Buttercup Bake Shop - New York City

North Carolina girl spends luxurious day in Manhattan on her own! What's a girl, who normally has a one year old to chase and a house to keep in order, to do with this rare opportunity?? Well, with 24 hours and no schedule of required activities, I had time to indulge one of my obsessions - scouting out yummy bakeries!

Since my hotel was in a fabulous location on 50th Street, seconds from Park Avenue and all the amazing shopping and delicious eating that area has to offer, I was surrounded by potential Bakery Bella scouting locations. A quick search on my iPhone revealed that the Buttercup Bake Shop (www.buttercupbakeshop.com) was on 2nd Avenue steps away from my hotel and since the Buttercup theme is "old fashion American desserts and inviting ambiance" I knew I had to check it out.

As soon as I caught site of the cute yellow awning beckoning me to enter into the sugary paradise, I had a good feeling that the treats I'd find inside would be as delicious as I anticipated.

Less than half a step in the door and I was surrounded by the welcoming smell of melted sugar and vanilla wafting in the warm bakery air! No need to look at the menu, the display cases in the narrow shop were filled with fresh, dainty cupcakes and the tops of the cases were crammed with glass cake stands boasting gorgeous layer cakes of all kinds! After being greeted by a friendly Buttercup employee I then began the almost impossible process of deciding which of these sweet offerings I would select. I had to choose wisely since lord knows when I'll be back in New York City again! Decisions, decisions! Should I select one of the hundreds of cupcakes? The 3 layer carrot cake (always a favorite of mine) infused with fresh carrots and apples, laced with pecans and frosted with sweet cream cheese frosting, or should I try something different like the super moist and delectable looking Lemon Cake, 3 layers of lemony cake frosted with lemon buttercream frosting??

In the end, after literally 20 minutes of debating (including a mental pros/cons list on each type of cake) I chose the unique Hummingbird Cake a moist, fruity cake filled with bananas, pineapple and pecans (reminded me of Spice Cake) and iced with sweet cream cheese frosting. AND...I also took a slice of a traditional cake we all make at home, Buttercup Golden Cake a yellow cake frosted with chocolate frosting. You can't visit a place like Buttercup Bake Shop and leave with JUST ONE slice of cake, right?!

The Hummingbird Cake was A M A Z I N G! If you like Spice Cake, Carrot Cake, or any kind of fruit cake you will LOVE Hummingbird Cake. Delicious, moist and filled with unexpected combinations of fruit and nuts that work very well together to make this a "must taste" slice of cake!

The Buttercup Golden Cake was less than amazing. I would not recommend spending the extra $$ or consuming the extra calories on this cake. It was not very moist and the chocolate frosting was forgettable. To be honest, I had a few bites and threw the rest of the almost $5 slice of cake away. Considering the fact that I hate wasting money and throwing food away is close to sacrilegious, this action should indicate to you how I feel about the Buttercup Golden Cake - not impressed.

BOTTOM LINE on the BUTTERCUP BAKE SHOP NYC
taSte - 3.5 out of 5: The Hummingbird Cake was SO good I had to give Buttercup the benefit of the doubt that their other offerings are better than the Buttercup Golden Cake I tasted that day.
bUdget - Moderately Expensive: Buttercup Bake Shop prices are not for those on a tight budget. With slices of cake being almost $5 a piece, it would cost a family of four $20 to visit Buttercup. Although I must say that these slices are huge and can easily be shared. So with that in mind, you can indulge in Buttercup yumminess without necessarily breaking the bank. Also in fairness I'm fairly certain that prices at Buttercup are on par with other bakeries in NYC and Manhattan in particular (which means they are more than this North Carolina girl is used to paying!).
visit aGain - Yes: Buttercup Bake Shop is so cute and inviting, the prices are reasonable for the area, and the Hummingbird Cake is SO good that I would definitely visit Buttercup again given the opportunity!
overAll - Love It!
atmospheRe - Cute and Inviting: The staff are very friendly and helpful, patiently answering all my questions about the various cakes. The shop smells like sweet, sugary heaven! Just thinking about it makes my mouth water! You can enjoy your cake at one of the tiny tables in the narrow (aka cozy) shop or they will wrap it up nicely for you to take home.