Adventures in Cupcaketopia, part II

Sunday was a beautiful day and half of the DC-metro area headed to Georgetown to enjoy it. As such, we had to wait on line for a full 30 minutes with a family from Rosslyn and about 100 of our closest friends before we could even darken the doorway of Georgetown Cupcake. And man, was it worth it.

The tiny shop offers a variety of cupcake flavors, some of which you may have never heard of. Key lime cupcake? They got it. Strawberry? They got it. Peanut butter fudge, with melty fudge center? Bernadette got it, all over her face. I tried a red velvet and a key lime, the classic and the crazy. The red velvet cupcake was quite good, but I'll be honest - my mom makes it better. It all comes down to the cream cheese frosting, which wasn't strong enough in my opinion.

So the red velvet was good, and watching Bernadette eat the peanut butter fudge was highly entertaining. But it all pales in comparison to the Key Lime 'cake (KLC). The KLC will go down in history as one of the greatest, most delicious cupcakes I have ever eaten. Really. The cake itself was moist and delicious, offering just the right balance of tarty sweetness. But the icing - how can I describe the icing? Sweet and sugary, holding visible pieces of lime zest and covering the 'cake in perfect proportion. The whole KLC masterpiece was adorably topped with a small lime slice-shaped gummi candy.

Now if you don't like key lime, well, I suppose you can't appreciate how excellent this little cuppy cake was. But if you grew up as I did, receiving boxes of fruit from Floridian grandparents and cracking into a key pie on holidays, then rest a assured: the KLC is everything you hope for. And there's plenty of variety for the rest of you, as well.

Adventures in Cupcaketopia, part I

I've just recently realized that I am apparently living not just in the Capital of the United States, but in the Cupcake Capital of the United States.

Hello Cupcake was the site of my first innocent foray into Cupcaketopia. It's pretty good, though the frosting is overpowering for me. They have plenty of variety and also sell single cupcake lunchboxes, in case you have to get your cupcake on the on go. Since they are based in Dupont Circle which is home to a lot of offices, this actually isn't a ridiculous idea.

Now, I thought that Hello Cupcake was a unique individual here in DC - but then I found lovecafe. lovecafe is the cupcake step-child of Cakelove bakery, and the two are situated directly across the street from one another on U St. The atmosphere is cozier than Hello Cupcake, with low ceilings and a windey little seating area. There isn't as much variety here as there is at Hello Cupcake, and the 'cakes won't fit inside your to-go lunchbox, but - and I'll just be frank about it - the cupcakes are better. The frosting is creamy and thick, but proportionally prefect to the moist mini-cakes that it decorates. I feel a little traitorous because Hello Cupcake was what first lead me on this Cupcake Adventure, but what is the point of traveling if not to learn?

Today I'm going to visit Georgetown Cupcake, which, surprise, is in Georgetown. This cupcakery made national news when they were featured on the Today Show and my mom has been prodding me to check it out ever since. Look forward to its review, as well as reviews of Red Velvet Cupcakery (in Penn Quarter) and Lavender Moon Cupcakery (Alexandria) as Adventures in Cupcaketopia continues.

**In the on-going debate about cake vs. ice cream, it should be noted that I will always choose ice cream, hands down, and that the best place to get it in D.C. is Gifford's near E Street Cinema. So if you don't have time to explore Cupcaketopia, skip it and go to Gifford's for the $2 special.