Baton Rouge just got a whole lot sweeter.

After discovering Smallcakes Cupcakery and Creamery during their vacation to Seacrest, Florida, last year, Bart and Michelle Salim brought the cupcake franchise here in late July. This sugar-filled storefront offers cupcakes, cupcake-infused ice cream and milkshakes, cupcake push pops and even a treat available for dogs—the pupcake. The shop’s signature item—the Smallcakes Smash—is a combination of cupcakes and ice cream, all of which are made fresh daily.

“I said, ‘Baton Rouge needs something like this,’” Michelle says. “There’s just this craving for something different and good.”

Although running a cupcake company wasn’t exactly what Michelle imagined when she retired last September from a upper-level management position at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, she says the new challenge of owning her own business excited her. She committed herself to necessary research and hard work, eventually leading to the location just off Highland Road.

Food Network’s Cupcake Wars competitor Jeff Martin founded Smallcakes in 2008, and the franchise has grown to 160 stores worldwide. This is the second store in Louisiana.

“We’re so excited to be here,” Martin says. “We’re very community driven.”

For a sugar rush, head to Smallcakes Baton Rouge across from Ruffino’s on Highland Road at 18135 E. Petroleum Drive. And check out our recent Q&A with Salim here.