Cupcake Quest: Volume 1

When I moved to this city, I learned quickly that New Yorkers take cupcakes seriously. Like, seriously seriously. As a standalone industry in the cutthroat world of baked goods, they hold quite the reputation the world over.

Magnolia was the stuff of legends with token references in Sex and the City. Two Little Red Hens–the site of my first NYC cupcake–was a game changer with its affordable behemoths and set the bar high for all ‘cakes to follow. And Crumbs has become an easy go-to with multiple locations all over the city.

The Cupcake Stop in all of its blazing, fluorescent glory.

Why these puppies hold such an allure, I’ll never know. What is certain though is that I’ve become something of an aficionado that could take any of the opinionated and well-versed Yelpers to task. Many a foodie has embarked upon this difficult journey to find the best cupcake in the city, and the aforementioned locations are well-trodden territory. I, however, will be blazing new territory, navigating the lesser-known cupcake landscape of Park Slope in my search for this neighborhood’s best.

Stop #1 is, quite appropriately, The Cupcake Stop. While it’s a shop on wheels (and the city’s first mobile cupcake shop), it’s always located outside of the New York Methodist Hospital on 7th Avenue and smack in the middle of my walk home from the subway.

While it has tempted me many a night, last night was the first time I’ve stopped. It’s uncertain to me what exactly their hours are, but I think they generally motor off around 8 when the day’s stock has been depleted. While most use the red velvet as the litmus for a shop’s overall quality, I typically go with the chocolate (in this case, ‘triple chocolate’), and they had one left for the taking at 7:55.

Like I mentioned earlier, Two Little Red Hens set sort of an unfair standard with cupcakes that could pass simply as stunted regular cakes, so this little guy looked a little lonely in his oversize container. He also got a pretty thorough shakedown, bouncing around in the bottom of my bag on the 10-block walk home; however, when I took him out, he was completely unscathed, which was a little unnerving.

The frosting certainly is something unique, and for lack of better phrasing, was as hard as a rock. I’m not sure what I would call it, but it wasn’t really frosting-like. Perhaps more like a fondant? Regardless of what the deal with its texture was, it was pretty tasty and certainly interesting. And while the cake could have been a bit moister, it wasn’t lacking in triple-chocolate flavor. In short, there was some definite potential there.

I’m going to chalk the inconsistencies up to end-of-the-day syndrome since there is always a line of people waiting to get their hands on one, and they always seem to sell out.  Moreover, it  had that homemade taste, which is refreshing in an industry laden with mass-produced impostors. On this night, I will give them a B- (and an A for effort!).

Price: $3

Hours: Er…unclear.

Nearest Subway: F/G at 7th Ave.

Phone: (718) 702-2825

Website: http://www.cupcakestop.com/