Summer of Cupcakes: Bliss Cupcakes & Confections

Better late than never....2 months after our visit I bring you the fourth stop on our The Summer of Cupcakes tasting tour: Bliss Cupcakes & Confections! While we were in Allen for Miss Texas week it was the perfect time to check out Bliss since it was within walking distance of the host hotel! 

Location:   The Villages of Allen

            190 East Stacy Road, Suite #1414 Allen, Texas 

Hours:      Mon - Thur: 10:00am to 8:30pm

            Fri - Sat: 10:00am to 9:00pm

            Sun: 11:00am to 7:00pm

Pricing:    $3.99 each 

Flavor Selection:   They have 6 Everyday Classic flavors that are always available and then they rotate their 7 Signature flavors throughout the week. In addition to this they off a Design Your Own Cupcake bar! Here you can come up with your very own cupcake creation including fillings and toppings! (cupcake bar is slightly higher price) 

Okay, let's get down to business!

Some of the other families at Miss Texas had already tried out Bliss, so we had heard great things and couldn't wait to go for ourselves. Let me start off by saying this place is ADORABLE!

And not only do they have great decor but they also had a great seating area for you to enjoy your goodies! And while using so much pink could come off really girly, there was a nice mix of brown that makes the decor appealing to guys too. (or at least mine!)  

Of all the places we have gone they have had the most expensive cupcakes, but after you see them you understand why - they are HUGE! We decided to go with 2 Everyday Classic flavors:

Southern Red Velvet: A deep dark red cake with a hint of milk chocolate, frosted with our rich and creamy traditional cream cheese icing topped with red velvet cake crumbs

Cookies n Cream: A light and moist white butter cake blended with crushed chocolate cookies frosted with silky white buttercream topped with chocolate cookie crumbs

And the results...........

• As I mentioned before the price point was higher than most, but maybe it is because of the size
• We did like that they offer more than just cupcakes! They also have Cake Pops and Cake Parfaits for sale and several other special order items like Custom Cakes, Cake Pop Bouquets, and To Go Party Kits!
• And of course Kipper was happy because Milk was on the beverage menu! :) 

The final verdict? Thumbs up all around!!! 

 Stay tuned for our next stop at the Ultimate Cupcake!

The Summer Of Cupcakes: Gigi's Cupcakes

All aboard the cupcake express!! The third stop on our The Summer of Cupcakes tasting tour: Gigi's Cupcakes!  While they are a franchised Cupcakary I have more people tell me this had to be one of the locations we visited because they were simply amazing. After doing some research about the company the more excited I was about trying them. I love hearing about people who started built their dream from the ground up and Gigi's story is a great one! 

Location:   Over 50 stores in 18 states, with 7 in Texas. Dallas and Plano being the closest to Fort Worth. 

Hours:      Very by location. As a bonus you can place orders online 24 hours a day for any of the locations! 

Pricing:    $3.25 each 

Flavor Selection:   They have more amazing flavors that you can imagine! Just check out their Spring and Summer menu!

Okay, let's get down to business!

We went to the Dallas location at Lovers and Inwood. And the fun and girly exterior already had me excited!

Not only were we offered a sample as soon as we walked in the door, we quickly learned that they were running a Monday special of  "Buy Two, Get Two Free!"

As much as we didn't really need that many cupcakes, I am not going to lie...I was excited because I was having a hard time deciding what I wanted! 

And the 4 cupcakes we decided to go with?  (clockwise)

Scarlett's Red Velvet: Red velvet cake with a vanilla filling topped with cream cheese frosting, a white chocolate heart and red sugar crystals.

Wedding Cake: White cake topped with a vanilla buttercream frosting and sprinkled with white nonpareils.

Miss Princess: White cake baked with fresh strawberries, topped with a cream cheese frosting, pink sugar crystals and a pink fondant crown.

Texas Milk Chocolate:  Milk chocolate cake topped with milk chocolate frosting, chocolate sprinkles and a bright yellow fondant star.

And the results........................

