Before you embark on my cupcake dissertation I would like to thank the ChowHounders who offered up great suggestions like Miss Needle who suggested Pinisi, stroms who suggested Sweet Revenge, and all the others I have not gotten to yet. I'd also like to thank MMRuth for the idea with her baguette survey. Next, many thanks to my three trainers- Allison, Antonio, and Troy who allow me to eat cupcakes but not look like one. And last but not least my husband for helping with and tolerating my cupcake obsession.
So you know what you are looking at I have listed each cupcake description to correlate with it's picture going from left to right.
Also, please know these are just my opinions based on my own personal tastes not to be taken too seriously.
Lastly, I'm sure most of you don't have an entire day to read about cupcakes so here's the cliff notes:
BAD: Out of the Kitchen
O.K.: Ruthy's, Royale, Crumbs
GOOD: Ciao For Now, Billy's, Cupcake Cafe, Magnolia, Little Pie Co.
VERY GOOD: Chikalicious Puddin', Amy's, Kyotofu
EXCELLENT: Sweet Revenge, Tonnie's Minis, Eleni's, Two Little red Hens, Sage's (Dean and Deluca), William Greenberg
MY FAVORITE: Batch
Out of the kitchen
Chocolate Cupcake with Chocolate Frosting
Overall 5
| | icing | cake |
| taste | 6- tasted like Betty Crocker chocolate frosting out of the can. | 5- no flavor |
| texture | 7- very smooth but too soft
| 4- very dry and crumbly almost stale |
| sweetness | 5- way too sweet | |
The size of the cupcake is great, they looked simple and neat but the cake to icing ratio was off, too much icing and it being so soft made it a mess.
The dry, flavorless cake was not accompanied by an icing nearly good enough to make up for its problems. The same was true for the vanilla.
Never again.
Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate frosting
Overall 5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6 | 5- no flavor and slightly eggy |
| TEXTURE | 7 | 5- dry crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 5 | |
Amy's
Devil's food
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice rich, dark choc flavor but not overwhelming or bitter | 8- good chocolaty flavor |
| TEXTURE | 9- smooth and firm | 8- good but a little to crumbly, definitely needs the icing to hold it together |
| SWEETNESS | 8- good amount of sweetness to balance the dark choc | |
Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate Icing
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- good milk chocolate flavor but I prefer dark | 7- a little plain |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8- moist not crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
The icing to cake ratio had too much cake, it’s too tall for one bite so you are left with cake and no icing. But the cake is good enough that you still want to eat it without the icing. This is true for both.
The drawback is the annoying wrapper; it’s hard to get off.
I’m glad I went back. I had forgotten what a solid cup cake they make.
Batch
Strawberry Coconut
Overall 9.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9.5- like biting into a super sweet strawberry | 9.5- unconventional mix of flavors that work great together, nice touch of strawberry jam in the middle of the coconut cake |
| TEXTURE | 10- smooth, creamy, perfect stiffness | 9.5 moist, not too dense |
| SWEETNESS | 9 | |
Perfect icing to cake ratio. Perfect cup cake size. Very pretty color with sparkles and little purple candies that add to the aesthetic. An amazing cup cake.
Devil's Food
Overall 9.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9.5- excellent chocolate taste with a hint of caramel and little chocolate crunchy pearls on top
| 10- excellent with a caramel ribbon that enhances the flavor |
| TEXTURE | 9.5-smooth, creamy, firm | 10- moist but not dense or sticky |
| SWEETNESS | 10 perfect combo of bitter dark chocolate and sweetness | |
Again, great size, perfect icing to cake ratio, the little chocolate pearls are not only pretty but add beautiful crunch.
Generally I never go for just a chocolate or vanilla cupcake, I like more nontraditional flavors, but this cup cake has turned me into a HUGE fan. The best chocolate cup cake I’ve ever had.
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- a nice hint of salt | 8- spicy and nutty |
| TEXTURE | 7- kinda grainy and soft | 8.5- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- a bit too sweet | |
Well done. The tiny pieces of nuts (which I usually don't like in cake) are the perfect size and add great flavor
The Velvet
Overall 7.5
| TASTE | 8.5- cream cheesy but not overwhelming | 8- strawberry cake with choc cream center |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- grainy | 7- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5
| |
I love this take on red velvet. All the elements of red velvet presented in a different way- the red color given by the strawberries, the traditional cream cheese icing and the cocoa represented with a dab of chocolate cream in the middle of the cake.
