Cupcake Update

The Great Cupcake Update

Here it is! I know you have been waiting! The good, the okay and the down right terrible. There is no specific order to the list below in terms of taste or timing, just an FYI. I have been eating a lot of cupcakes recently, and still have a few more cupcake shops to go to and a few more "orders only" to try. When all is said and done, I will announce my favorite cupcakes and my top cupcake shops to go to for a good cupcake and good atmostphere.

Enjoy!

London Review "Cakeshop"
What: Honey and Lavender
Price: 2.50

This is a cute little shop, it is the cafe that is connected to The London Review Bookshop. It is a great cafe, a nice place to sit and read and enjoy a sandwhich or a coffee. I got this little cupcake to go and took home for a sweet treat that night.

It was, I would say, "interesting." Firstly, never trust the English to make you a cupcake. They will make you a muffin, or a sweet bread. Which, is just what this was. A sweet honey bread, with frosting on it. The little bits of lavender definitely made for a peculiar twist when I would take a bite and get a small piece of this little herb on my tongue. Helloooooo lavender! Plus, I thought maybe I tasted fennel? I dunno, it was wierd. And definitely too dense and too dry to be a cupcake. Love this shop, but they should stick to coffee cakes, muffins and pastries.

Treacle
Columbia Road
What: Lemon Cupcake (I tried a piece of the chocolate one too!)
Price: 2.00

Good. I really liked this lemon cake. It had really nice flavor and was really moist. Treacle is an English owned shop, so once again this cupcake was more like a lemon pound cake than a nice fluffy cupcake, but delicious none the less. The frosting and decorations added a nice touch and flavor to the cupcake without overpowering it. The chocolate cupcake was a little dense and a little dry (chocolate is easy to over bake) and it tasted more like a chocolate crinkle cookie, in cake form, than a cupcake. I was really happy after trying it that I had chosen to order the lemon one. Overall, however, the shop is absolutely lovely. Very pleasant place to be and spend an hour or so with friends or to relax. I would go back just for the atmosphere. Cupcakes were good, but not irresistable.



Lola's
Selfridges Food Hall (Lola's only caters, there is no shop)
Price: 1.90- 2.35
What: Cookies N'Cream (1.90) & Pink Champagne (2.35)

Probably the biggest disappointment, and worst cupcakes I have had in London. I didn't finish either one of these cupcakes, threw them both away before they were half done. Onde good thing, however, the Pink Champagne came with decadent chocolate truffles on top, 7 of them, and oh boy I made sure I ate everyone of those babies before tossing the cake. Both cakes were extremely dry (I needed to drink water just to get through the first bite) and extremely bland. No flavor at all. The cookies cupcake had bits of oreo throughout the cake, but still, bland. The frosting was delicious though. It was light and fluffy and tasted like the center of an oreo or like the cookie's n' cream ice cream in frosting form. However, there was too much of it and gave my stomach a bit of an ache. The frosting on the Pink Champagne had completely hardened, and actually fell competely off of the cupcake! It had a simple buttercream taste, with a bit of a sour (a good sour) twist to it. But this cake, although it was indeed pink, was terrible. Gave my "dry mouth," ick. Home made boxed cakes taste better than these babies. They looked pretty though - too pretty to eat, which, I wouldn't recommend you do. Take a pic and leave it at that.
I sincerely hope it was just a bad batch, and because I have that hope I might go back and try Lola's out again. Maybe this time I will get a normal flavor, like chocolate. Stick to the basics and see if I get any better results.





Peyton &Bryne
Chain; this particular cupcake from The National Gallery
What: Hazelnut cupcake
Price: 2.80


This cupcake looked nice. Very posh, very adult. Which, is what Peyton and Bryne are all about. Not fun and fancy free, but grown up and serious (this should have been a flashing sign for me to turn around and run away from this cupcake). The cake itself was a chocolate cake. No hazelnut flavor at all. The cake was quite small, with a HUGE spiral of hazelnut frosting on top of it, at least three times the size of the cake! Once again, the cake flavor reminded me of a chocolate crinkle. What added to this was the fact that there was powdered sugar on top of the cake itself and on top of the frosting - chocolate crinkle all the way. I actually really enjoyed the flavor it, even though, as usual with these "British" cupcakes, it was more dense than a true cupcake should be and a bit dry, but not bad. I preferred to eat this cupcake separate from the frosting (definite sign that it is not a true cupcake), the two just tasted better individually. The frosting really didn't seem to compliment the cake; there was a ton of it and it had an overpowering hazelnut taste, and was really sweet - There was a good portion of the frosting I couldn't finish.
The frosting had an excellent texture (although a bit melty) and a unique taste. But a cupcake shouldn't be given the name "hazelnut" if the only flavor of hazelnut is in the frosting...




Patissere Valerie
Soho
Price: 1.95
What: Vanilla cupcake with chocolate frosting


This is a pastry place, so I was a bit nervous going there for cupcakes. It was good! As usual, it was a bit dry, but the frosting made up for this. Overall, it tasted like a home made boxed cupcake with Betty Crocker's "whipped" chocolate frosting on top. lovely, reminded me of home or of a cupcake you would get at a charity bake sale, but not gourmet, and not worth 2 pounds (unless of course, the 2 pounds was going to charity.)





Bea's of Bloomsbury
Holborn
Price: 1.90
What: Chocolate Cupcake

Bea's also offers a Vanila/Rasberry cupcake as well, but I though I would stick to the basics - and it payed off. BEST chocolate cupcake and BEST overall cupcake I have had in London. Hands down. The cake was rich and gooey (not doughy), and moist and fudgy and delicious. The kind of thing that chocolate purists and those who love gourmet chocolate could both enjoy. The frosting was almost moussey, and while it was still chocolate, it had a slightly lighter chocolate flavor so as not to make the whole cupcake too sweet and it did not take away from the flavor of the cake. Soooo yummmy! Soooo delicious!!! I wish they made more flavors!




Hummingbird
Notting Hill/ South Kensington
Price: 1.40-2.50

What: This time, Vanilla (in the past I have had their Chocolate and their Red Velvet)


Humminbird is a London classic. The first London cupcake shop and definitely the most famous. Their cupcakes are good, always. I have never had a bad one. They look beautiful and taste great. Moist cake, good frosting flavor that does not overpower and has great texture. They are most known for their Red Velvet, and until today was the best Red Velvet I have had. The Vanilla was, well, Vanilla. There is not much to be done about that. The cake was moist and fluffy, and the frosting was buttercream. I am not sure if it is possible to add more vanilla flavor (maybe vanilla bean?) but it tasted a bit bland to me. Hummingbird always makes great cupcakes though, and always leaving me craving more. I think I am just not a vanilla cupcake person. Give me chocolate, or give me carrot cake, or anything with a bit more flavor. Lovely, yummy and delicious cupcakes can be found at Hummingbird though! Definitely in my top 3 places in London to go for cupcakes!