Category: Cupcake Quest

Miss Cora’s Kitchen

The third stop on my cupcake quest, was Miss Cora’s Kitchen, “home to Toronto’s best cupcake?” according to their website. Below this quizzical disclaimer is an invitation to come and be the judge. I had high hopes for this place as not only do they have rave reviews online, but they are in Kensington market, one of my favourite areas in Toronto.

Flavour: Double Chocolate
Cake:3/5
Icing:3/5
Flavour:Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
Cake:3/5
Icing:4/5
Presentation:3/5
Flavour Selection:1/5
Location:5/5
Total Points:15/25 and 16/25

Despite my high hopes for Miss Cora’s Kitchen I was disappointed from the moment I arrived at the shop.  I’ve never been a fan of mini cupcakes, as I figure you might as well go for the full thing, but I wasn’t excited enough about the cupcakes here to pick up a full size.  Instead I sampled two mini cupcakes, a chocolate one and a carrot cake with cream cheese icing with them.  There was really limited selection when I went, with three types of mini cupcakes but only one type of full size cupcake.

The chocolate cupcake was dry, despite being towered with a thick chocolate icing.  The large amount of icing felt like a compensation for the small amount of cake, but there was just too much on it – I REALLY like icing and all, but it was a thick glob that I did not enjoy.  The icing was also poorly distributed; I would have preferred it reached the sides and wasn’t piled as high.

I’m a huge fan of cupcakes with cream cheese icing; it’s usually a safe choice as cream cheese icing is pretty difficult to mess up.  In my experience I find cupcake places with poor buttercream icing often make up for it with their cream cheese icing.  The icing on this cupcake was fine, but it wasn’t phenomenal.  I was not a fan of the carrot cake at all.  I’ve been spoiled as my mom makes an amazing carrot cake, but I felt Miss Cora’s Kitchen just needs a better recipe.  The cake had an unpleasant texture – there was also coconut and raisins in the cake, two things I don’t believe belong in carrot cake, but that’s just my opinion.  As it was a small cupcake I found the extra ingredients took away from the cake, as there was too much texture in a small amount of cake.

Both cupcakes are okay in terms of presentation, but they do look quite amateur.  What Miss Cora’s Kitchen makes up for in lack of a good cupcake is in location.  I love Kensington Market – it’s walking distance from my apartment and there’s lots to do.  However, next time I’m in Kensington I’m passing by Miss Cora’s Kitchen for cupcakes, though someone ordered pizza while I was there and it smelled delicious.  All in all I would not recommend the cupcakes there and question who called them Toronto’s Best Cupcake – I don’t believe they’ve ever tasted a really good cupcake.

Dufflet

I went on my second cupcake hunt last week before heading home for the holidays. The second stop on my adventure was Dufflet on Queen West. Dufflet is not exclusively a cupcake place; they serve up a plethora or decadent looking desserts. I stopped in at Dufflet following a little shopping, and picked up a few goodies which I enjoyed at home.

Double Vanilla Cupcake from Dufflet (Leah Wong)

Flavour: Double Vanilla
Cake: 5/5
Icing: 4/5
Presentation: 4/5
Flavour Variety: 1/5
Location: 4/5
Total Points: 17/25

I have no hesitations saying that Dufflet serves up a delicious cupcake. The vanilla cake was perfection, topped with a mildly sweet vanilla bean icing.  The one thing that I find sets cupcakes apart is their icing.  While Dufflet ranks high on my list for icing, there was one small problem, the cupcake only has a small spread of icing on it.  As someone who thinks a relatively equal ratio of icing to cake is important in a cupcake I found myself disappointed and craving more when I finished the cupcake.  Dufflet’s cupcake is almost too big – their website lists their cupcake as having a 3″ diameter.  Another aspect I find important for cupcakes is that the icing should go to the edge of the cupcake.  As Dufflet’s cupcakes were not the usual muffin-shaped cupcakes with a narrower base, there was empty space from the edge of the cupcake to where the icing began.