Unfortunately the cake part was dry. I would have given it a higher score if it wasn’t for that.
Green Tea
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- strong, powdery, green tea aftertaste | 8.5- nice surprise of peach (I think) jam in the middle |
| TEXTURE | 7- too light | 8.5- moist and not too dense |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet enough | |
I’m not a fan of green tea as a flavor in general. It is always remarkable when someone is able to take something you thought you didn’t like and make you enjoy it. That did not happen for me here.
I did like the cake part especially with the jam but I was left with an overwhelming green tea after taste. Not my cup of tea.
Vanilla Vanilla
Overall 9.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9.5- excellent vanilla flavor , nice and buttery, you can see the vanilla beans | 9.5- light but rich vanilla flavor, little lime (I think) cream in the middle |
| TEXTURE | 8- touch grainy | 8- touch dense |
| SWEETNESS | 9 | |
This was my third trip back to Batch and I would describe them as gourmet and sophisticated cupcakes. A sleek look backed up by an excellent little cake. If you like a more home made, traditional type you might not be overly impressed with these, but I love them. I never though I would like a vanilla cupcake so much.
Sweet Revenge
Dirty (chocolate with chocolate ganache)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- intense dark chocolate, too bitter for me | 8- good chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 10- smooth rich firm | 7.5- on the dry side |
| SWEETNESS | 8- needed to be sweeter for my tastes | |
The look is unique, wrapped in brown parchment paper, giving them a very modern, contemporary feel. The names are great. The size is excellent, but the Dirty had too much icing especially since it was so intense. Very high % cocoa was obviously used.
I really like dark chocolate and usually prefer it but this was too much, even for me. But if you are a DARK CHOCOLATE PURIST this is the cupcake for you.
Crimson and Cream (red velvet)
Overall 9.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- a tad too cream cheesy | 10- raspberry filling makes this an awesome nontraditional red velvet but it works extremely well |
| TEXTURE | 8- touch too soft | 9- moist but not too dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Excellent cup cake. Love the unique flavor and concept. Great icing and great cake. My favorite nontraditional red velvet.
Island Spice
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9- great flavor | 7.5- too much nutmeg
|
| TEXTURE | 8- touch too soft | 9- a few small pieces of nut adding an occasional crunch |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Sweet Revenge (peanut butter)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5 nice rich peanut butter flavor, peanuts on the are great | 8 nice chocolate dab in the center |
| TEXTURE | 8 a little soft | 7.5 a little dense |
| SWEETNESS | 7 too sweet | |
I went back to Sweet Revenge to see if they had the Dulce De Leche that I was told was good. They didn’t have it again so I got this one and the plain. The peanuts on the outside are great but the icing was to sweet. The cake was good and the chocolate added a nice burst of flavor. I did like Eleni’s Peanut Butter Cup better (see further down).
Plain (vanilla)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8-mild vanilla flavor
| 8-light vanilla, a bit eggy |
| TEXTURE | 8- little grainy | 8.5- very moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7- too sweet | |
This is a solid cupcake. I think Sweet Revenge takes a very modern twist on cupcakes using great bold flavors and unique combinations. A great new additions to New York's cup cake scene.
Ciao for Now
Carrot (mini)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice cream cheese flavor | 7.5- could be a little spicier, has nut pieces too big for a mini cup cake ( I’m not a fan of nuts in my cake)
|
| TEXTURE | 8.5- firm smooth creamy | 8- very moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7- too sweet | |
Solid cupcake-moist, flavorful with tasty icing.
Red Velvet (mini)
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- had a coffee undertone | 7.5 -no cocoa flavor at all |
| TEXTURE | 9- firm creamy thick | 7- a little dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet enough | |
A decent red velvet. It was harder to judge these because I got the minis. My wallet was growing thin and my belly big...
Vanilla with Vanilla Icing (mini)
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6 -not vanillay | 7.5- buttery but no vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 7- too stiff | 6- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- too sweet | |
The stiff icing accentuates the dryness of the cake. Flavorless.
