Zagat Releases NY's Best Cupcake List

February 25, 2010 1:52 pm

$Behind the Burner: Zagat Releases NY\'s Best Cupcake List$

For some people, it's all about the icing. For others, the cake makes the treat. Whichever frosts your boat, New Yorkers love their cupcakes. Maybe it's because they're so gosh darn cute. Or because they can be so bright and whimsical. Or maybe, if you're like me, it's because they remind us of birthdays in middle school when kids brought cupcakes for the whole class and you'd get a little sad that the last pink frosting one got taken because you just know that the pinks ones taste better than the green ones. Crafting these little confections is a science and not all cupcakes are created equal. This week, the inimitable Zagat guide released their list for the city's best cupcakes. And sorry Sex and the City fans, Magnolia Bakery does not take the cake.

A perfect example of the fact that New Yorkers are so fastidious about their cupcakes: third place saw a tie of four bakeries. Amy Scherber's bakery Amy's Bread isn't just known for its handmade breads. The ubiquitous bakery (there are three locations and they stock many of the city's great restaurants!) also churns out "awesome cupcakes" according to Zagat readers. I'm going to have to make a trip up to Harlem to try Make My Cake's version. They had me at 'butter-cream' frosting that apparently "melts in your mouth." Not to forget their other Southern-styled goods, the bakery also makes a mean red velvet cake and sweet potato cheesecake. Oh yes. I smell a love affair. Rounding out the third place spot is Billy's Bakery and Brooklyn's Baked.

The runner-up goes to my personal favorite, Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery of the Lower East Side. The adorable little spot is a cozy place to sip and nibble with an intoxicating aroma of heavenly desserts filling every nook. Go for the cupcakes and stay for the banana pudding.

And the best cupcake in New York according to Zagat readers (drumroll please): Park Slope's Ladybird Bakery! Originally called Two Little Red Hens, this bakery earns high marks for its artistic cupcake decoration. They're delicious but we all know that pretty points make them just that much tastier.

Ladybird Bakery
1112 Eighth Avenue
Brooklyn, NY
718.499.8108
www.ladybirdbakery.com

Sugar Sweet Sunshine
126 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002
212.995.1960
www.sugarsweetsunshine.com

Amy's Bread
75 Ninth Avenue
New York, NY 10011
212.462.4338

250 Bleeker Street
New York, NY 10014
212.675.7802

672 9th Avenue
New York, NY 10036
212.977.2670
www.amysbread.com

Baked
359 Van Brunt Street
Brooklyn, NY
718.222.0345
www.bakednyc.com

Billy's Bakery
184 Ninth Avenue
New York NY
212.647.9956
www.billysbakerynyc.com

Make My Cake
121 St. Nicolas Avenue
New York, NY 10026
212.932.0833

2380 Adam C. Powell Blvd.
New York, NY 10030
212.234.2344
www.makemycake.com