Boston Restaurant Talk reports the Somerville cupcakery has closed.
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Boston Restaurant Talk reports the Somerville cupcakery has closed.
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Who would've guessed that $36
By tcf098
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:34pm
Who would've guessed that $36 for a dozen cupcakes wouldn't be a sustainable business model.
Its been around for seven
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:42pm
Its been around for seven years, more than most businesses, especially food service ones. I know they made the terrible mistake of not catering to your desires.
Yeah
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:48pm
But they were kickass cupcakes, not just any old cupcake.
I think that too-high expectations were part of the problem.
By Sally
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:05pm
I went once. They were perfectly fine but they did not kick my ass in any way, shape or form.
I Went Twice
By APB
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:33pm
and both times they tasted more like dry muffins than cupcakes. And they came with a ton of attitude, too.
Exactly
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 10:10pm
One of my friends had a Kickass Wedding Cupcake Tree. They were small, dry, and flavorless, and disabused me completely of any idea of having cupcakes at my own wedding. (Party Favors cake FTW.)
Nooooo, my Godsmack Day wish
By gotdatwmd
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:36pm
Nooooo, my Godsmack Day wish for the FROZEN YOGURT places to start closing, not the cupcakeries!
Why, sure...
By lbb
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 3:17pm
Why, sure...
...in seven years. Seriously, they're just getting going with the oversaturation. Give 'em time to fail spectacularly.
Do they still have the truck?
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:40pm
I haven't seen it in Dewey Square lately.
That said, I didn't like their cupcakes and would rather walk to Cakeology on Washington Street to get fancy birthday treats for my family. No cheaper, we all just liked them better. As for the price, well, check out cake prices for cakes that serve six or twelve, and compare to buying a half dozen or a dozen cupcakes.
Lulu's on Salem Street is pretty wonderful, too.
Unfortunately I think
By Julia
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:51pm
Unfortunately I think Cakeology has closed as well - the store on Washington has been empty for over a month!
Sadly, Cakeology is no more
By Emily
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:23pm
Sadly, Cakeology is no more :o(
Y'all beat me to it
By Stevil
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:35pm
http://boston.eater.com/archives/2014/06/23/cakeol...
Damn!
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:42pm
Sad to see it. Must be a massive cupcake bust!
We'll always have ice cream ...
Yes
By SilverAeroGuy
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 9:03pm
Because ice cream is such a great New England business model.
Feast then famine.
Well
By ynckay
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 10:06pm
Ben and Jerry's and Baskin Robbins seem to be doing pretty well...
And that JP Licks place seems to stagger along...
By Sally
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 10:51pm
New Englanders have never had any trouble eating ice cream all winter.
its called denial.. we are
By Ha Ha
Mon, 08/11/2014 - 10:33am
its called denial.. we are good at that.
NE ice cream consumption
By merlinmurph
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 7:50am
According to Wikipedia:
.
Lulu's is good
By Neal
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:56pm
And I think they have a more sustainable business model: not just cupcakes. They make ice cream, and I think, sell candy, coffee and maybe other pastries...
Yet another fad
By MassMouse
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:44pm
I knew this cupcake thing wouldn't last more than a few years. AND GET OFF MY LAWN!
eh, still in full roll
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:00pm
Monumental Cupcakes here in JP seems to be doing alright, although their hours are pretty stupid - they close around 6-7. Way to miss out on the post-dinner dessert crowd who don't want ice cream...
Well,
By whyaduck
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 3:46pm
it sounds like they were not "kickass" enough, I guess.
First Crumbs, now Kickass...when will it all end!?
Cakeology too
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:21pm
Cakeology too
Don't forget Todd English's place
By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:36pm
On Beacon Hill named after his daughter.
Thats gone too.
But then again, pretty much all his restaurants in the city have closed.
The Todd English cupcake place closing might be due to
By MC Slim JB
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 5:18pm
his latching onto a fad well after its peak. The simpler, likelier explanation is that Deadbeat Todd has run out of fools in Boston who will extend him credit. Where's that promised "shiny new location" of Olives, again?
Curly Cakes
By APB
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:40pm
is now a "Sweet." They seem to be doing very well with just cupcakes.
Keep your pants on....
By a-non-e-nonny
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:16pm
Donuts are the new cupcake, cupcake.
