Baltimore Cupcake Company...

[dwbengals]

I am usually the who suggests BCC when people ask for a cupcake/dessert recommendation. However, my wife just had a really weird/bad experience there- she dropped in to pick up 15 cupcakes to take to a BBQ, and was lectured in a really obnoxious tone that she "really needs to call ahead for such an order" because BCC is "soo busy."

Am I right to be annoyed? If your business is cupcakes, is it too absurd to assume that you can handle a person coming in to buy a dozen or so cupcakes without getting attitude? Shouldn't you be happy that people want to buy a dozen at a time? My wife didn't say anything b/c she wanted the cupcakes w/o spit on them, but seriously, what's with the attitude? You get written up in Baltimore Magazine, and you turn nasty? Not cool BCC, not cool....

[Johniscool]

Baltimore Cupcake Co. stinks. I have given them a few chances, but no more. Burned every time with bad service and dry cake. Don't waste your time going here.

[Lucy610]

I went into the new Annapolis location of the Baltimore Cupcake Company just yesterday. The ambience is adorable, but the choice of cupcakes scant - which I could have lived with. However, when we decided that we'd like two Key Lime cupcakes, the young lady working there (who only had about five single cupcakes to actually sell), told me she could not remove the cupcake from it's six pack and if I wanted one of those, I'd have to buy the $18.00 six pack! I do PR for a living, and have my own business. I though either this policy needs to change or you can expect a lot of people to walk away. It would be different if they were lined up outside the door and various flavors of cupcakes abounded, but that was not the case. I couldn't stop talking about what poor hospitality and business sense that is. I will say that I had the vanilla cupcake and while it was sweet, I did think it was quite good. Not sure I'll go back, though; not loving the attitude.

[scarlet starlet]

I went to Baltimore Cupcake Compnay today to see if they were as bad as most people here say that are.... And you're all right - the cupcakes were horrible, and the service was even worse.

I got a Cookies and Cream (vanilla cake with Oreo crumbs in batter, vanilla frosting topped with Oreo crumbs) and a Coconut (vanilla/vanilla topped with shredded coconut).

Both cakes were greasy and had a large, hard crumb. They seemed stale. The Oreo cupcake tasted strongly of almond. The frostings on both were horrible - butter with LOADS of confectioners sugar and not a hint of vanilla to be found.

Better cupcakes can be found at Safeway. Or with a boxed mix.

And then there's the service. When I walked in, the girl in the counter didn't even LOOK at me. When I said hi to her and smiled, she looked at me and then looked back at the cupcakes. When I asked a few questions about the flavors (of which there weren't many left - there were lots of chocolate/chocolate, vanilla/vanilla, vanilla/chocolate left, but the special ones were almost all gone), she answered me very curtly.

At $2.50 per cupcake, I should not only get better service, but a decent cupcake. None of those things were found at BCC.

I've had Charm City Cupcakes, and, while they're not amazing, they're better than BCC and at least the girl who runs the place is nice.

Bottom line: I'll stick with baking my own.

[cpfeifer]

Cakelove is supposed to be coming to The Can Company in Canton (in that odd steel building that looks like a spaceship). I know Chowhound has been pretty down on them, but maybe it will be better than BCC.

[Jeserf]

wow, that's kind of interesting - he's growing super fast (a few more opening in DC).

Personally, for a sweet treat, I'd go to Dangerously Delicious Pie...but they don't have cupcakes ;)

[baltimorejim]

Have Rodney's crusts improved? Last go round there seemed to be agreement that his crusts tended toward the tough side rather than the flaky melt in your mouth side.

[Jeserf]

I thought it was fine - but Rodney is never there, it's a woman that does all the baking. We went a few weeks ago and she was talking to us about the types of fall flavors she wants (pear cranberry!).

[scarlet starlet]

I heard about that (in the Sun's Dining @ Large blog), and I'm not too thrilled - I've been to both Cakelove and Love Cafe and I thought the cakes and frostings were bad.

I'm really tired of people putting bad buttercream (i.e., chalky buttercream made with butter and confec. sugar) on bad (read: dry, overly dense crumb, or sometimes greasy) cupcakes. I'm from NYC, where there are a gajillion cupcakeries (and cake shops) and there are but a handful of quality cupcakes to be found, so it's clear to me that most cupcakeries sell mediocre products and get away with it because of the sheer novelty of the cupcake.

I've had enough; I'm gonna start selling cupcakes out of my tiny apartment! :D

[rudmansjmu]

I think Soups on at Rose's Cookies has the best cupcakes in town! I've had every one but my favorites are the Carrot Cake and the Yellow with Coconut Frosting. They are super moist and the staff there are very friendly. Located in Hampden. The soups and salads are good there too. Very reasonably priced

[Jeserf]

Is the places called Rose's Cookies or Soups on?

we like Hampden, but I don't know where it is.

[Hal Laurent]

A quick web search suggests that it is at 842 W. 36th St., which would put it a bit east of Elm Ave., on the north side of 36th St.

[kelly10561]

i was not impressed by BCC at all.