• The only criticism both Kipper and I had was that they didn't have forks and that there was no place to sit and eat.
• They do have counter space that you can stand at to eat. 
• And of course Kipper was happy because Milk was on the beverage menu! :) 
• If you are an icing person like us - THIS PLACE ROCKS! The icing is as tall as the cake part! On the flip side, if you aren't big on icing you might not love it as much as we did. It wasn't the best cake we had ever tasted, but the combination with the icing was a perfect marriage! 

The final verdict? Thumbs up all around!!! 

Stay tuned for our next stop at Bliss Cupcakes & Confections! 

The Summer Of Cupcakes: Auntie AM's Sweet Stop

Time for the second stop on our The Summer of Cupcakes tasting tour: Auntie AM's Sweet Stop!  It is a rolling bakery, baking fresh onsite daily, with a menu of cupcakes, cookies and other sweet treats!

Location:   Cowtown Chow Down Food Park 

            1100 North Main St Fort Worth, TX 76164

Hours:      Wed: 11:00 pm-2:00 pm and 5:00 pm-8:00 pm

            Thu: 11:00 pm-2:00 pm and 5:00 pm-9:00 pm

            Fri: 11:00 pm-2:00 pm and 5:00 pm-10:00 pm

            Sat:11:00 am-10:00 pm

Pricing:    $3 each 

Flavor Selection:   They only had four cake flavors the day we were there but the lady said they do rotate, but they didn't have a full list available, nor have I found one on their facebook page. Something a little different they do is that the cupcakes come un-iced. You can pick if you wanted a flavored filling and what flavor of icing you want. 

Okay, let's get down to business!

This was not one of the original locations on our list since they opened  right around the same time. But after we hear about it we decided to switch on of the locations we selected in Dallas for one right here in Fort Worth. Plus we had really been wanting to check out the new food part - Cowtown Chow Down!

While they give the option to have a filling added to your cupcakes we opted to just pick out the cake and icing. Of course we started with Red Velvet and Cream Cheese frosting. It was the second flavor I was really excited about, Peach with Cream Cheese frosting!!

And the results.............

• It was a little warm but in the Fall this new food park is going to be great! 
• The staff didn't really explain all the options with the fillings and different icings, we just sort of had to figure it out. But they were very nice
• It would have been nice to have a place or something to put the cupcake on verse just a few napkins. 
• I was VERY excited about the peach flavor, but it didn't even really taste like peach unless you happen to get a peach chunk. :(
• They just have the icing sitting in containers on the counter and then use an ice cream scoop to put it on the cupcake. Not sure if it was the heat or their recipe (or maybe a combination of both) but the icing was a little runny and make it hard to eat. Plus extra messy, even with a fork! 

The final verdict?  

Sadly, we both gave it a thumbs down. Maybe we should try them again after they have been open a while but not sure if we will or not. 

Well that is 2 down and several more to go...this tour might be extended well into the fall the rate we are going! lol! But we are having fun so that is all that maters! 

The Summer Of Cupcakes: La Bella Cupcakes

Last week Kipper and I made the first stop on our The Summer of Cupcakes tour: La Bella Cupcakes.   

Main Location:   2405 North Main St Fort Worth, TX 76164

                 Tues - Sat 11 am to 6 pm

                 Sun 11 am to 5 pm

                 Closed on Mon

Satellite Locations:  North East Mall and Hulen Mall

Pricing:   $3 each or starting at $29 a dozen

Flavor Selection:   Flavors are broken into 3 categories - Traditional, Specialty and Top Shelf.  Everyday all of the Traditional flavors as well as  2-5 Specialty flavors available for walk in customers. Top Shelf flavors are by special order. 

