Two Little Red Hens

Located  on 2nd avenue between 85 and 86 street, this quaint little shop has some of the best cupcakes the city has to offer. Two Little Red Hens is a bakery with cakes, pies, scones, muffins, and most of all, their unbelievably delicious cupcakes. Whether you opt for  the classic flavors of vanilla, chocolate, and red velvet or the more unique flavors of raspberry, carrot cake, and marble, Two Little Red Hens has it all. Some other great aspects is the quick service, take-out option, and friendly staff. The delectable cupcakes come in two sizes; a small or a large. To learn more about Two Little Red Hens, make sure to visit their online website. To make sure that the cupcakes are all that they are whirled up to be, my friend Jared went to go check it out, being "forced" by me to eat two mouthwatering cupcakes, even though that is such hard "work." *Note* Me and Jared created a harsh grading system among the best cupcakes of the city on a one to five sprinkle (instead of star) basis, with five being the holy grail of all cupcakes.

Cupcake Number One: Mini Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting-

Jared Says, "The cupcake has a moist, soft, and  sweet texture and the flavor is strong with a hint of chocolate. The cream cheese frosting balances it off nicely with a rich, thick, and creamy taste. I give this cupcake four sprinkles."

Rating: Four Sprinkles.

Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Photo Taken By Jared Axelowitz

Cupcake Number Two:  Mini Vanilla Cupcake topped with a Chocolate Frosting and Sprinkles-
Jared Says, "The cupcake is light and airy with a very nice texture, but the chocolate frosting overpowers the vanilla. The sprinkles gives the cupcake a nice crunch."
Rating: Three Sprinkles.

Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate Frosting
Photo Taken by Jared Axelowitz

Crumbs

With Crumbs cupcakes, the only thing left after you inhale these will be..crumbs, hence the name. Stores flooding in all areas of Manhattan and beyond, these cupcakes of all different unique flavors are some of the best the city has to offer. On a typical city day, I make my friends take me to FAO Shwarz. No, not for the adorable life sized safari stuffed animals, but to go to the puny little Crumbs cupcake shop that takes up a small fraction of the whimsical toy factory. However, if you are, or want to pretend to be, true upper east siders, like my friends, who wouldn’t be caught dead in a touristy place, heavens FAO Shwarz, without a disguise and tourist map covering their face so no one recognizes them, there a plenty other excellent locations of Crumbs Bake Shops. On their mouthwatering website, you can see the wide variety of shops that the Crumbs Empire extends to. My personal favorite, the Good Guy, a vanilla cupcake with a shot of buttercream frosting hidden within. The final detail that makes this Good Guy oh so good is that the cuopcake is crowned with vanilla frosting completely ambushed by rainbow sprinkles. I definitely think that this cupcake is finger-licking worthy.  Another aspect of Crumbs that I need to try is the colossal Crumbs cupcake. Shown in the photo below (in my favorite flavor) is just how big a colossal cupcake really is. This “cup”cake is so, well, colossal that it could feed five to seven people. Enjoy!

Photo from crumbs.com

Baked By Melissa

So to kick off this new blog, I want to start out with my personal favorite. The absolutely delectable (and miniature!) cupcakes, Baked By Melissa. Although tiny, these little bites have amazing flavors that reel you in. Also, I'm pretty sure that in the city the stores all have some sort of magic cupcake scent in them that makes you feel like you NEED to get that amazing deal of buying 50 CUPCAKES FOR A REMARKABLE $37.50! So, although fun to eat like ten, fifty  of these you end up giving to a nice looking homeless man in Central Park and make their day while you have to walk back to the apartment with a less heavy wallet and wondering why you and your friends thought it was such an amazing idea to get fifty mini cupcakes. Trust me. My personal favorite is Tie-Dye. For the traditionalist with a twist. Mainly a mini vanilla cupcake with buttercream icing, they make it look like a tie-dye cupcake right out of something you would see on a show like Dragon Tails. With the stores in Soho, Union Square(the best one), Grand Central, and even a place to order these on Baked By Melissa's lovely online website, you will never be deprived of these. *Note,* the online website have much better images than the picture below(also from their website), so please be sure to visit it. Enjoy!

Photo From www.bakedbymelissa.com