Cupcakes

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Article from today's Globe about Kickass Cupcakes

I'm sad to say I haven't managed to get in there yet. I pass by it every evening on my commute home, but since I'm generally in a rush to pick up my son from preschool by 5:30 closing time, I can't stop. Maybe this weekend? I loooove a good cupcake.

Comments

[androidqueen.livejournal.com]

I was really pissed off a couple of weeks ago and opted to stop in on my way home. I got a mojito cupcake. It perked me right up!

[mrpet.livejournal.com]

I wasn't impressed sad to say. I was really looking forward to them opening.

[jwinter.livejournal.com]

I was also disappointed. The cupcake was dry and a little burnt (there was a little bit of crunch where it spills out over the tin). The one I got (vanilla/vanilla) felt overpriced at 4 bucks.

I prefer Patsy's Pastry Shop (http://www.yelp.com/biz/DBHfyXtrO0pHKMKX-tW95Q#hrid:FXScFS6o5pCAfOfVkF2DSA/query:patsy's%20pastry).

[ifotismeni]

i looove the cupcakes here, and am really glad they're in davis. i think i've had most of their flavors by this point, they're all deeeeeeeeelicious.

[tsuki-no-bara.livejournal.com]

the frosting on the mojito cupcakes (or at least the one i had) is kind of, i dunno, runny - i was expecting a stiffer frosting - i blame party favors - but the cupcake was nice and moist and cupcakey. i liked it enough to want to try a different flavor next time, anyway. the lemon ones looked good too.

[lac.livejournal.com]

DEEP FRIED CUPCAKES!? Ok...I seriously need to get over there. I love a good cupcake!

[chenoameg.livejournal.com]

I believe they have not yet started serving deep-fried cupcakes.

[slinkr.livejournal.com]

I've been disappointed by Kickass so far. The cupcakes are small. I got a "lucky cupcake" that was disappointingly dry. I also tried the "super chocolate" cupcake, rumored to be more brownie-like, but it was nowhere near as chocolatey as the brownies you can get at Diesel.

[buymeaclue.livejournal.com]

Yeah, they are much smaller than I'd hoped, and my impression is that the frosting is really quite good and the cake part is just average. That's actually perfect for me; they're not so good that I'll want them constantly, but they're good enough that if I do make the walk over, I'll get something tasty for my trouble.

I've tried half a dozen flavors so far and the vegan one, the java jolt, was my favorite (and the most moist in the cake department).

I hear ya

[piscesboy311.livejournal.com]

I agree. Kickass is totally overpriced. $2.75 for a cupcake? Puh-lease! It's a fucking cupcake-it should be like 90 cents! The cupcake I got was so hard I thought I was going to break a tooth. Diesel for sure has the goods and if anyone is looking for a good cupcake-Lyndell's in Ball Square is the shit! Old school, cheap and damn tasty! Fresh also! No hard rocks there!

Re: I hear ya

[nomirena.livejournal.com]

Let's meet for one! mmm. $.90.

Totally!

[piscesboy311.livejournal.com]

We should meet for one and hang out at True Grounds! Ever been there? It's been too long since we hung! What are you going to be for Halloween?

[theriotgrl.livejournal.com]

yeah, the cupcakes are pretty good, but as I've mentioned on here before, they pale in comparison to Party Favors. Really need to try that deep fried one, though! Interesting article. Ohhhhh Magnolia! Now THAT is a cupcake.

[tut21.livejournal.com]

I haven't tried one of their cupcakes yet. The tiny size and $2.75 price scared me away.

Maybe someday when I have enough alcohol in me.

[josephineave.livejournal.com]

I figured the whole article was a way to get out their message that $2.75 wasn't too much to spend on a cupcake.

[androidqueen.livejournal.com]

I'll admit that they're a little pricey, but I think the size is perfect.

true

[piscesboy311.livejournal.com]

$2.75 is a bit hefty-it's Davis Square not Newbury Street for crying out loud.

