More Than Pudding dessert shop opens in Tallahassee
The capital city just got a little bit sweeter with the grand opening of dessert shop More Than Pudding on West Pensacola Street.
“It provides a southern classic, which is banana pudding, and just takes it to the next level,” owner Artesa Anderson said in an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat Friday.
The pudding palace has its own take on the traditional dessert, using Biscoff cookies and cookie butter instead of the usual vanilla wafer and whipped cream. It also offers 22 other delicious flavors of decadent frozen puddings to indulge in.
To celebrate, the shop is inviting guests to its grand opening event Saturday, Dec. 7. Guest can enjoy samples, snap selfies in the “Buzzy Booth” with an opportunity to score discounts and to sip on Lucky Goat coffee.
“One of the things that I liked about the idea when I came up with this, is that there is no one single place you can go to in town to get what I call ‘custom-style pudding,’ bread pudding and rice pudding,” Anderson said.
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This is Anderson’s second sweet venture: You may recognize her first shop, Sweet Boozy Cakes in Railroad Square, which offers alcohol-infused desserts.
“The puddings (there) just took off, so I decided to expand the pudding line to its own location, where I could expand the flavors,” she said.
One customer visited quite frequently, and to ensure she would get her fix, Anderson would set her portion aside, freezing it to ensure the fresh bananas layered in the pudding wouldn’t brown.
“She said that is the best thing she has ever tasted,” the self-taught baker said. It was the game changer that inspired the entrepreneur and full-time IT project manager to give the treats their own store, and to ensure all her puddings were served frozen.
“You can have it (like) ice cream, but if you leave it at room temperature, you can still have it as pudding, because it doesn’t lose consistency,” she said. “It doesn’t degrade or liquefy. It’s still very thick.”
Anderson hopes her passion project will become a Tallahassee staple, with ambitions of expanding beyond the capital city.
“I want (people) to love it so much that, at first, when they taste it they can’t believe it, and then they want to just keep experiencing it, and just keep coming back and trying different flavors,” she said.
Highlights of the More Than Pudding menu
Anderson who’s practiced baking since her aunt taught her when she was a little girl, perfected her craft over the years baking treats for her husband and children since 1993. “I really do love this; there’s just no other way to express it,” she said happily.
One of her favorite moments, which she calls the “double lick,” is when customers sample it for the first time, repeatedly licking the spoon to savor the experience again. The nearly two dozen flavors of pudding include Cookie Monster, Bourbon Peach Cobbler, Tiramisu and Strawberry Cheesecake.
Fan favorites include the Dirty Red Velvet, made with a cheesecake pudding with pieces of red velvet cake, crushed Oreos and white and dark chocolate chips, and the key lime pie with a fresh baked pie folded in.
A twist on the classic banana pudding is also on the list: the Banana Foster, prepared with cookie butter, a white chocolate sauce and caramelized bananas.
Puddings come in four sizes. The smallest is the kiddie cup ($4.50), the large cup is $10. Take home containers are available as well.
Outside of the puddings, the viral TikTok “Crookie” recipe, a croissant and cookie combination is available, as well as a hefty New York style cookie, and rum cakes.
If you go
What: Grand opening
When: 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 7
Where: 3020 W. Pensacola St.
Kyla A Sanford covers dining and entertainment for the Tallahassee Democrat. New restaurant opening up, special deals, or events coming up? Let me know at ksanford@tallahassee.com. You can also email your suggestions for a future TLH Eats restaurant profile.