Given the extensive itinerary that Destination D.C. cooked up for the culinary tour, I added only two supplemental destinations to the list: 2 Amys and Georgetown Cupcakes. An impromptu meal at the city’s best pizzeria went off without a hitch, while grabbing a cupcake proved to be far more difficult. Who would have thought?
Following our meal at 2 Amys, my cousin Kristine and I hopped a bus traveling down Wisconsin Avenue to make our way to Georgetown. As we approached the famed bakery, we spied a line stretching outside its doors and well around the block. I’m certain that a series of unsavory words escaped my lips while gawking at the madness.
We approached the person at the very front of the line to inquire about the wait time and were told an hour and a half. I was curious to taste a cupcake that supposedly rivaled Sprinkles, but could not muster enough gusto, guts, and patience to endure such a lengthy line. So, off we went to Baked & Wired.
Baked & Wired is strategically located up the street from Georgetown Cupcakes and has attracted a steady following including Kristine’s roommate and one of the locals on the press trip. Both parties vouched that its wares were superior to Georgetown’s.
Instead of a traditional bakery case, Baked & Wired displayed all of its cupcakes underneath glass containers labeled with hand-drawn name tags. Of the two cupcakes that we ordered this afternoon, the “Smurfette” was my favorite. It entailed fresh blueberries baked into vanilla cake and topped with lemon buttercream. The seasonal creation was superbly moist and tasted like a blueberry muffin with a rich and lemony lift.
What’s unique about Baked & Wired’s cupcakes is their height. Swathed in parchment paper, each cupcake is just a little taller and skinnier than average.
Our second cupcake, “Teresa’s Birthday Cake,” consisted of chocolate cake topped with maple buttercream. By the way, Teresa is the name of the baker for whom the original cake was made for. This cupcake had all the makings of a superstar, but the heart of the matter turned out to be unforgivably dry. The maple buttercream was unfortunately not sensational enough to compensate for the sub-par cake.
Baked & Wired offered a fine diversion this afternoon, but was not as fetching as I had expected. Will someone please FedEx me a Georgetown Cupcake? The suspense is killing me.
—
Baked & Wired
1052 Thomas Jefferson Street NW
Washington, DC 20007-3813
Phone: 202-333-2500
smurfette sounds so good! now i’m dying to know what all the hype is around Georgetown, if you get mailed a cupcakes save me a bite will you 🙂
Oh my gosh! I can’t believe that line! When I went a couple years ago we only had to wait about 10 or so minutes — if that! I actually have a picture of the line on my blog. The red velvet was very good. Probably the best I’ve ever had actually! Though I still like Sprinkles and SusieCakes too. 🙂 I think Georgetown does ship their cupcakes but I’m sure it would be pretty pricey to order them.
Some unsavory words, eh? Long lines can make us do that! Too bad about the Georgetown cupcakes, I want to check them out too sometime… it’s Greek sister owned! Now you make me want cupcakes. I will have to check out Portland’s supply.
my cousin works at a boutique across the street from Gtown cupcakes and everytime i’ve been to visit her, the lines have been that obnoxious, no matter what time i’m there…
i’ve yet to taste their offerings. your trip to baked & wired sounds lovely tho.
I’m not a cupcake person but the cupcakes at Georgetown are better than Baked and Wired’s. I have gotten undercooked cupcakes from Georgetown on a couple of occasions. Since their TV debut the line has gotten insane.
Have you tried Georgetown cupcake yet? I’d be willing to send you some!
Georgetown Cupcake has a long line because their cupcakes are fine – certainly fine, but nothing exceptional – and they have a super-savvy press campaign and national TV coverage. Georgetown Cupcake cakes are pretty but they are very small and topped with a huge amount of frosting. The cake itself at G.C. is spongy and light; the frosting is very fluffy. The flavors are often interesting but never strong. I’ve found Georgetown Cupcake’s cake texture to be wildly inconsistent – some dry, some damp. If you like delicate, light, airy things then you will like Georgetown Cupcake. G.C. also has a location in Bethesda that seldom has a line out the door. Personally, I absolutely prefer Baked and Wired because I like flavorful, moist, dense cupcakes with sweet frosting. Baked & Wired cupcakes are richer, bigger, and much sweeter, plus the shop has comfortable seating, shorter lines, and a good coffee shop – hence the “wired” part of “baked & wired.” Even the feel of the shop is different: Baked and Wired has a funky neighborhood coffee-house vibe, while G.C. is all white and pastel with big glass show windows and just a few uncomfortable chairs. It’s very strange and unfortunate that your Baked & Wired cupcake was dry. I’ve never had a dry one there but maybe that just goes to show that even the best shop can mess up every once in a while. One of my best girlfriends has a cupcake blog and I’m always happy to go along so we’ve visited pretty much every DC cupcake shop multiple times by now. It’s a wonder we’re not both as big as elephants. (Incidentally, before G.C. became so well-known, CakeLove was all the rage in DC.)
I know I’m uber late, but do I still need to send a box of cupcakes?
Um, yes! I still haven’t tried Georgetown Cupcakes 🙁 TBH, there’s one in L.A. Just haven’t gotten there.