Surprise Sweets from my Sweetie

Last week my husband came home with two purple boxes. Was it our anniversary, my birthday, Valentine's Day? Nope, he just wanted to say "I Love You." Ahhh....what a sweeite!

So what was in the boxes? Macarons from Bottega Louie. I knew they had to be awesome because my husband liked them (he's a tough critic when it comes to macarons).

He hand-picked the flavors for me: Vanilla, Lemon, Chocolate Orange, Strawberry, Raspberry, Salted Caramel, and Grand Cru. We both agreed that the Salted Caramel was the best...absolutely delicious!

These macarons had just the right amount of crunch, no chewiness in sight. The flavors were scrumptious. The strawberry even had pieces of candied strawberry in it. High quality comes with a high price tag, right? These macarons cost $2.50 each. Ouch! That's almost as much as a cupcake, yet these delicacies were gone in two bites. Well worth it though.

Bottega Louie

700 S. Grand Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90017

Review: Big Man Bakes

I wasn't planning on a visit to Big Man Bakes, but when you're walking down the street and it's suddenly in front of you, you HAVE to make a detour.

Even though this was my first visit to Big Man Bakes in LA, this wasn't my first time tasting their cupcakes. I met Chip, the owner, at the LA Cupcake Challenge three years ago. (Click here to see a photo of the "big man" holding a mini cupcake.) I vividly remember the moistness of the red velvet cupcake, which won for Best Traditional.

On this day we were with some friends and their two adorable boys. I couldn't help posting this photo of them. 

Like I mentioned before, we hadn't planned on stopping by so my stomach was already full, but I did happen to find room for two XL ($3.25 each) and three mini ($1 each) cupcakes.

I tried getting a variety of flavors: Oreo, Red Velvet, Pumpkin Spice, Double Chocolate, and Carrot Cake. Big Man Bakes cupcakes certainly live up to their motto: fresh, moist, fantastic cupcakes. The surprising favorite was Carrot Cake. I correctly remembered how wonderful their cream cheese frosting is. The Double Chocolate was also so delicious, as the frosting was made with Ghirardelli chocolate. I enjoyed them all and would definitely eat them again. The cake was just so moist!

The boys loved their cupcakes too. It always makes me happy to introduce people to quality cupcakes. It feels like I'm doing my job right.

After a day of French-dipped sandwiches, mochi, and macarons, these cupcakes certainly topped it off perfectly. And it the cherry on top was seeing Chip at the store too. Big Man Bakes is on my list of favorite LA cupcakes.

Big Man Bakes

413 S. Main St.

Los Angeles, CA 90013

www.bigmanbakes.com

Facebook: Big Man Bakes

Twitter: @bigmanbakes

Cute Little Mochi Lover

New Year's Eve day we did a little staycation in LA. Yes, my husband and I live in Orange County, which is just 30 miles from LA, but we haven't done much exploring there. This day we crossed quite a few things off the list.

Want a great French dip sandwich? Try Cole's. It's comparable to the French dips at Felipe's.

We checked out the Bradbury building where several movies have been filmed. Desmond made a new friend. 

We rode the famous Angels Express train for only a penny!

And of course you can't pass up all the delicious places to eat in LA. We stopped by Mikawaya, a small pastry shop in little Tokyo where mochi was invented. If you've ever tried mochi, you've probably eaten one from this shop. They make the mochi that's sold in Trader Joe's. Desmond was in heaven! He didn't stop eating until they were all gone. I love this little guy and his cute faces!

Georgetown Cupcake Coming to LA

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I've been drooling over Georgetown Cupcake since I first saw them on DC Cupcakes almost two years ago. Then my friend Tran did a guest review for me when she visited in the fall of 2010 and I wanted to try them even more! But I thought, "I'll never get to try them because they are all the way in Washington, D.C." Sigh...

Then I saw the latest news on their Facebook page: "We're so excited to announce our next location - Los Angeles!! We'll be opening at 143 S. Robertson Blvd! Can't wait to bring Georgetown Cupcake to the West Coast!

Hallelujah! Looks like I might get my wish after all! The only thing that would make this better would be if they came to Orange County. We are in need of some amazing cupcake shops!

Magnolia Bakery opens in LA

The cupcake shop that supposedly started the whole cupcake craze has finally made it to LA! Magnolia Bakery opened their doors to their first west coast store last Saturday. But will it survive?

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As much as I wished I could have been there for opening day, from the sounds of it, maybe it was a good thing I wasn't. Yelp already has 12 reviews about Magnolia Bakery and they aren't off to a great start. The complaints range from long lines (well, that's expected on opening day...duh!) to no parking.