Chocolate with Chocolate Icing (mini)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5 | 8- good dark chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- firm, smooth | 8- moist especially for a mini |
| SWEETNESS | 7 | |
Nice flavor, great bite size, good ratio.
Royale
Chocolate
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6.5- tastes like coffee not caramel | 8- nice chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 6- too soft and light | 8-good but a little crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 6.5- not sweet enough | |
The icing killed it for me. I didn't care for the whipped cream type texture, it wasn't sweet and it tasted like coffee more than caramel. Too bad because the cake was really really good.
Vanilla Vanilla
Overall 6
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6- funny after taste like it’s been sitting in a cardboard box for too long | 8.5 buttery, vanilla, sweet, very nice |
| TEXTURE | 6 -fluffy and light too much like whipped cream | 7.5- a touch dry |
| SWEETNESS | 6- not sweet | |
They have very cute presentation, great size, good cake icing ratio and the cake part was really good but I didn’t like the icing texture at all. It also a funny, cardboardy aftertaste .
Red Velvet
Overall 6
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- cinnamony, surprising, nice | 6- plain, flavorless |
| TEXTURE | 6 -too fluffy | 6.5- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- could be a touch sweeter | |
What a switch, even though I still don’t like the icing texture the flavor was very good. The cake, on the other hand, was dry and boring. Making a red velvet cake with a cinnamon icing didn’t work for me as a flavor combination.
Chocolate with Vanilla Icing
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- mild vanilla flavor | 8- nice chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 6- too fluffy and light | 8-good but a little crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 6- not sweet | |
Tonnie’s Minis
Red Velvet
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5-not too sweet, not too cream cheesy ,very nice | 8.5- nice light cocoa flavor |
| TEXTURE | 9- firm, smooth | 8.5- moist not crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
Tonnie's Minis was delightful surprise. It's a very unassuming small shop up a flight of stairs with simply decorated cupcakes on display. The cup cakes are cheap $1.75 each and less if you buy 4 or more. The word “mini” is a misnomer. They are not the tiny bites sized cakes you might be thinking of. Actually they are a perfect cupcake size, they have excellent icing to cake ratio, and are flavorful and moist. So far my favorite for traditional red velvet.
Chocolate with Vanilla Butter Cream
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- great buttery vanilla flavor | 8- good chocolate taste |
| TEXTURE | 8.5- firm smooth not greasy | 8.5- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5- not too sweet
| |
This off the radar shop is a winner for classic cupcakes and you can’t beat the price.
Chocolate Kiss (vanilla and chocolate cake with chocolate icing)
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5 | 7.5- a little weak,the choc and vanilla flavors just meld together |
| TEXTURE | 8- firm smooth | 8.5- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7- a little too sweet | |
This is vanilla cake with chocolate cake in the center. It looks pretty when you cut it but the flavors get muddled.
Coconut
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- a little cream cheesy with coconut shreds on outside | 8 -nice van/butter flavor but no coconut taste |
| TEXTURE | 8- firm, smooth | 8.5- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5
| |
The only coconut comes from the flakes on the outside of the icing,. I love coconut so I was disappointed by the lack of coconut flavor. When I went back and looked on their menu it’s called “taste of coconut” which makes more sense. A very tasty cupcake whatever they call it, just not really coconuty.
Crumbs
Pistachio
Overall 6.5
| TASTE | 6.5- fake pistachio, bits of nuts on the outside a plus but not enough of them
| 6.5- eggy |
| TEXTURE | 7 | 7- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
Crumbs offers the kinds of flavors I love but they don’t deliver. They taste “fake”. For about $3.50 I don’t want my cupcakes to taste artificial. They are like a glorified hostess. The regular size is too big. Too much icing on top, too much cake left over. The smaller size is much better and has a good cake to icing ratio. They're like McDonald’s of cup cakes, but expensive.