[chenoameg.livejournal.com]

Althought they're just down the street I haven't had a cupcake yet. (They're just not one of the foods I frequently crave, and they opened during a weekend when I was doing a lot of baking, so I haven't had the need yet).

But I have had several quarts of the delicious fresh milk from Shaw's Farm. Yum! (In returnable glass bottles, even!)

http://www.shawfarm.com/

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

I'm confused -- are you saying they sell Shaw's Farm milk at Kickass Cupcakes? Or was that a tangent? Where do you get the milk?

There was a thread in this community recently about how/where to get local milk delivered, but as far as I can tell, it isn't possible. alas!

[chenoameg.livejournal.com]

are you saying they sell Shaw's Farm milk at Kickass Cupcakes?

Yes, sorry, I got distracted looking at Shaw Farm's website and forgot to include the point, which was that I've been buying the milk at Kickass Cupcakes. And I'm hoping that by the Christmas baking season she'll be carrying Shaw farm cream, too.

[teko.livejournal.com]

Very tasty cupcakes that are "gourmet" sized & priced (read: a bit expensive for what you get).

I'm eager to try the Deep Fried Cupcake if they ever start selling it.

[houlette.livejournal.com]

If you're craving cupcakes, the chocolate-with-chocolate-icing ones from Lyndell's (Willow and Broadway, in Ball Square) are only 90 cents. The chocolate ones I had at Kickass were pretty good, but I'm not sure they were three times as good. Of course, Lyndell's closes at 5 or 6, so if you need an evening cupcake fix....

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I second Lyndell's, and I'm addicted to the white frosting, particularly on a chocolate cupcake. I haven't made the time to try Kickass because I have found pure cupcake perfection at Lyndell's.

[the-gadgetman.livejournal.com]

The kids and I tried Kickass this past weekend, and we all agreed that Lyndell's is much better.

[canongrrl.livejournal.com]

I gotta say the same - my partner brought home 4 of the flavors - as someone else posted the mojito icing was...strange and not good (over the top with the lime maybe? it overpowered everything else), the coconut something was ok - but the icing texture was meh, the third left no mark but the 4th, vegan chocolate with chocolate chip icing was pretty stellar - still Lydell's is way better.

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

Totally agreed! Though I have tried Kickass, they don't hold a candle to Lyndell's.

[ayelle.livejournal.com]

I haven't tried Kickass (though I do want to!), but I agree that Lyndell's are absolutely delicious. They also do seriously awesome on-demand specialty decorated cupcakes. I love all the zoo animals, especially the elephant. And the lion. (Last time I went by there, they were on display in the windows.) Sure those are a bit more than $0.90 of course.

That's what I'm talking about...

[piscesboy311.livejournal.com]

Yes, Lyndell's is kickass. Not only are the cupcakes good but the pastries, cakes, bread and turnovers are pretty damn good.

Re: That's what I'm talking about...

[nomirena.livejournal.com]

Lyndell's overdoes everything with frosting, but I applaud the old-skool bakery and am glad they are still in business.

[alasbabylon.livejournal.com]

do they have vegan options?

Kickass Cupcakes interview at Cupcakes Take the Cake

[rachelkb.livejournal.com]

Over at my cupcake blog Cupcakes Take the Cake, we just interviewed the owner of Kickass Cupcakes. (http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/2007/09/our-kickass-cupcakes-interview.html)

Re: Kickass Cupcakes interview at Cupcakes Take the Cake

[righteousness-1.livejournal.com]

Read the interview. It would have been cool to bring up some of the points raised here and in a past thread but you seemed to be asking the sort of questions that just let her promote the place. A bit like Bill O'Reilly interviewing Dick Cheney.

cupcake haters- I just don't get it.

[petula73.livejournal.com]

I know I commented last week on this subject, but, I still feel the need to chime in again since maybe different people are reading this partiular thread.

