3338 University Ave. SE.
Minneapolis, MN 55414
I’ve always had a take-it-or-leave it relationship with cake. It’s spongy. It’s sugary. It’s mostly air. I went to Cupcake for the first time with work people, and I ordered a bacon sandwich. We sat at one of the bistro tables by the big front windows overlooking University Avenue, but I was facing the display case, which of course spells doom for even the most indifferent cupcake resistor. I got up to take a closer look at the Global Warming–a vanilla cupcake covered with buttercream foliage. Next to that was The Paris Hilton, a vanilla cupcake covered with neon pink sparkles, shining like a beacon.
Not so interested in Paris, I tried the Mint Chip instead, a cupcake that honors the brilliant combination of peppermint and chocolate without the overpowering mouthwash afterglow one gets with, say, a peppermint mocha. The cake part was dense and lovely, but who are we kidding? A cupcake’s worth is largely measured by the stuff on top. I could write a poem about the frosting alone. But more than that, I love Cupcake’s penchant for chunky toppings. A whole orange cordial, a half a peanut-butter cup, a Nilla wafer, a sugared lemon. The S’more cupcake is covered in marshmallow cream, then delicately blow-torched and garnished with graham cracker and a hunk of chocolate.
Cupcake is on University Ave., just far east enough from the University to be able to find parking. It’s easy enough to find on account of the gigantic 3-D blue coffee cup, part of their logo, stuck to the side of the building. Not sure why it isn’t a cupcake, but whatever–the place is hard to miss. Cupcake is small and busy, and can’t quite decide if it’s a coffee shop or a café or a place for freelancers to park with their laptops.
There’s a window in the main room that looks into the kitchen, and considering that cupcakes originally got their name because the ingredients are measured in cups (1 cup butter, 2 cups sugar, 3 cups flour and so on), it’s kind of funny to see the one of the bakers fireman-carrying 25-pound bag of sugar, and an industrial mixer with an attachment the size and shape of the Pope’s hat. The place has over 60 varieties of cupcake on rotation, cranking out about 20 kinds a day. They even make baby cakes for $1.25, so you can get a couple bites worth of a bunch of different kinds.
The food at Cupcake shouldn’t be overlooked. The salads are fine enough; nothing I couldn’t make at home fairly easily. You’re better off going for something that puts the chef’s skills to good use, like one of the made-from-scratch soups (creamy tomato basil) or the quiche. Bread-maker Craig Nelson’s creative license roams free here, so what may look like a fairly common sandwich menu is 10 times better because of the artisan bread, also available by the loaf.
If you go on a Friday, ask about the Blue Plate hot dish special, a big ol’ spoonful of Minnesota-love on a plate. Just eat the cupcakes first, so you don’t have to worry about saving room for them later.
by Mary Holland
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