Photo: Daily Candy

But what about the cupcakes? Plenty of complaints about those too. Too dry, too sweet, and vanilla frosting on red velvet is a bad idea ("felt like I was eating a sponge"). Ouch!

"Ugh......just waited in line for the worst red velvet cupcake I have ever tasted.... I wont even go into the rest of the stuff I tasted, no flavor." --Tony S.

"I've been to this bakery in NYC and was excited to visit the one in Los Angeles. I went on opening day and was quite impressed. The cupcakes are very good... not the best I've ever had, but better than others."--Laurie W.

Photo: LA Times

Can a cupcake shop survive on it's "famous" reputation alone? Probably not, but I'm guessing that Magnolia Bakery still has a few tweaks to work out before we see who they really are. But with lots of great cupcake shops in the LA area, only the amazing ones will survive.

Magnolia Bakery
8389 W. 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90048
323-951-0636
www.magnoliabakery.com

Cupcake News

Cupcakes Takes the Cake was full of cupcake news yesterday.

First up, the Food Network is holding a casting call for Season 2 of Cupcake Wars. Looks like the show is a hit! I've really enjoyed watching Cupcake Wars and learning about cupcake shops from around the country. It's also fun to see people pull recipes out of thin air. Last night they had to make cupcakes using ingredients that an elephant or giraffe would eat. Pretty cool. If you're interested in auditioning for the show, see the info below.




Second bit of exciting cupcake news: Cupcake Showdown 2010. Ten of the best cupcake makers will come together to compete for title of best cupcake in LA.

Each cupcake bakery will be giving away 300 mini cupcakes. 300 minis x 10 bakeries = 3,000 free mini cupcakes!

The Cupcake Showdown takes place Thursday, July 8 at the LA Artwalk from 6p-9p. You can find more info on the event's Facebook page.

Featuring: Dainty Cupcakes LA

The newest trend in the food world is food trucks. I'll admit it...I love them. Unfortunately though, I've only tried the meal trucks (Louks To Go [you must try the honey feta fries!] and Kogi BBQ). A cupcake truck is right up my alley, but there aren't very many of them.



When I read about Dainty Cakes LA on food is my nish, I was excited to see another cupcake truck besides Sprinkles roaming around the LA area! Their website lists the flavors available (45 of them!) and prices ($3), but it's not up to date with the schedule. Also, food is my nish didn't give a great review, but said that she needs to review again to be certain of her opinion.

I think the key to being a successful dessert truck is teaming up with another food truck and working the same locations together. I'm pretty sure people would be crowding a cupcake truck after chowing down on some Kogi BBQ tacos.

I wish Dainty Cakes good luck and I hope they make it down to Orange County in the future.

Dainty Cakes LA
Facebook: Dainty Cakes LA
Twitter: @daintycakesla

Magnolia Bakery coming to LA

I don't know much about Magnolia Bakery, except for that they are a famous cupcake bakery in NYC. They are well-known for being featured on Sex & the City. Since I've never been to the cupcake mecca (NYC), I don't know if Magnolia is all hype or what.

I may get a chance to see for myself, without having to fly across the United States. Several websites are reporting that Magnolia Bakery is coming out west and opening a shop in Los Angeles. Well, wouldn't that be nice?

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Review: Crumbs Bakery Shop

After realizing that Crumbs Bake Shop did not only exist in New York, I was determined to stop by one of their shops the next time I was in LA. A few weeks ago I was in Korea Town for my husband's co-worker's birthday party. Korean BBQ and karaoke were the activities of the night. In between, I convinced my husband to take me to Crumbs, which was only two miles away.


Heaven. I'm in heaven. The first thing I noticed was how big the cupcakes were. Bigger than Sprinkles Cupcakes? Possibly! I had already determined which flavors I wanted before I even stepped in the shop....Baba Booey and Caramel Apple. Unfortunately, the time of day prevented me from getting either one of those.


As much as I wanted to try red velvet, I just wasn't in the mood for one. I went with the unstoppable combination....peanut butter and chocolate (Peanut Butter Cup). And WOW!! I was not disappointed! It was chocolate cake with peanut butter cream cheese frosting covered with peanuts and chocolate chips. There was also a sweet treat inside, some kind of peanut butter filling. It was different than the frosting and so sweet. I loved it!


My only disappointment (besides not having the flavors I wanted) was that I only got one cupcake! What was I thinking? I had a triathlon the next weekend so I knew I couldn't overindulge. Triathlons...lame excuse, except that they allow me to eat unhealthy foods and not feel so bad.

Crumbs cupcakes are definitely a good bang for your buck. Each cupcake is $3.75, which is slightly more than most places, but worth it because of their size and quality. I plan on going back to Crumbs very soon so I can try out some different flavors.