I am SO disappointed in the way this business has been attacked.

Sure, it's your opinion, and it's your right to express it, but this business is still so young, and the negativity is so damaging. I am sure the owner and staff is reading this, and I can only imagine how it makes them feel.

I witnessed a 30 post plus thread on craigslist's "rants and raves" section with people just slamming kickass cupcakes. Being so evil, saying that they taste like "kitty litter and motor oil" and some other heinous stuff. I know that is not being said on here in particular, but this is what I have seen out there on the internet recently. I seriously consider comments like to be slander, and if everyone had to leave their name and phone number with those sort of posts, my guess is that they would not exist at all.

I have to say that all of this hating on Kickass Cupcakes is really making me wonder what has happened to this neighborhood.

People say that they want to support local business, but they don't want to pay the price that goes with that idea. Those who are taking such offense to this business want to pay Big Box prices yet they want the quality of a small place.

To pick on a business less than a month old is just plain mean spirited, and please don't give me the "big business would pay thousands of dollars for this kind of feedback" rap.

I don't know why this is depressing me like it is, but I just find it so disheartening...I don't know, all of this hate all on a cupcake?

Re: cupcake haters- I just don't get it.

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

I agree with you in general; I don't think it's fair to pick (especially to nitpick) on a business that's so new. It sounds like some people have had really good cupcakes from Kickass, and others had ones that were overcooked or whatever, and that's like -- hello, they're just getting started, shit happens. Give them a break.

I also think most of the people complaining about the prices are overlooking (or maybe not caring about) the fact that Kickass is using all-natural ingredients, no trans fats, and so forth. Sure, Lyndell's may be cheaper and taste just as good, but it seems to me that Kickass is trying to be healthier and more local-friendly (selling local milk, etc.) which is a) of course going to be pricier and b) not immediately obvious to the eye/tongue, so you'd have to be paying attention.

Personally I don't think $2.75 is too much to pay for a cupcake that tastes good and is made from fresh local ingredients with no trans fats and no preservatives. Of course, I wouldn't be paying that every day -- but I shouldn't be eating a cupcake a day anyway. ;)

Re: cupcake haters- I just don't get it.

[rufustfi.livejournal.com]

But what if all of these negative opinions went unexpressed? Isn't it better for the owner of Kickass to know what people think of the product? Anyone interested in cupcakes is going to give the place a try before making a judgement. Right now I think we're at the stage where any publicity is good publicity.

Frankly I think the real problem is the price. I wouldn't be surprised if this place closes down within six months--not because the cupcakes aren't good (personally I like them very much) but because they're ridiculously expensive. $2.75 per cupcake comes out to $33 a dozen--outrageous. You can get a full-sized, already-overpriced cake from Hi Rise for half that amount. For Davis Square the price point should be, at most, $1.95. I think the negative comments here reflect the raised expectations people have for a tiny cupcake that costs almost three bucks. If they were paying less they'd be more charitable.

Re: cupcake haters- I just don't get it.

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Re: isn't it better for the owner to know what people think -- yes, but there's constructive criticism and then there's "that place sucks." I think that most of the comments on this thread have stayed on the constructive side of that line, but the comments on craigslist crossed it.

Re the big problem being price, I have to agree. I've had an opportunity to actually visit Kickass now, and had two cupcakes that were quite tasty (I had minor issues with them but overall they were good), but it's definitely true that $2.75 is a lot of money for cupcakes that small, no matter how good they are.

I still think the fact that they're made with all-natural ingredients and no trans fats, etc., justifies a slightly higher price. But $2.75 is still high even considering that. It would definitely have to be less expensive in order to become anything more than "only on your birthday."

Re: cupcake haters- I just don't get it.

[rufustfi.livejournal.com]

There's a very long thread on Chowhound about Kickass cupcakes, and the consensus there seems to be the same: cupcakes okay but not great, and way overpriced.