Red Velvet
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- vanilla, not cream cheese | 6- eggy, no cocoa flavor at all |
| TEXTURE | 6- greasy | 6- dense and dry |
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
Devil Dog
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6- a chemically after taste | 7.5- ok but not chocolaty enough, good filling |
| TEXTURE | 5 -greasy | 7.5-a little dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7-too sweet | |
Raspberry (small)
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7-fake raspberry candy flavor | 7- ok but not chocolaty enough |
| TEXTURE | 7 -too stiff | 6-dense and dry |
| SWEETNESS | 5 -way too sweet the kind that hurts | |
Pinisi
http://www.pinisibakerynyc.com/
Cannoli
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- i'm just not a fan of cannoli | 8.5- great chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- grainy, thick | 8- moist but a little crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet | |
Pinisi made it's way into my first round of tastings, which was only going to be bakeries in the West Village, even though it’s on the east side. When my husband said he was going to a friend’s house I knew he'd be close by so I asked him to take a detour. I had never heard of Pinisi before so I was curious to try it. I was not able to pick the cupcakes myself and I don’t know their names or prices. My husband does not share my food obsession.He thinks I'm crazy, well...I can give him that. He told me this was chocolate chip. It’s actually cannoli. I do not like cannoli (what kind of Italian am I???) so it’s hard for me to fairly judge it. It wasn’t so great it all of a sudden it made me love cannoli but the cake part was really good.
Chocolate Chili
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8 vanilla | 5 way too much spice tastes like you just did a |
| TEXTURE | 8 creamy firm | 8 |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5 could be a little sweeter | |
Red Velvet
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- nice cream cheese flavor | 9.5- great vanilla with a hint of cocoa |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- a touch soft | 9 |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- could be a little sweeter | |
Pinisi's bigger sizecupcakes have a little too much cake to icing but it’s totally acceptable because the cake is so good. I REALLY REALLY liked this cupcake, an excellent Red Velvet. Hard to say if I like theirs or Tonnie's better. Tonnie's is a better size cupcake and less expensive (I’m assuming because I didn’t price these) but this one is very good. Too bad I didn’t get them on the same day.
Pistachio
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5 | 9- very good pistachio flavor with tiny bits of nuts |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- too soft | 8.5- moist but a tad crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
This was a smaller size, better cake to icing ratio. I really liked the flavor, I’ll have to try and compare it to Sugar Sweet when I make it over there. When compared to Crumbs it’s so easy to tell the high quality ingredients that they are using. No fake pistachio flavoring here.
Magnolia
Vanilla Vanilla
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6.5- no vanilla flavor- like biting a stick of butter | 7.5-o.k |
| TEXTURE | 8-a touch greasy but forms a nice crust | 7.5-moister the the other flavors
|
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
Chocolate with Vanilla Icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6.5- no vanilla flavor like biting a stick of butter | 7-boring |
| TEXTURE | 8- a touch greasy but forms a nice crust | 7- dense and dry |
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
Red Velvet
Overall 6
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6- not cream cheese, not butter cream,just whipped cream | 6.5- not cocoa flavor |
| TEXTURE | 6- soft | 6- dry crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 6- not sweet | |
When I started this little experiment it was only to taste cupcakes I hadn’t tried before. On my walk to Sweet Revenge, where I’d never been, I decided to stop in Amy’s since I was passing right by. I though- hey I haven’t had an Amy’s cup cake in a while it would be good the have them right there to compare. I got a few and walked on to Sweet Revenge, then continued on to Out of the Kitchen, another place I’d never been. I got back home and got to tasting. I was so glad I stopped at Amy’s because I forgot how good they were. Then I though, well maybe my favorite cupcakes from Batch might not be my favorite if I tasted them with these others since I was so impressed with the crimson and cream from Sweet Revenge. I wanted to sample them within a close time frame to really be able to compare.
Next day off to Batch, then I thought-well if I’m doing all these places how I can leave out Magnolia? It’s an institution. I don’t like their cupcakes but to be honest I haven’t had one for at least 5 years. So off I go to Magnolias. I get there and the line is around the block. I so wanted to get some signs pointing to Batch and Sweet Revenge and be like the Pied Piper of cupcakes leading the people away from the trap. I just could not bring myself to wait on the line. So as a consolation I decided to try other places in the neighborhood that I had not visited recently. I ventured of to Crumbs and Tonnie’s Minis.
