Ferrara Bakery & Cafe

I am IN Love. Like seriously in LOVE.

This is the perfect place to take a person with a sweet tooth like mine. O-M-G

Ok ok, so Ferrera is located in Little Italy just like 3 doors down from Novella. So of course its going to be Italian pastries. And Lord Jesus bless those little Italians hearts!

I didn’t know what to expect when I was told I was going to be taken here. I was in awe. Like a little kid in a big candy store. Actually worst. I’ve been inside Dylan’s Candy Bar plenty of times and not even kids react the way I react.

Tiramisu, cannolis, cheesecake, rasbery mousse cake, cream puffs, chocolate eclairs, napolean cake, dacquoise, cheminee, diplomat, half moon cookies, biscotti gelato…… THE LIST CAN CONTINUE FOREVER

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There were so many great options to choose from. I am so happy that I was quickly able to decide on the Tres Berry Torte which let me tell you was exceptional!

I have never had a more fresher tart. The blueberries were so crispy and juicy as if they had just been picked from a bush. The raspberries and strawberries were just as fresh and delicious. Usually strawberries on the tarts I get are usually sweet but the blueberries just did it for me on this one.

The custard was sweet enough to not be too sweet and the torte itself was just perfection despite the fact it was hard. Still, I don’t care I was in heaven as soon as I took my first bite.

The lovely person who introduced me to the place told me that they had “one of the best Tiramisu” he’s ever tasted and I can co-sign it was some of the best Tiramisu I’ve ever tasted.

So delicious and creamy and coffeety and moist and yummyyyy.

Every bite I took made me want more and more. To the point that when there was no more I had the biggest sad face ever.

I honestly can say I don’t remember when was the last time I had Tiramisu that tasted this delicious. If you love cake this is def the place for you to visit. If I were you I’d be running to Little Italy right now.

I am definitely going to be a frequent customer here. I look forward to trying everything they have to offer. I can only imagine how creamy their raspberry mousse is and how delicious their lemon gelato must be!

Baked By Melissa

They’re tiny. They’re easy to eat. And they’re delicious.

Yep Baked by Melissa takes the concept of original cake turned mini cake-cupcake to even TINIER bite sized treats of Love.

With standard flavors such as Red Velvet, Cinnamon, Chocolate Chip Cupcake and Tie Dye just to name a few, you now don’t have to choose between flavors.

 

Depending on your order total, your mini cupcake can cost you $1 or less.

This makes it great to pick and choose and not having to feel guilty about eating too many normal sized cupcakes or even regretting no to try that flavor you were originally going for but decided to go back to your normal safety zone flavor.

Even though the cupcakes are smaller and about 1/10th of a size of a regular cupcake, that doesn’t mean it lacks any type of flavor. In fact its like a big ol’ POP in your mouth.

My personal favorites are the Red Velvet, Cookies & Cream, Chocolate Chip Pancake and Smores.

The best part of Melissa’s is that the flavor names are pretty much self explanatory and you don’t have to be asking the staff whats in the cupcake.

So why not indulge a little? Melissa makes grabbing cupcakes a quick and painful one stop trip! And you don’t even have to worry about getting crumbs all over your self! The quick one or two bites you take eliminates the mess!

With many shops located around Manhattan, Baked by Melissa is a great choice for personal cravings, parties and even fashion shows!

Just ask fashion designer Betsey Johnson who during the month of February collaborated with Melissa to create really cool pink cupcakes for her Fall/Winter line show at New York City’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Show!

If models can eat them, why can’t you?

Not lucky enough to be living in the great city of New York? No worries! Melissa offers nation wide shipping so you can have your little bites delivered right to the comfort of your own home!

Crepe’n’tearia

Mixed berries, ice cream and whipped cream. Fresh strawberries and Nutella. Apple cinnamon, cheesecake & whipped cream.

Is your mouth watering yet? Now just imagine walking into Crepe’n’tearia on Union Turnpike in Queens, NY just a few blocks away from St. John’s University’s campus.

With its sleek modern design and interesting paintings on the wall, Crepe’n’tearia is a different approach to reaching hungry college kids in need of a quick delicious fix me up.

The best part is that for give or take $9 you could get a combo meal that includes a crepe and small bubble tea, depending on which you choose from the combo selection.

For $9 you can be sinking your teeth into a fluffy, warm crepe, topped with layers of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, the works. Umm doesn’t that sound yummy?

Or how about a delicious forkful of crepe and sweet peaches, its warmness mixed with the cold icy vanilla cream? Yum times a million.

