FoBoBlo

FoBoBlo is pleased to host a guest post from illustrious friend and urban professional Lauren Empson, who bravely attempted to make it through Yelp’s 2009 Cupcake Crawl and lived to tell the tale.

From the one hit wonders that grace our playlists- yes, I mean you 3Oh!3- to the fashions found on the streets of G-town, the latest fads are ever present on the streets of FoBo, and one of the tastiest fads is the cupcake. Small yet mighty, the many stores that provide us all with that sugary pick-me-up are perfectly dispersed throughout the Foggy Bottom area. Baked & Wired, Georgetown Cupcake, Red Velvet, and Hello Cupcake are the biggies that we all know and love- and to those of you who frequent these establishments with me on a regular basis, thank you for encouraging my addiction.

So, when given the opportunity to expand my knowledge of the DC cupcake scene, I jumped at the chance. Hosted by Yelp, an amazing review site that gives you the best of the best of DC’s restaurants, hot spots, and services from the view of true Washingtonians, I spent the better part of my Saturday participating in the 2009 Cupcake Crawl. Cars were rented, directions were printed, lists were made, and our gang of 20-ish set out from Old Town Alexandria in search of the best cupcake in DC.

With a list of 16 cupcakeries in hand, my friends and I were determined to perform the necessary research, as hard as it may be. And while my stomach only made it through the first 7 venues — even while utilizing our brilliant system of only have a quarter of a cupcake at each location — I’m able to report the following: taste in cupcakes is incredibly personal. I cannot report to you the exact “best cupcakery” of DC, for each of the places we visited had their own niche. Through my sugar coma, I was able to determine that I am absolutely in love with Buzz Bakery in Alexandria, VA and their Buzz cupcake (devil’s food cupcake with espresso frosting and Oreo crumbles). And while I fully enjoyed the less-sweet, cream cheese frostings as found in Lavender Moon (Alexandria, VA), rather than the sugary sweetness of butter cream found in the treats of Cake Love (Alexandria location), the rating of each place completely depended on what cupcake I was sampling.

Below is the list of the cupcakeries I visited, and I invite you all to take a day, an empty stomach, some “food” (anything non-sugared), and some of your besteses, and go out and perform the research for yourself. But, if you’re strapped for cash, a car, or time, I’ve added my own notes to Saturday’s itinerary. For more reviews, check out the 2009 Cupcake Crawl page on Yelp!

To the cupcakes!

• Chateau Gateau (Alexandria Farmers’ Market): Be careful if you’re planning on heading out to the Old Town Alexandria Farmers’ Market, as it closes on the early side of the morning (opens at 5am and closes at 11am). However, if you manage to get up in time to catch the local vendors, make sure you hit up Chateau Gateau. I had the coconut cupcake, and it was a great balance of sweetness in the icing and yellow cake, while still holding true to the coconut flavor.
• Lavender Moon Cupcakery (116 S Royal Street, Alexandria, VA): The ambiance in this little shop is absolutely adorable, with bright colors and cupcake paraphernalia decorating every corner. And while the apple cinnamon cupcake was a little heavy on the cream cheese flavor of the icing, it’s cinnamon taste perfectly accented the fall season. Also, the flourless chocolate cupcake was absolutely amazing, with it’s hint of sea salt that brought out the taste of chocolate even more than eating chocolate that early in the morning normally would.
• Buzz Bakery (901 Slaters Lane, Alexandria, VA): While you probs would need a car to make it over to Buzz, if you have the opportunity to do so, do it!!! This place is awesome — it has a good mix of modern touches, like wi- fi, and homey general décor, which made for comfortable outside seating. And the fact that they are open from morning to night, serving brunch, dinner, and cocktails only compliments their amazing assortment of cupcakes.
• Best Buns (4010 Campbell Ave., Shirlington, VA): Hidden away off of Route One I there’s a little shopping area where you will find all your favorite stores, which should now include Best Buns. This is a fully stocked bakery with scones, cookies, breads, and some giiiiiaaant cupcakes. I totally recommend the chocolate toffee.
• CakeLove (4150 Campbell Ave., Shirlington, VA): Why yes, this CakeLove location is just down the street from Best Buns. How convenient! And still pretty delicious. I, myself, am not that big a fan of the thicker, buttercream icings, but the fact that they use real raspberries in their raspberry icing definitely adds a plus in my book. If you’re in the mood for something sweet, definitely stop by.
• Heidelberg Pastry Shop (2150 N Culpeper, Alexandria, VA): You need a car for this one. This bakery is fully stocked with every sugar-related item you can imagine, and a few non-sugar items that don’t usually grace a bakery’s menu, like bratwurst (editor’s note: they appear to be celebrating Oktoberfest!). The chocolate cupcake with white icing, while adorable with sprinkles, lacked in flavor and reminded me a bit of the kinds one would kind in bulk at the CostCo bakery section.
• Pastries by Randolph (4500 Lee Hwy., Alexandria, VA): We got there a bit later in the day, so the cupcake selection was limited, but it was worth the visit just to see the amazing cakes this tiny bakery made. I did get to sample the German Chocolate cupcake, and it was all of the essences of the original cake flavors in tiny form. Nothing unexpected, and pretty darn good.

While I did not visit the following places on The Crawl due to a sugar coma and a previously scheduled engagement, I’ll write down the other cupcake locations so you can try them for yourself, along with some comments about those that I know of or have heard from friends.

• Georgetown Cupcake (1209 Potomac NW, Washington, DC): I’m sure many of you FoBo-ers have visited G-town Cupcake. And if you’re a fan of cream cheese icing like I am, it’s definitely a goodie. Through my research, I’ve found that these little guys are definitely on the pricier side of cupcakes, but I still love going on Thursdays and Sundays when they stock my favorite flavor – key lime.
• Baked and Wired (1052 Thomas Jefferson NW, Washington, DC): I am slightly biased in favor of this place, so if you don’t like it…sorry, I do. Why? It’s pretty hipster, I can walk to it from my apartment, they make some amazing coffee drinks and iced teas, they have plenty of other option besides cupcakes that are equally delicious, like their raspberry bars and chocolate hazelnut biscotti. The people there are great and don’t mind when my pals and I are chatting as they clean after the store has officially closed. Great place to hang out with friends or stop and grab yourself a treat.
• Furin’s (2805 M Street NW, Washington, DC): Recommended by fellow crawlers. The people there were great, staying open significantly past their closing time for the late arrivals, and the cupcakes are well worth the short walk.
• Red Velvet Cupcakery (2029 P Street NW, Washington, DC): Editor’s note: Owned by a family member of Tangy Sweet’s owner, you’ll often find Red Velvet Cupcakery right next door to fro-yo. There’s also a Penn Quarter location (next to TangySweet, of course).
• Hello Cupcake (1361 Connecticut NW, Washington, DC): Hellloooooooo sugar. While this store provide a great variety of cupcakes, they’re a tad too sweet for me. But, if that’s your thing, this place is for you!
• Sticky Fingers Bakery (1370 Park Road NW, Washington, DC): The cool variety offered here, like a margarita cupcake and a mojito cupcake, didn’t really impress my fellow crawlers, but this one’s definitely on my list of places to scope out in the future if they’re able to turn a cocktail into a cupcake.
• Something Sweet (3706 Maccomb NW, Washington, DC): Editor’s note: This place also has ice cream!