But, for the sake of fairness, I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied unless I snagged some Magnolia’s, so I tried again. This time I just gave in and got on line. It went fast, thank god. Being all to aware of the hype and hearing people time and time again want to make it a destination point when visiting the city I tried to be as unbiased as possible. To my surprise they were not horrible like I remember; actually they weren’t bad at all. (I know because I just recently tasted bad from Out of the Kitchen). But, they weren’t anything special either. They were fine….they look cute, they have a good ratio of icing to cake, but the icing was too sweet for my tastes, the cake was a little dry, and the red velvet didn’t have a cream cheese icing which I thought was weird for them. With all the buzz and lines around the block I expect something special, Magnolias isn’t it.
Chocolate Chocolate
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- light chocolate flavor not enough | 7 |
| TEXTURE | 7 | 7- a bit dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7-not sweet enough | |
Cupcake Café
Maple Walnut
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5-more buttery than chocolaty | 8- nice nutty flavor, pieces of walnuts |
| TEXTURE | 8-smooth and creamy | 7.5- too dense |
| SWEETNESS | 7- could be sweeter | |
Chocolate with Mocha Icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- boring | 7- not a strong enough chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 6.5- very dry and dense |
| SWEETNESS | 7 | |
Chocolate with Vanilla
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- very buttery could use a bit more vanilla flavor | 7-not a strong enough chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth, creamy | 6.5-dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- needs more sweetness | |
I got all of these in the small size which was perfect. There could have been a touch more icing but I think that might make it too messy since the icing is so soft. They are very pretty with an elegant look. Winning for classic beauty. The cupcakes themselves are good but nothing special. They suffer from the same problem as Magnolia's- tons of hype but they fall short. The cakes are dry, the icing is good if you like a super buttery less sweet butter cream. The stand out was the Maple Walnut. The cake was moist and flavorful, enhanced by the icing. I prefer a sweeter icing but they have a fine cup cake. Very Pretty, but very average taste.
Vanilla with Chocolate Icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 6.5- needs to be more chocolaty | 8- good vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth creamy | 7- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet enough | |
Kyotofu
Green Tea
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | | 8.5- light green tea flavor |
| TEXTURE | | 8- moist and a little too dense |
| SWEETNESS | | |
This one scored big on taste for me since I'm usually not a fan of green tea and thought this was really good. But ummmm... I want more thank just cake in a cupcake, icing please.
Miso Mini
Overall 9
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | | 9-nice and chocolaty with tiny sesame seeds on the bottom |
| TEXTURE | | 9.5 -firm but soft and fudgy |
| SWEETNESS | | |
This little bite was awesome and delicious. It was like a mix between an under done brownie and a firmer molten chocolate cake in a two-bite size. Excellent dessert but not a cupcake.
Chocolate Soufflé
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | | 8- good chocolate flavor, not bitter, not to sweet |
| TEXTURE | | 8.5- top is dense and rich, brownie like, gets more light and cakey toward the bottom but still moist |
| SWEETNESS | | |
Really nice cake but it’s missing something…..THE ICING.
Ruthy's Baked Goods
Chocolate with Vanilla
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- very nice butter cream taste, not overly buttery or sweet,BUT had refrigerator aftertaste
| 7- not strong enough chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8.5-light, fluffy but still firm | 7- a bit dry but not crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5
| |
This cupcake is all about the icing. There was a beautiful flower decoration on top. Despite the massive amount of icing it was not messy because the icing was firm. This is a cupcake for the icing lover. BIG problem was that when I was done I had a slight refrigerator after taste, like the icing was stored for too long. That's unacceptable, thus the low score.
Red Velvet
Overall 6.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8 -nice cream cheese flavor | 6.5- no cocoa flavor, plain |
| TEXTURE | 7- grainy | 6.5 dry |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
The cupcakes are too big. The cake was plain, dry and tasted old. The icing was good but stale cake is not acceptable.
Billy's Bakery
Red Velvet
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- needs stronger cream cheese flavor | 8-good, slight taste of cocoa |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth, creamy | 7.5- a bit spongy and dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Vanilla with Chocolate Frosting
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- chocolaty and buttery | 7.5- needs a stronger vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth, creamy | 6- dry |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Chocolate with Vanilla Icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- buttery | 8- good cocoa flavor |
| TEXTURE | 7.5 -smooth with a nice crust | 6.5- dry and crumbly |
| SWEETNESS | 6- too sweet | |
Great size, excellent cake to icing ratio, decent flavors but the cake was dry. Billy’s can be added to the list of supposedly “great ones” that are just good.