Dufflet isn’t a cupcake-specific shop, but this isn’t where my low flavour variety rating comes from.  My problem with Dufflet was that while they very well may have one of Toronto’s best cupcakes, their cupcakes are hidden behind too many other desserts.  In my treat selection, I not only purchased a Double Vanilla Cupcake, but I also purchased a Chocolate Espresso Cheesecake Mini.  It was absolutely orgasmic, causing me to recommend Dufflet for its specialty desserts over cupcakes – as a cupcake lover, that is taboo.  Additionally, Dufflet does not label what all of their desserts are, something that always makes the choosing process difficult as while everything looks so amazing, I would rather choose based on flavours and tastes I like rather than appearance.

The location of Dufflet is fairly close to my favourite shops on Queen West, making it a good spot to get a sugar boost during a day of walking and shopping.  However, in terms of going for cupcakes, it is a little out of the way for a limited selection of flavours.

Sweet Escape Patisserie

The first stop on my quest for the best cupcake Toronto can serve up was the Sweet Escape Patisserie in the Distillery District.  Though the their sign displays a pretty pink cupcake, the Sweet Escape Patisserie is not just for cupcakes, it is a cafe with a large selection of baked goods and sandwiches.  I ventured down there last Sunday, and enjoyed a cup of coffee with my cupcake.

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcake from Sweet Escape Patisserie(Leah Wong)

Flavour: Chocolate Raspberry

Cake: 4/5
Icing: 3/5
Presentation: 5/5
Flavour Variety: 3/5
Location: 4/5
Total Points: 19/25

While I enjoyed the chocolate cake, I found it to be very moist. Though the icing had a slight raspberry taste, it was too heavy and I would have preferred a stronger flavour. Visually, the cupcakes were very appealing.  Sweet Escape Patisserie offers a large variety of cupcakes on their website, but as they offer a variety of baked goods, the selection varies depending on when you are there.  However, if you are frequenting this cafe with a non-cupcake eater, there are many other options of baked goods for them to enjoy, including several gluten-free vegan treats which are hard to come by.  When I visited the store, they had five flavours available: vanilla, chocolate raspberry, red velvet, black forest and lemon.  There are many flavours on their website I would like to sample in the future, creating a need to return.  The cafe is located in the Distillery District, so while it is a bit out of the way to go for a cupcake, it is in a nice area with lots of things to see.  The cafe itself has many sit down tables, which a nice way to take a break and regroup if you’ve been exploring the Distillery District for a while.  If you’re in the area I would highly recommend trying a cupcake from Sweet Escape Patisserie, but it wasn’t good enough to warrant a special trip.

Cupcake Quest

The Princess
The Princess (Crave Cupcakes)

My favourite place to go in Calgary when I am home, is Crave Cupcakes.  These are not only the most amazing cupcakes, but they also hold sentimental value for me.  Many a special occasion in my life has been enjoyed over a Crave cupcake – no event is too minor for a cupcake.

When I moved away from Calgary, I knew one of the things I’d miss most was Crave.  Sad, but true, one of the things I love most about my hometown is our cupcakes.  Most times I am home, I am greeted with a pack of Crave cupcakes purchased before my arrival by my mom.

I am constantly on the search for a cupcake better than or even comparable to Crave.  So far, despite the many cupcake places I’ve tried, there has yet to be one that comes close to being as good.  Despite living in Toronto for over a year, I have yet to really venture to the cupcake shops.  Most of them are out of my way, but I have decided that a quest for a comparable cupcake to Crave is necessary, especially since I plan to stay here in the summer.  My plan is, using Crave as my standard, to rate cupcake shops based on five categories: Cake, icing, presentation, flavour selection and store location.

While the first four categories are relatively straight forward, the last requires a small explanation.  One of the best things about Crave is that the first two locations were opened in my favourite areas of Calgary, Kensington and 17th Avenue.  As much as I love cupcakes, if the only thing I can do near the cupcake shop is eat cupcakes, I am unlikely to go out of my way.

So, the quest for the best cupcake in Toronto is now underway.