty of your creations, can you explain the special aspects of the ingredients? Where are they sourced from and how do they drive the flavor profiles in a new and unique way?
We are quality-obsessed when it comes to making our tarts. This means three things: firstly we use the best quality, organic, and locally sourced ingredients; second, we make absolutely everything from scratch; and third, we take every new tart recipe inspiration through multiple rounds of baking, tasting, refinement and improvement until we are happy… or not as the case may be. I am proud to say there are plenty of recipes we’ve spent months perfecting, only to conclude that they just don’t quite work.
We are respectful to many of the world’s classic concepts, like “Creme Brulee” for example, but also enjoy adding in other herbs, fruits, liquors and spices to mix things up and create new and unique flavor combinations.
Can you give us a social-distanced outing involving a visit to your Ferry Building pop-up? What should we order, what can we learn about the treats, and where would you send us out into the city to enjoy them?
There is no better place to start your weekend than with a visit to the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. Once you’ve done the rounds to purchase all your fresh fruits and vegetables, stop by and pick up a taster box of Smooch Mini Tart, this treat of four bite sized tarts (Ube Coconut / Chocolate Millionaire / Mango Passion Fruit / Lemon Ginger Meringue) is a tasty little energizer, great enjoyed with your morning Blue Bottle Coffee while sitting on the waterside.
Refreshed and with your perfect Instagram memory created, head back inside to prep for the day. San Franciscans are a hardy bunch, so whether or not Karl the fog has turned up, we’d recommend a hike up Telegraph Hill, lounge in the park, or bike around the bay. Either way you’ll be needing a picnic or evening reward to look forward to. Stop by Smooch again and we’ll be pleased to talk you through our range of flavors and get you set… by the way, did I mention Tiramisu and Drunken Pear?
Now, remember the definition of Smooch “a kiss or a spell of amorous kissing and cuddling,” so if you’re within your social-distanced bubble a Smooch Tart goes very well alongside a kiss and cuddle with your loved one.
// Smooch Tartshop is open at the Ferry Building every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through September 12th. To learn more about Smooch Tartshop and view the full menu, visit smoochtartshop.com. Photography courtesy of Smooch Tartshop.
