foodie field trips

cupcakes actually is actually delicious!

~ jama

 

So, after spending the last several weeks visiting quite a few bakeries, I thought maybe Len and I should take a little break to keep from turning into walking cupcakes.

But alas, this was not to be. Right after dinner last Wednesday, Len turned to me in the middle of AC360 and said, “What, no cupcakes?”

Like he hadn’t had one in months and months. Poor thing looked pale, drawn, so pitiful. Indeed, he seemed to be withering away right before my very eyes. I recognized the signs immediately. Cupcake withdrawal.

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who’s got the best buns in northern virginia?

~ jama

 

According to Champion Cupcake Sleuth (CCS), Sara Lewis Holmes, Best Buns Bread Company in Arlington has some pretty good ones, in addition to a killer Triple Lemon Cupcake.

So Len and I zipped on over to the Village at Shirlington, a cool complex of small shops and restaurants full of happy folks strolling hither and yon, walking their adorable dogs, showing off their shocking pink-purple hair, and gliding by on their tandem bicycles wearing red, white, and blue spandex.

Unlike Bakeshop, which is owned by a young, upcoming entrepreneur, Best Buns is part of the Great American Restaurants family — a popular chain of seven restaurants (8th opening this Fall), based in Fairfax, Virginia. We’ve actually eaten Best Buns’ products many times before, since they bake all the yummy bread served in the restaurants (mmmm, sourdough, carrot banana, raisin pecan).

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hello, mr. cupcake!

~ jama


Bakeshop owner Justin Stegall.

Are bakers getting younger and cuter, or is it just my imagination?

Perhaps in my self-induced sugar haze, the old stereotype of benevolent, rotund, apply-cheeked bakers is disappearing in favor of lean, mean baking machines. To which I say, “Hallelujah, and thank you, Jesus!”

 

First there was White House chef Sam Kass, and now, Justin Stegall. We popped into his brand new Bakeshop in Arlington over the weekend — a cheery, light-filled, spiffy little bakery that greets you with the most heavenly aroma the instant you walk in.

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you had me at hello, or, how i almost fingerprinted somebody

~ jama



Now then. Where were we?

Oh yes. When last we spoke, I was licking the last bits of chocolate ganache and vanilla cream off my fingers after leaving Buzz Bakery in Alexandria. Since our first foray into cupcake madness began at a place that carried a variety of baked goods, I decided it was time to zero in on a few upscale cupcakeries.

THE HUNT

On a rainy Saturday, we headed over to Dupont Circle in D.C., to check out Hello Cupcake and Red Velvet. Never mind that it was almost impossible to find a parking space on the crowded streets of this area, that it was rainy and windy and we had to walk blocks and blocks to reach these places — no, never you mind. We did this all for YOU, after all, and you’re so worth it, right? Besides, it never hurts to burn a few calories before pigging out delicately tasting cupcake finery.☺

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get your buzz on: buzz bakery!

~ jama

 


I first heard about Buzz Bakery in Alexandria from Sara Lewis Holmes, whose New Year’s resolution this year is, “to eat more cupcakes.” I know, right? A brilliant poet and author who’s definitely got her priorities straight. ☺

This past weekend was the perfect time for a cupcake caper — temps in the 60’s, bright sunshine and clear blue skies. Since Buzz has been on my foodie field trip list for quite some time now, it was the perfect place to begin my research. My ultimate quest: to find the best Chocolate Cupcake in the DC area, and to reacquaint myself with its cousins — Red Velvet, Carrot Cake, Vanilla, Lemon, Strawberry, Champagne, Banana, et. al. If brownies, cookies, or cute little pies call my name, I will answer.

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