TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – The Cake Shop – which has been popular for its cakes and cupcakes for decades – is now known nationwide for its popped tarts.
A shout-out from A-list actor Ryan Gosling last month on Late Night with Seth Meyers started it all, and an appearance this week on the Today show has phones ringing off the hook again.
“I’m doing my best to try to keep up with it all,” Cake Shop owner Linda Richards said on Tuesday.
Ryan Gosling on Late Night with Seth Meyers, shouting out Tallahassee’s Cake Shop. (Late Night with Seth Meyers/NBC Universal)
Stacey Russell was one of the people waiting in line on Tuesday to buy a popped tart. She said she’s been anxious to try one.
“I’m like, did my boo Ryan Gosling say Tallahassee?” Russell said with a laugh. “Then, sadly, I had a little bit of a delay, got a liver transplant, and had to wait a couple of weeks to be able to drive to come get one, but the day has come.”
Gosling’s one-minute mention last month resulted in a deluge of orders for the handmade popped tarts. On Monday, Richards and her sister, popular SNL dresser Linda Richards, made an appearance together on the Today show.
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Richards continues to be amazed by the popped tarts’ newfound fame.
“I think it evokes happiness in all of us. We all remember as a child having a Pop-Tart. My favorite was cinnamon. So I think it just brings joy to people. It’s a moment of joy and sisters and our careers come together,” Richards said.
Richards says she used to bake a few dozen popped tarts a day; now it’s hundreds a day, and they’ve had to hire more people.
“They’re still made by hand in French tart dough. It’s not something you can make in ten minutes,” Richards said. “You make the dough, it has to be refrigerated two hours, you roll it out, you fill them, they have to dry, then you have to glaze it and that has to dry and you have to package it. It’s a process.”
Famed “Popped Tarts” displayed at The Cake Shop. (WCTV / Julie Montanaro)
The bakery is trying its best to keep up with demand. Customers at the counter are limited to one popped tart per person.
“I did just come from the gym, but I regret absolutely nothing,” Stacey Russell said with a laugh as she paid for her popped tart.
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