Eleni's Cookies
Coconut
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- good coconut flavor with shreds on the outside | 8- a tad eggy |
| TEXTURE | 8.5- firm but light and fluffy | 7.5 a little dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
These are very pretty, cute, fun, colorful cupcakes. They are heavy on the icing but it’s tasty and not too sweet, it’s also firm enough to not be messy. This was a great coconut cupcake full of coconut flavor and the sweetened shredded coconut on the outside really brought it home. My favorite coconut so far.
Red Velvet
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- not cream cheese | 7.5- slight hint of cocoa |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 7.5- touch dry |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
I was disappointed that this didn’t have a cream cheese icing. I love red velvet with cream cheese.
Vanilla with Chocolate Icing
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice cocoa taste | 8- a tad eggy |
| TEXTURE | 8.5 | 7.5- a little dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
Devil’s Food
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- rich chocolate flavor | 7.5- the cream center makes it |
| TEXTURE | 7- soft | 7- a little dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- too sweet | |
The icing was rich and dark chocolaty but really soft and messy, too sweet as well. The cake was good and made better by the cream filling. Not my favorite of the bunch but still good. Eleni's is a lot more than just a pretty cupcake. They really back it up with taste. They have an excellent selection of pretty, fun and tasty cakes. With flavors like Oreo, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, Coconut, Devil's Food, Spice, Maple Walnut, and Red Velvet they are what Crumb's wishes it could be.
Chocolate with Vanilla Icing
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8-the icing is flavorful and enhances the taste of the cake | 8.5- excellent chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8.5- light and smooth | 7- dense and a little dry |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5- great balance | |
As I have said before I’m not the chocolate or vanilla cup cake kinda girl. These are my favorite traditional vanilla/ chocolate cupcake.
Reese's Peanut Butter Cup
Overall 9
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9-great peanut butter flavor with p.b. cup on top | 8.5- good chocolate flavor filled with a p.b. cup |
| TEXTURE | 9- smooth, creamy, rich | 8- a little dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
This is a very rich cupcake but has awesome flavors. It really tastes like a peanut butter cup.
S’mores
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9-a nice toasted meranguie | 7.0-the cakes is overpowered by the dark chocolate center, can’t taste the cake at all |
| TEXTURE | 8.5- light and fluffy | 8- light |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- not sweet enough | |
I love meringue, so the icing is great. It is the cup cake to have a meringue icing.Big bonus for that. Unfortunately the cake might as well just be chocolate, it overwhelms what I think is supposed to be a graham flavored cake. So not really s'mors.
Coconut
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- toasted coconut on the outside give it a more mature less sweet flavor | 8- delicate |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5- light and moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- could be sweeter | |
Chikalicious uses very delicate, sophisticated, flavors to put out a not too sweet, small, light cup cake. The cupcakes are a little too small but have a great cake to icing ratio. They offer a mild, not too sweet flavor that would defiantly appeal more to an adult pallet. This is exemplified with the use of toasted coconut instead of sweetened.
Overall 9
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 9- great | 8.5- |
| TEXTURE | 8.5 smooth, creamy, touch soft | 9- light and moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Excellent
Banana
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8-delicate, fresh banana flavor | 9- excellent banana flavor, no nuts |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- a little soft | 9- moist and light |
| SWEETNESS | 8- good | |
As with all these cupcakes the flavors are delicate and won’t give you a tooth ache. This one was nice and light with no nuts in the cake which I prefer. Many times banana cake can be very dense and heavy this one was light, airy and moist.
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- chocolaty and buttery | 7.5- only slightly chocolaty |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- light, smooth but too soft | 8.5- moist, light, airy |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- not sweet enough | |
A good cupcake but not for those with any sort of a real sweet tooth.
Red Velvet
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5-too cream cheesy | 8- a nice hint of cocoa |
| TEXTURE | 7.5- too softy | 7.5- a little dry |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet enough | |
The cream cheese flavor overwhelmed the delicate taste of the cake and was not sweet at all.
My pre- Labor Day trek to the Upper East Side was well worth it. I often joke that I get a nosebleed traveling above 14th street but this trip was well worth any minor travel inconvenience.
