Emerald City Cakes & Chocolates

Living and operating in the food service industry and being good at your job will occasionally offer you glimpses at true greatness.
I have been extremely fortunate to know Chef Paul Staley and his wonderful wife and compatriot Stephanie for about a year and a half now. Not only were they gracious guests at a former job of mine — they have taken me on an amazing culinary journey that few can say they’ve experienced. I’ve been freelancing with them through their pop-​up dinners and their catering gigs, and I’ve been shown not only the amazing, scattershot, and terrifyingly NOW of the catering world, but also the gentle yet insistent oeuvre of the one-​off foodgasm that is the pop-​up dinner.
Paul and Stephanie have provided me with a handful of opportunities to work with some amazing people and also to enjoy some food that deserves nothing less than accolades for pure culinary genius. I am enjoying some leftovers from last night’s #theporkening pop-​up, and am re-​thrust into the pork-​gasmic headspace that I never wanted to leave. Chef Jenn Strange’s offerings were equally amazing and her creativity is not to be denied.
Many people seized the opportunity to be a part of this event, and many missed out. I ate a meal that will go down as one of the best I have ever had. Boom, mic drop, end scene.

I have experienced the food and service of these guys on several occasions.
They catered 2 events for our business and we attended a pop up restaurant event of theirs in which I developed a love for something I never dreamed I would like — oysters!
The passion they pour into each and every dish is evident. I look forward to the next bite!

So sorry to say Emerald City Cakes was a disappointment. Lovely food when we tasted it in my home for My daughter’s upcoming wedding. We agreed verbally that we would use them and asked that a dessert be added to the final quote. I waited and waited for the final quote that never came. I called Stephanie and I emailed her. I texted and she finally got back to me and told me they were extremely busy. I told her I understood. So I waited another two and a half weeks and she never got back to me.
Finally I had to select a different caterer. Wedding planning is a stressful process and having a caterer that cannot follow through makes the process even more stressful. I couldn’t take the risk of waiting for he wedding to find out if they were reliable or not.
This is why Emerald City Cakes gets one star from me. I hope they will improve their customer service because they came highly recommended

This amazing team traveled 2 ½ hours to cater our daughter’s wedding reception in SW WA and delivered one of the most amazing buffet dinners (and evenings!) we’d ever imagined. The professionalism of owners Paul and Stephanie from the beginning contact to the after-​event cleanup was impeccable.
Appetizers of shrimp, pita, hummus and a variety of veggies helped keep the guests happy while the bride and groom had a quiet, private time together after the ceremony.
And THEN the prime rib, chicken Marsala, scalloped-​potatoes-​to-​die-​for, rice pilaf, fresh green bean/​carrot medley and green salad with a raspberry vinaigrette dressing arrived!
I’ve never heard more men (rich, poor, young, old, fat, skinny, gay, straight!) RAVE about a catered meal like the men in that room did! Every man at my table went up for seconds on those potatoes. Out-​of-​town guests were singing the praises of the meal days later!
The wedding reception was in a beautifully decorated parish hall, the theme of the evening was «winter evening magic» and Emerald City came through in spades. Chocolate brown table cloths with white linen overlays warmed the room, table centerpieces made by the bride and her friends were set out and supported by a VERY PLEASANT staff. The bride and groom were treated as royalty and as the evening proceeded I had only to catch the eye of ANY of the staff and they were at my side to see what I needed. Stephanie routinely found me to check up on their performance and Paul and the staff not only served up a couple of DELICIOUS MEATBALL APPETIZERS for my starving AND GRUMPY 5yo grandson prior to the event but were very quick to help me remember which dish was the gluten-​free dessert (amazing berry cobbler!).
I was happy to pass out a whole handful of their business cards to local residents as well as Seattle family and friends in attendance. The space was clean and friendly after they departed and I have NO HESITATION recommending them to you for ANY size or style of event you’re planning. You won’t go wrong with Emerald City!

I’ve worked with Paul and Stephanie on multiple occasions for different work functions including celeb appearances, a product launch party and a grand opening. They are always on time, always have everything we need and do an amazing job. I can’t thank them enough for how easy they’ve made my life!
The stuffed mushrooms and mini cupcakes are absolutely amazing. I hate, hate, hate mushrooms, but I can’t wait to get my hands on those stuffed mushrooms again! There prices are very reasonable and when they brought a bar staff for one of the events we did, the bar staff was great!
I highly recommend them.

This is the small husband and wife duo every bride wants in their back pocket. Paul and Stephanie make food that tastes freaking amazing, hands down. I had the opportunity to try some of their amazing cupcakes at a work function a long time ago, and then crossed paths with them again at a wedding this summer. Those cupcakes are good enough that I remembered the duo and knew we were in for a treat.
We had some different dips with pita bread and veggies — that red pepper dip is to die for. OMG! They made lamb kebabs and salmon, and while I already love these dishes I heard non-​fish eaters exclaim this was the first time they’ve had salmon and like it. These folks will make converts out of critics.
And lastly, back to the dish that started it all — those amazing cupcakes. I haven’t had a wedding cake from them, but given how good the cupcakes are, I’d be surprised if the cakes weren’t amazing, too. More chocolate coffee bean amazingness, please.
I wish they had a better system for booking — I wanted to see if they were available to cater an event at work after finding them again at the awesome wedding, and I can only get details talking directly to one of them instead of checking an online calendar. I guess that’s the price of working with a small company, but I’d take the phone tag as the price for that amazing food.

