15 Best Spots to Get Ube in California

“Will ube mine?”…is what all ube lovers are saying to each of the fifteen below shops that sell it in every shape, size and texture! If you’re here, you are probably just as obsessed with these vibrant purple desserts as we are. If not, here’s your lesson. Ube is a purple yam from the Philippines largely used in desserts (not to be confused with its purple vegetable cousin, taro). Similar to matcha’s rise in fame, ube has now become so widespread that it can be discovered at non-Filipino eateries across North America today.
From bright lavender ice cream to dark purple frosted donuts, ube can be seen and consumed in almost any sugar-y fashion imaginable. And there’s no denying how prevalent it has been in California! Sit back, relax, and feast your eyes on what is sure to be your next ube bae below.
Methodology: This is an all-time list of the best spots to grab ube in California according to Yelp. We identified businesses in the restaurants and food categories with a large concentration of reviews mentioning “ube,” then ranked those spots using a number of factors including the total volume and ratings of reviews mentioning “ube.” We included only two businesses per county for geographic diversity.
1. Frankielucy Bakeshop (Los Angeles, CA)
Ube upside-down pie
2. Cone Appétit (Artesia, CA)
Ube soft serve ice cream with Captain Crunch
3. Bunso Breads Bakery & Cafe
(Pleasanton, CA)
Ube flan cupcake
4. Cafe 86 (Chino, CA)
Ube monster shake and ube leche flan cupcake
5. Baked Dessert Bar
(Rancho Cucamonga, CA)
Ube tres leche
6. Milkbomb Ice Cream (San Francisco, CA)
Ube ice cream with ube sauce in a lavender cone
7. House of Silvanas (Daly City, CA)
Ube silvana
8. Ching’s Famous Hopia (National City, CA)
Ube hopia
9. 1608 Bistro (San Francisco, CA)
Ube pancakes with ube horchata
10. Dough and Arrow (Costa Mesa, CA)
Ube croissants, iced ube cookie cream latte, and ube cookies with toasted coconut
11. Third Culture Bakery (Berkeley, CA)
Ube coconut donuts
12. Paderia Bakehouse (Fountain Valley, CA)
Ube malasadas and ube cheesecake
13. Snoice (Spring Valley, CA)
Ube/taro blend with boba, topped with whipped cream
14. Delight Ice Cream & Drinks (Murrieta, CA)
Ube soft serve with Oreo crumbs and strawberry drizzle
15. Sweet Rendezvous (San Jose, CA)
Bombolone with ube ice cream
Happy indulging! Don’t see your city on this list? Download the Yelp app and find the ube closest to you!