Little Pie Company
Grand Central Terminal
Chocolate filled with Vanilla Icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7- sugary no vanilla flavor | 6.5- no chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 7- grainy | 6.5 dry needs the filling |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Vanilla filled with Chocolate icing
Overall 7
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice and chocolaty | 7.5- plain, cream not flavorful |
| TEXTURE | 8- firm but a little grainy | 6- dry, grainy texture |
| SWEETNESS | 8- not too sweet | |
The icing was good but the cake was dry and the cream filling didn’t really help. Also not enough icing especially since the cake was not that good.
Carrot
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice cream cheese flavor with tiny nuts on top | 8.5- spicy, nutty, with little bits of nuts that add nice flavor and texture |
| TEXTURE | 8-firm, smooth | 7- dry, especially for carrot cake which is easy to make moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8- not too sweet | |
The best one from Little Pie Company. The cupcakes are too big, there is not enough icing which only emphasized the dryness of the cakes. The carrot did have a great flavor to it but was still a little dry. I think they should stick to pies.
Two Little Red Hens
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- chocolate ganache with white chocolate shavings | 8- touch eggy, but a good cream center |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Raspberry
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- | 7.5- raspberry jam good but sweet and too much, can’t taste cake |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth, creamy | 8- very moist but a little soggy from all the jam and very heavy |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Jam made to wet and heavy
Vanilla with Chocolate Icing (mini)
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- nice chocolate flavor | 8- light vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5- very moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Chocolate with Vanilla Icing (mini)
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- too buttery no vanilla flavor | 7.5- not quite chocolaty enough |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8- moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7- not sweet enough | |
Blackout
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8 - good chocolate flavor | 8.5- nice chocolate flavor with really good chocolate pudding center |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8- moist but a bit heavy |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Very good but very heavy.
Red Velvet
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- very mild cream cheese flavor | 8.5- nice hint of cocoa |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5- very moist and light |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Strawberry
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- great fresh strawberry flavor | 8.5- nice vanilla flavor with good amount of strawberry jam |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8- moist, a little heavy |
| SWEETNESS | 8.5 | |
Carrot
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- very mild cream cheese flavor | 8- good spicy flavor but the nut pieces were too big |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8- moist but too dense |
| SWEETNESS | 8 | |
Two Little Red Hens lives up to its reputation. They had so many beautiful cupcakes it was hard very hard to pick, as you can probably tell. The minis were very moist and tasty. The regular size is too big and very heavy. Putting that aside I was so impressed that every one I had was consistently good or very good. It seems to me like you just can’t go wrong with anything you pick. That says a lot about a place. I give then a lot of credit for the awesome consistency and excellent product. My favorite was the strawberry, it had such natural flavors and wasn’t overly filled or sweet but I would recommend any of them.
William Greenberg Jr. Desserts
Chocolate with Vanilla icing
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- vanilla and sprinkles | 8/8.5- very good chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- this is like a glaze it’s smooth and hard | 8.5- light and moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8- good balance | |
Different than regular cake icing, it is a simple sugar glaze but not overly sweet. I really like that kind of icing especially on black and white cookies but was surprised how good it was on the cupcake. The cupcakes are a great size and flavorful. This is a very light cupcake, no led belly feeling after you eat it. They don’t look like anything special but are.
Vanilla with Chocolate Icing
Overall 8
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8.5- good chocolate flavor | 8- nice vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5 light and moist |
| SWEETNESS | 8- for a sugar glaze, not too sweet at all | |
Very simple but very good.
Chocolate with Buttercream Icing
Overall 7.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 7.5- a little to buttery but the sprinkles add a needed sweetness | 8- very good chocolate flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8 | 8.5- light and moist |
| SWEETNESS | 7.5- not sweet enough | |
Good icing to cake ratio but if it wasn’t sprinkles it would have been to plain, they were needed.
Sages at Dean and Deluca
Vanilla Vanilla Icing
Overall 8.5
| | ICING | CAKE |
| TASTE | 8- vanillay | 9- great vanilla flavor |
| TEXTURE | 8- smooth with nice light crust | 9- super moist but not dense or heavy |
| SWEETNESS | 8- good, a tad sweet | |
This cupcake had excellent flavor and was extremely moist. The cupcakes are big but have a good cake to icing ratio. I was very impressed.