• Traditional:  Chocolate on Chocolate, Chocolate on Vanilla, Cream Cheese on Chocolate, Red Velvet, Strawberry on Chocolate, Strawberry on Vanilla, Vanilla on Chocolate, Vanilla on Vanilla                                       
• Specialty:   Almond Joy, Apple Spice, Blueberry, Caramel Apple Twist, Carrot, Cherries N' Chocolate, Cherry Blossom, Cherry Limeade, Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Coffee, Chocolate on Strawberry, Coconut, Egg Nog, Gingerbread, Lemon Burst, Maple Bacon, Mint Chocolate, Orange Dreamsicle, Oreo Bottom, Peanut Butter Cup, Peppermint, Pumpkin Spice, Rolo, Spice, Strawberry, Strawberry Cheesecake, Vanilla Bean, Wedding Cake                                      
• Top Shelf:  Guinness Chocolate, Mocha, Snickerdoodle, Strawberry Champagne, S'Mores, Tiramisu

Okay, let's get down to business!

Kipper and I did our "tasting" at their newest location in the food court at Hulen Mall. All the cupcakes are baked at the main location in the Stockyards and then they deliver them to their satellite locations everyday.  

Of course we got our favorite, Red Velvet, which is also our "baseline" flavor for each location. For our second flavor Kipper and I decided on Cream Cheese on Chocolate. 

After taking it all in, here is our official "scores" followed by a few comments! (And you thought I was joking when I told you we were going to have a have an official scoring system for this adventure didn't you?)

This my friends might be the BEST cupcake Kipper or I have ever tasted!  Seriously, the best ever.

• The cake was incredibly moist and the icing almost melted in your mouth. 
• The staff was very friendly and answered all of our questions. 
• I scored the atmosphere low because lets be honest, how could you NOT score the atmosphere of a mall food court on a Saturday afternoon low? 
• Loved how they displayed all the cupcakes in different cake stands with glass domes. Gave the presentation more of a boutique feel than if they would have just been in a bakery case. 
• It would have been helpful if they would have had all the flavors labeled so we didn't have to keep asking which flavors were which.
• One downfall is that they ONLY sell cupcakes, no drinks. We had to stand in line at another food vendor to get a drink. 

So the final verdict??? Thumbs up all around!!

    

Stay tuned, we will be heading out on another tasting adventure this weekend! (and I promise it won't take me a week and a half to post about it! lol!)

The Hunt Is On: The Summer Of Cupcakes

2 years ago when fro-yo was really taking off in Fort Worth, I went on the quest to find the best place to get it. I came up with a ranking system and everything. (I know, it is a little odd and MAYBE a little overboard. But don't lie...you wished you would have thought of it first!) 

This weekend I was running errands with with Kipper and we spotted a new cupcake place we wanted to try. After talking we decided that we should go on the hunt for the best cupcake (ranking system and all) and then I could blog about each of our tasting adventures!  But we agreed we would have to stretch this adventure out, otherwise all the work we have been doing to improve our eating would be down the drain. (Not to mention our waistlines would NOT be happy with us either!) 

The Summer of Cupcakes was officially born!!

Here is how it will work:

• Over the course of the next 3 months we will taste test cupcakes at 15 different bakeries in the metroplex.   
• At each stop we will taste 2 flavors: 
• Red Velvet (Kipper and I's all time favorite, that will be used as our baseline flavor)
• Then we will decided on another flavor based on that days flavor selection 
• During each tasting adventure both Kipper and I will use a scale of 1-5 to rank the following factors: 
• Atmosphere: location, decor, etc
• Sales Experience: how helpful/friendly was the staff etc
• Presentation: both pre-sale and after
• Price
• Flavor Variety 
• Icing
• Cake
• Overall Experience
• Then I will sum our experience up in a blog to pass on the results of our yummy research to YOU! :) 

Before we could get started we had to have our map of all the places we would hit and the requirements were simple - They had to be in the metroplex and they had to have cupcakes available to walk-in customers.

We received tons of suggestions on places that needed to be on our list, but we had to narrow it down! (at first it was upwards of 28-30 places!!)  After going over and over all our suggestion here are the 15 bakeries we have selected for the first ever The Summer of Cupcakes! 

Be on the look out this week for the first blog in The Summer of Cupcakes series!! We can't wait!!!!