Yummiest Wedding Cake Ever! My mouth is still watering!

I was recommended Paul and Stephanie Staley at Emerald City Cakes & Chocolates by a friend of mine when she heard I was looking for a caterer for my wedding. This was by and large the best recommendation for anything we received leading up to our big day! The wedding was this past Saturday (⁹⁄₂₉), and Paul and Stephanie absolutely brought it. For any brides looking for a caterer, let me breakdown my experience to help you understand why you really and truly should choose Emerald City Cakes & Chocolates:
—-FOOD — -
We knew we wanted a gastro-​pub theme for our reception, so we weren’t looking for light fare for our guests. Our families were coming in from Texas and Illinois, so we knew we needed substantial food to keep everybody full. So we ended up going to the tasting with food for the cocktail hour (cheese plates and bacon-​wrapped dates), 5-​cheese baked mac & cheese with caramelized onions and pulled pork sliders for the entrees, brussel sprouts and salad as a side, and red velvet cupcakes in place of a wedding cake.
The tasting… was incredible. We’d honestly and truly never had food so flavorful, so rich and so unique than we did with Paul in the kitchen. Seattle has made me a mac & cheese connoisseur, but nothing I’d eaten to date came close to their version of it. I believe they used basil oil, as well, which really set the flavor off in a new direction. And red velvet cake has always been my favorite cake, and they did an amazing job with the cupcakes! All the guests were scrambling to get as many as they could before they were gone at the reception.
We made sure to tell everybody in advance of the wedding to come hungry and be prepared for some of the best food they’d ever tasted. In fact, I think we spent more time talking up the food to our guests than the reception itself! All of our guests agreed that it was just incredible. They brought it during the tasting and perfected it again for our wedding reception.
—-SERVICE — -
I’d never worked with a caterer before, never planned an event, so I was a bit nervous to begin the process only because I didn’t know what questions to ask or how to get started. Thankfully Paul and Stephanie were so open to my questions and suggestions, never rude, never difficult to work with. I always felt I was in good hands and was getting exactly what I was looking for. They are a lovely couple and a true pleasure to work with. I’m honestly trying to think of another event I can hold soon so they can come cater again! :)
They were so flexible when I had changes, very willing to work with me on everything. I’m incredibly thankful for that. I’d be remiss to not mention how the service continued even after the wedding, though! We left our reception early and had someone else in charge of our leftovers — which I was really looking forward to digging into cause there was still some mac & cheese! The next day I found out all the groomsmen polished off our leftovers, and I was devastated. I was so looking forward to at least one more bite of their food! So my Mother contacted Stephanie to see if they had any food left anywhere else, and they did! And Stephanie was kind enough to take time out of her day and meet myself and my Mother the day after the wedding and deliver the rest of the leftovers. I don’t know many people that would do that, so I thank she and Paul both for their generosity there. So very kind of them.
—-PRICE — -
I looked around at many different catering options, and was surprised at how astronomical the costs were going to be. I was very turned off at the small portions and high costs (often over $ 100/​guest). I was told Paul & Stephanie could work with us to get us exactly the food we wanted at a price we could afford, and they were right! All things considered (food, labor, service, linen & glassware rentals), we got it down to around $ 45-​$ 50/​person. That was fantastic! For our guests to get three full courses of some delicious food at a price we could actually afford, we were thrilled. We were trying to do this wedding on a budget, and were so thankful to have food for our guests that didn’t seem like it was a tight-​budget wedding.
—
I know this was a long review, but I hope any bride-​to-​be looks to this overview and sees the hard work and wonderful quality Paul and Stephanie brought to our wedding. I cannot recommend them highly enough. I looked around and did several other tastings and I can attest that for the price, you will not get better tasting food from a caterer in Seattle than you will from Emerald City Cakes & Chocolates.

Paul and Stephanie catered my daughter’s wedding a few weeks ago. The food was something I was a little nervous about because there is always that «what if» factor. I had no need to worry. Everything was fantastic. The food was delicious. The presentation was lovely and the dessert table was beautiful. Paul and Stephanie worked incredibly hard. I will have them caterer again!

Paul and Stephanie catered my wedding for me this past Saturday, July 21^st, and everyone couldn’t stop talking about how wonderful the food was.
We wanted something simple, so we went with sliders, potatoes au gratin, salad, and an array of desserts. These two masterminds made all the simple foods taste heavenly and if you haven’t tried their bacon wrapped figs, you MUST. Every dish they put out for the buffet was so tasty and they were whisking back and forth to the kitchen making sure everything was stocked at the buffet.
Our cake was lovely and delicious. We had it the next day at a gift opening and shared with immediate family and it was gobbled down in seconds.
You can’t ask for a better caterer than these two. They will work magic with the food and leave your guests stupid happy full. I am eternally grateful for how perfect they were for my wedding!

I know the Staley’s on a personal and professional level and can say they excel at both. Stephanie’s ability to coordinate and manage an account combined with Paul’s wonderful creativity and craftwork in the kitchen bring about a wonderful and delight experience. I have been privy to multiple meals and treats created by Paul and have absolutely loved every one of them. Being the perfectionist he is, you will not be served anything just so-​so. I have made it a point to seek out their various tastings and pairings in the area. Their food is just absolutely wonderful! I would highly recommend them for any event. Exceptionally capable and experienced people that are just delights to work with. Do yourself a favor, visit their website and see where they’re to be next and enjoy their food! And if your looking for high quality food with more than reasonable prices, then call them for a tasting! You won’t be disappointed!