[locustpointgirl]

We live in the neighborhood and closed on our house on my birthday this spring. My husband had called ahead to reserve a special birthday celebration treat to eat on the floor of our new, empty home. (We moved from out of town, so this really was my "birthday cake.")

When we got to BCC, they acted as if they had never heard the request and were not very friendly about it. I basically got a chocolate chunk cupcake with a drink umbrella thrown on top, that I think they charged an extra $8 or so for. $11 for a (IMO) dry cupcake with some questionable customer service is not a good deal. We walk by the shop every day and haven't been back. It's a shame.

And if we're throwing out good cupcake recipes, I think Amy Sedaris' vanilla cupcake recipe is the gold standard of cupcake recipes. I make mine a little more interesting with some dried lavender flowers mixed into the batter.

[bmorecupcake]

All right, listen up. BBC is way overrated. I am bmorecupcake so I would know. Better off with a duncan hines cake mix and frosting. Better cupcakes can be had at cross street market or lexington market. Charm City Cupcakes is better than BBC, no doubt, but they do things like put lemon in their yellow cake which can be a turn off, e.g. with chocolate frosting. But the girl who works there is very nice and loves what she does. I make the best cupcakes in Baltimore anyway, but you gotta know me to try 'em, haha! :P

If you need to order cupcakes, I would go with Cakes by Cynthia. She made the cupcakes for my wedding. I kept the cupcakes for my wedding simple, though. Cookies and cream (chocolate cake/buttercream with oreo frosting), yellow/chocolate, yellow/strawberry, chocolate/chocolate, but everyone loved them, even the haters who thought cupcakes are just for kids. For large orders she will deliver. She is also affordable and bakes out of her home. Before she was baking in Baltimore but I think she moved out to the suburbs now.

[bordeauxfan]

Yes, I recommend Cynthia for cupcakes and regular cakes. She has a store just off Route 50 on Whitehall Road in Annapolis, before you get to the Bay Bridge. It's in that large somewhat-vacated outlet mall, where the Mikasa used to be. I'm especially fond of her caramel and chocolate layer cakes (which they do sell by the half-cake).

[bmorecupcake]

Actually, I'm pretty sure that's a different Cynthia. "My" Cynthia used to live in Fells Point, but I believe she has now moved to the Belair-ish area. She bakes out of her home, but she has been very professional every time I order from her. You can reach her at: 410-676-1485.

[Denise]

THAT Cynthia is now providing pastries to the Open Door Cafe in Bel Air.

http://www.open-door-cafe.com/

[giftednotions]

I think you mean Caroline's Cupcakes. I agree--they have great cakes and cupcakes! Have you tried the "take it away gourmet side of the business? I haven't,but the menu looks pretty good.

[aussiewonder]

Well I'm confused. If you are BCC and not BBC (? which I'm not sure what that even is) and you believe your cupcakes are indeed overrated and we're "better off with a duncan hines cake mix and frosting" why are you in business? Surely you would have faith in your own product and not be pushing CCC or anyones else? As a general rule why support someone who won't even support themselves? Or did i miss something here?...

[viperlush]

I think she was trying to say that since her name is bmorecupcake that she is the resident expert of cupcakes in baltimore :)

[aussiewonder]

gotcha, bc it didn't make good biz sense if she's the proprietor! and w/ a name like that, she really could be!

[pigtowner]

Wow - I just went back to BCC last Friday and loved the cupcake I got (key lime flavor), it was so much better than any cupcakes I had when it first opened. I was just going to post about how much better it had gotten.

The owner is very nice - I've met her before and I really doubt that she would say anything like that to a customer. And besides, they've opened a new store (somewhere south of the city I think) and I think she's there most of the time.

[Antonio Montana]

i'm curious who told her that, the owner, or an hourly employee. if it was the owner, they really need to check themselves as far as their customer service skills. i'm betting it was the latter, though.

[lulubijou]

wow, dwbengals, were we at the same bbq? i just had bcc cupcakes at a bbq and they looked great but were terrible. really dry, and the frosting had no flavor except hyper sweetness.

[jrl2929]

I just went in yesterday to check out what they had and at 3 p.m., they were almost out of all flavors. I went in frequently when they first opened and the cupcakes have definitely gotten smaller since they first opened and they aren't nearly as good as they used to be. It's a shame because it's a great concept. I'm sorry to hear that they didn't appreciate the business you were sending them.

[aussiewonder]

i confer. i've always found the icing to be far too sweet for my tooth. Is BCC the only cupcake proveyeur in Balto? Does anyone know of another?

[charmedgirl]

There's also Charm City Cupcakes. I tried some of their offerings at Taste of Baltimore last year and found them to be superior to BCC. Not the bestest ever, but quite good. I don't think they have a store front yet (though back in October they said one was coming); they operate out of the old Women's Industrial Exchange. But I do think you can buy their cupcakes at the cafe that's above the WIE.

[sweetpotater]

The owner is NOT friendly, I can say from several experiences.

[MDicecreamguy]

I went to BCC a few months ago...was EXTREMELY disappointed. The cupcake cost about $2 and was sooo dry. It seemed like they only had a dozen or so cupcakes for sale....lots of gifts and stuff. I don't get it.