YOU BUILD ME UP BUTTERCUP BABY, BUT YOU DON’T LET ME DOWN

Buttercup Bakeshop
973 2nd Avenue, Midtown East

At first I had a strong animosity for this bakery because I had heard it has the same owners (and thus the same recipes) as Magnolia Bakery. Fortunately, one of my best friends is an avid Buttercup fan so I decided to give their red velvet cupcake a try. Good thing I loved it because otherwise I would never be able to attend said friend’s birthday parties. Her birthday cupcakes of choice are almost always from Buttercup :) Nowadays, I never pass the midtown area without stopping in to get a red velvet cupcake from Buttercup. The tangy cream cheese icing complements the red velvet cake perfectly! It’s a great price at $2 per cupcake. Recently my friend and I stopped by for coffee and cupcakes. We split a vanilla cupcake with chocolate buttercream and it was delicious! The frosting was better than the cake, however. It was creamy but not too sweet-kind of like a melted Hersheys chocolate bar. The shop itself is very colorful. As soon as you walk in, the rainbow display of baked goodies certainly catches your eye. The counter girls were super friendly. They wished us a happy new year with a huge smile on their faces. Happy employees=happy customers. Buttercup, I need you more than anyone darling, you know that I have from the start (okay, maybe not). So build me up, buttercup-don’t break my heart.


Peace, love, and cupcakes
Michy

“Well, that’s real swell, but it still doesn’t get the cream in the cupcake.”-Samantha Jones

Magnolia Bakery
401 Bleecker St, West Village

Magnolia Bakery is probably the most famous bakery on this list. I have come to find that you either love this place or hate it. I, for one, am the latter. This bakery rose to fame after its infamous cameo in Sex and the City. A cupcake more popular than the actors who eat them? VERY POSSIBE IN CUPCAKE LAND. As soon as I saw the episode where Carrie chats with Miranda on a bench while eating a Magnolia cupcake, I HAD to try one. I’ll admit it, the first time I had a Magnolia cupcake, I gobbled up the pastel colored treat. It was vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream. I think I was more drawn to the essence of Carrie Bradshaw rather than the essence of the taste. It was, after all, so exciting to be eating the same cupcake that Carrie once had. The second time I had it, the taste overshadowed the glitz and glamour of the bakery itself. In my opinion, the frosting is WAY too sweet-almost nauseating. The cake is moist, but that alone can’t save a cupcake. The worst part of the whole experience at Magnolia is waiting behind 50 people who yearn to have a taste of the too sugary confection. Now that there are 2 other locations besides the infamous West Village location, the appeal of the small, adorable cupcake shop is dwindling as it becomes just another bakery chain.

peace, love, and cupcakes
michy

REVENGE SURE IS SWEET

Sweet Revenge

62 Carmine St, West Village

  

My mom always told me that if I couldn’t say anything nice, I shouldn’t say anything at all.  Fortunately for the employees of Sweet Revenge, I only have nice things to say.  Sweet Revenge cupcakes are made of sugar and spice and everything nice.  Not only does this West Village cupcakery have delectable cupcakes, they also have cupcake beverage pairings (wine and beer) as well as savory treats.  So far, I’ve had the “Dirty Cupcake” which is a decadent chocolate cupcake, a Raspberry Red Velvet cupcake aptly named “Crimson and Cream”, and “Sweet Revenge”-peanut butter cake with ganache filling (what a happy surprise that was!) with peanut butter buttercream.  The cupcakes are topped with their signature Sweet Revenge icing design.  The cupcakes are $3.50 each….a very fair price considering the size and deliciousness.  The location has a very different ambiance than any other cupcake shop I’ve been to.  The lighting is dim and there is waitress service, which gives the experience a more intimate feel.  All in all, Sweet Revenge fully satisfies my sweet tooth. Oh Sweet Revenge, I would swim across a sea of icing for you. 

ta ta for now

peace, love, and cupcakes

michy

THAT'S THE WAY THE CUPCAKE CRUMBLES

I guess the founders of Crumbs Bake Shop have never heard the expression “less is more”. You can’t walk into Crumbs without ordering an extravagant cupcake the size of a whale with a million toppings on it. While appealing, the toppings take away from the taste of the cupcake. I guess that’s a good thing because the inside of a Crumbs cupcake is usually dry, heavy, and flavorless. Sometimes in a cupcake pinch, I’ll settle for Crumbs. I’ve had the cookie dough cupcake, the blackout cupcake, and a special cosmopolitan cupcake in honor of the Sex and the City movie back when it first came out. The cupcakes are creative-I’ll give them that but at $3.75 per cupcake they are way too overpriced for a treat you are highly unlikely to actually finish (at least in one sitting). Also-what is the deal with minimal seating inside all the locations? I have yet to go to a Crumbs location that has adequate seating for customers. I don’t prefer to munch on a cupcake standing up or outside in the cold weather! Two thumbs down. It’s difficult to avoid Crumbs’ numerous NYC locations, but this is one cupcake I’d rather not crumble.


Toodles cupcakers


Peace, love, and cupcakes
Michy

CUPCAKE WISHES & FROSTING DREAMS

1 girl. 30 Cupcakes.


Hi I’m Michy the cupcake maven. You’ve probably seen me with cupcake in hand and icing on my chin, leaving your local bakery. When not eating a cupcake, I’m dreaming about frosting and yearning for floury buttery goodness. Cupcakes make me happy, enough said. This is the true story of one girl on a mission to find the best, most delicious cupcake. Follow me on my cupcake crumb path up and down the streets of New York searching for the reigning ruler in the world of cupcakes.

Until next time cupcake addicts...

peace, love, and cupcakes
Michy