Your experience at Crepe’n’tearia will definitely be an enjoyable one. The cool laid back setting allows students, residents, and anyone else catch a break especially those students from St. John’s where peace and quiet seem to be rare on campus.

Sweet tooth not as crazy, well not only do they offer sweet and tasty crepes but also a variety of savory crepes such as tuna, grilled chicken, Mexican and ham & mozzarella. Even though they cost a bit more than the sweet crepes without the drink.

Crepes aren’t the only things offered in this small restaurant that’s been around for seven years. A former chef for Giorgio Armani’s restaurants, the owner Connie also loves to bake delicious pastries that are available all day long at a cheap price. Cupcakes, tapioca, cookies and flan are only a few of the sweets Crepe’n’tearia has to offer.

Their bubble teas are also very delicious and offer quite a large variety of combinations so you could try a different kind every time you visit.

Next time you’re in need of a sugar fix and can go for some fresh fruit, Crepe’n’tearia is the place to be!

Little Cupcake Bake Shop

My first Cupcake Love in the SoHo area.

Located in NoHo, right around the corner from Pink Berry and Cafe Habana, Little Cupcake Bakeshop was always my go-to cupcake shop whenever I just got out of dinner or finished shopping.

I always loved the fact that they stay open until 11 and sometimes I feel like they weren’t anal about locking up right away, I think I’ve walked in there a bit later, maybe, I don’t know, I never take a look at my watch.

The atmosphere is so adorable! It kind of reminds me of the 1950’s with their black and white tiled floors. Kind of like a Soda shop. Its not huge like Martha’s out in Bayside but it is big enough for a couple of tables.

There’s usually almost always a nice little elderly couple or middle-aged couple on a date here. (AW!)

They have cupcakes, cakes, pies and muffins among more stuff. They also offer coffee and tea to have with your desert.

Like I’ve stated before, in some places like Crumbs, I am hesitant about tasting their Red Velvet Cupcakes.

However, the first cupcake I had here was the Red Velvet. Why? Because the environment and decoration of the shop made me feel like they knew what they were doing.

And two because they also have a Blue Velvet Cupcake and Cake.

Now I know you’re thinking “Um excuse me hungry person behind the screen, its just food dye” but think about it a place has to have good reputation on a classic to want to mix it up and play around with food coloring.

Or at least that’s my notion, but regardless it worked.

Because It was love at first bite when I tasted their delicious, moist, soft cupcakes with that delicious cream cheese frosting.

Now for those who don’t know Red Velvet Cupcakes are not made of real red velvet that you use as upholstry or on clothes, its actually a chocolate cupcake just doens’t have the strong chocolate flavor like a Devil’s Cupcake would. Or German Chocolate. Or dark chocolate.

(Someone once tried to tell me it was made up of Cayanne pepper! The nerve of that person!)

I love chocolate, but chocolate cupcakes tend to me quite a bit parch if I must say. That’s why I love red velvet because you get a bit of the cocoa flavor and the cream cheese frosting isn’t as dense and sweet as chocolate or vanilla frosting that tends to cover a chocolate cupcake.

So my reccomendation: Eat the Red Velvet Cupcake!

I don’t care if you’re counting calories, the fluffiness of the bread will make you feel like you’re hardly eating anything at all (Like those ridiculous 3Muskateers commercial)

Cupcake No. 2: Fresaaaaa or Strawberry for my non-spanish speaking visitors.

In a nutshell: Delicious and Creamy.

It doesn’t have actual strawberry chunks like other cupcakes I’ve had but it does however have a very creamy yummy frosting. And its so pretty in pink.

I think by now you’ve noticed that Red Velvet and Strawberry are my favorite so usually thats all I tend to get. But if a place is good enough to make me come back for my favorite then they’re doing something right!

I def recommend giving it a shot when you’re in the area. Hey! Why not even go for a splurge!

Go to both Little Cupcake Bake Shop and Georgetown Cupcake and tell me which you think is best!

My next mission: To try the blue velvet and see if there’s any other difference other than color.

Oh! There’s also one in Brooklyn in case you want to steer away from the masses of retail addicts in the area!

Georgetown Cupcake

Saturday marked the opening of the famous cupcake shop, Georgetown Cupcake in SoHo. Located on Mercer Street between Prince and Spring Street, the line for New Yorkers to taste the famed cupcakes was definitely expected. The star of the show, DC Cupcakes, Georgetown Cupcake certainly has a reputation to live up to.

As a Washingtonian having moved to New York, I was pretty excited to have a piece of home I desperately miss whenever I’m in New York. No who am I kidding, I was ecstatic! Especially being in the DC location a week before the SoHo opening, I almost collapsed right then and there when I was told “Next Saturday.” I don’t think I’ve ever walked into the store and walked away with less than three cupcakes.

From experience I can say that the lines depicted at the the show for the Georgetown location are definitely no lie. I believe that I’ve only been to the DC location once and didn’t have to stand in line out of all the lets say million times I visit.

So the question is, is all the hype necessary and is the company really doing that well to be open up a shop right in the middle of SoHo? The answer is “YES! You have to be insane not to love their cupcakes.”

Even though I haven’t tried every flavor, from the few I have I can say I will continue to be a loyal customer. At only $2.75 a cupcake here is only a glimpse of what you can expect to have:

Red Velvet Cupcake: My favorite. I dread trying the Red Velvet cupcake from shops such as Crumbs because I don’t want my experience to be tainted. BUT Georgetown Cupcake holds the prize for the best. A bite into it and you’re in heaven. With the bread being so moist and tasty, you’re bound to go back for more. The cream cheese frosting compliments the flavorful moist bread. Not to sweet and not too much, its complimentary taste ties up the Red Velvet into one word: YUMMY!

Coconut Cupcake: First & foremost, if you’re not giving me the actual coconut fruit don’t bother. So why am I including this in my review? Because I’d be crazy not to. My friend actually bought this one because I would never order it and let me say, I felt bad for him because he said one bite and I took like 4. (at least I have small bites). The coconut bread, their delicious cream cheese frosting topped with shredded coconut is definitely a trip to the islands in just one bite.

Strawberry Cupcake: One of their seasonal cupcakes offered only during the months of February and July, as well as on Sundays, is my second favorite on menu. A strawberry cupcake should actually have strawberries and not just food coloring to make it seem as if it does. At first bite of the cupcake you are faced with not just a vanilla cake but CHUNKS (big enough chunks for a cupcake) of strawberries! And the frosting?! Strawberry frosting and strawberries in the cake? Yes that’s definitely a strawberry cupcake alright. Amazing. I kid you not one bite and your initial reaction is “MMMM” Sundays are some of their busiest days but this cupcake is definitely worth waiting in line.

Only three of my favorite cupcakes at GC, I can say that having also tried the Carrot Cupcake, Chocolate Ganache and Chocolate Peanut Butter, amongst the three listed above they are all super moist and just sweet enough to not leave you feeling like they used an entire bag of sugar in one cupcake. I can’t wait until I can say I’ve tried everything from the menu.

My advice? WHY ARE YOU STILL SITTING THERE? If you don’t have your shoes on and ready to head out to a Georgetown Cupcake (if you’re one of the lucky people living in DC, MD, Boston or New York) then I’m ashamed of you! If you’re not so fortunate and living in oh I don’t know Kentucky maybe? Georgetown Cupcake generously has a delivery system to any part of the USA.

Oh one last word of advice? If you’re lucky enough to be near the Georgetown or SoHo location don’t go home without stopping by Pinkberry for some frozen yogurt that is the perfect compliment to a Georgetown Cupcake. Trust me I know. These two locations make a lot of business out of me!

Bon Appetite!

(Shown Above: Red Velvet (With red heart). Chocolate (Pink Heart). Coconut and Strawberry)

Martha’s Country Bakery

“Can I have a red velvet cupcake, a strawberry ganache cupcake, a fruit tart, a slice of apple pie, a blueberry muffin and a scoop of your lemon gelato please?”

Yep. That’s exactly what my first order at this adorable bakery in Bayside Queens sounded like.

My first experience at Martha’s Country Bakery was amazing. Not only was I impressed and excited because I was placing this large order at 11:30 on a Sunday night.

As soon as my friends and I walked in we were immediately greeted by a smiling waitress to seat us which amazed me because a typical bake shop would just be in and out or seat yourself. Even though it was 11:30 at night the shop was filled row to row with many chattering customers sipping away on their hot drinks and enjoying their delicious deserts.

Now the fun part–deciding what to get! My sweet tooth is famous for being persistent and crazy. So when the cashier told me the total for my order was only $20, I was excited and everyone else was shocked at my decision. Like really? $20 for all of this in my bag! Now that’s what I call a deal!

Of course the taste was just as amazing as having cupcakes at midnight. Red velvet cupcakes are a must for me anywhere I go, so I am very happy to say that this certainly fits the par. Especially with a tall glass of milk, its love.

Everything was superb for that matter. I didn’t get around to the fruit tart until two days later and even still it tasted fresh. Certainly satisfies late night cravings or any cravings for that matter.

Located just a 10 minutes drive outside of St. John’s University Queens Campus, Martha’s is definitely a must for desert lovers. And the ambiance of the shop makes for perfect first date!