Donuts are still donuts
By Stevil
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:36pm
But I've seen evidence there's an emerging whoopee pie biz
My God
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:50pm
I love woopie pies. Ditto black&white half moon cookies. But I wouldn't pay 36 bucks for a dozen of them.
Ironically enough, I saw guys
By anon_wd
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 5:09pm
Ironically enough, I saw guys painting the soon-to-be Union Square Donuts as I was making my way through Union Sq. this afternoon
I surely hope so. I much
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 6:16pm
I surely hope so. I much prefer donuts to cupcakes.
So the Sex and the City inspired craze
By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:35pm
Has finally run its course?
It took longer than I thought.
I've never understood the SATC connection
By Sally
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 10:53pm
Did I miss a string of episodes where they ate cupcakes? I think I remember one lunch at Magnolia or something but cupcakes as a running theme, like the gd Cosmopolitans?
Magnolia Bakery in NYC is
By anon
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 1:10am
Magnolia Bakery in NYC is pretty much credited with starting the cupcake thing back in the 90s. Sex in the city had a scene I think in the restaurant. The tour buses started showing up at the bakery and after that the lines started growing. Next thing the whole country went cupcake crazy. Sex and the city pretty much put the bakery on the map.
No. The cupcake fad hasn't
By anon
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 9:34am
No. The cupcake fad hasn't run its course... there is often a line nearly out the door at Georgetown Cupcake on Newbury. Tourists LOVE that place. Personally, I prefer the locally-owned Sweet. One last note, Sex And The City is fantastic: excellent witty writing and strong female characters. Miss that show.
There are still people that
By anon
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 12:56pm
There are still people that play with a rubiks cube, wear leg warmers, collect beanie babies, wear the "The Rachel" and listen to Nora Jones.
When 75% of the cupcake shops close, and the national chain Crumbs files for bankruptcy, its safe to assume the fad is over.
Regardless of the few holdouts.
A business that catered to women
By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:40pm
That made them fat seemed like a pretty bad business model to me.
Eventually they were going to start realizing those cupcakes were a bad for their figure.
What year is this?
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:44pm
1958?
By that logic, chain-smoking would be the in thing for women, again.
What part do you disagree with?
By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:47pm
The part that only women shop there?
Or
The part that sugary pastries make you fat?
Fred, everything in
By anon
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 10:30am
Fred, everything in moderation. Haven't you learned that lesson yet? You men can't remember anything! Now put that jelly doughnut down. Your hips are looking a little wide these days!
Keep trollin, trollin,
By Rob Not Verified
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:51pm
Keep trollin, trollin, trollin...
Aside from it being a fad- I
By anon_wd
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:42pm
Aside from it being a fad- I knew they were doomed when they moved from the Davis vicinity down towards the Armory on Highland- not a tremendous amount of foot traffic down that way
They probably made most of
By Matt
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:50pm
They probably made most of their money from catering and saw retail as a loss leader. So the cheaper rent made sense when things got tight. Anyway they were good but not good enough for the price.
Name Change?
By driscj1
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:44pm
Maybe if they changed the name to Curly Cakes...no, never mind...that didn't work either
$$
By Scumquistador
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 4:53pm
guess there just aint enough dough in the cupcake business
Oh come on...
By Kaz
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 5:08pm
That was too easy. You should know batter.
The Thing about Curly Cakes...
By APB
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:31pm
It's got a lousy name. It suggests that hair is one of the ingredients.
Every time someone said "blablablah Curly Cakes...."
By a-non-e-nonny
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 9:06pm
I immediately thought "...as in Short & Curly Cakes".
Because I am footloose and classy-free!!!
Curly Cakes
By The Beer Guy
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 7:56am
Recommended by 1 of 9 Supreme Court Justices!
My fearless forecast is that
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 5:43pm
My fearless forecast is that cronuts are coming. Probably in JP by yearend; watch for the trend spotters at the Globe to have some in depth cronut stories soon.
Crumbs had Cronuts
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:20pm
Didn't save them.
Boy what a bunch of naysayers
By anon
Wed, 08/06/2014 - 7:08pm
Boy what a bunch of naysayers and monday morning quarterbacks. Places come and go. Let's give them a lot of credit for the start up and small business success they had for several years. They were on quite a roll for quite a while against the odds as people have pointed out.
Cheers and best wishes on next endeavors!
Peak Cupcake
By Ian Lamont
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 12:12am
We've seen this happen before with Krispy Kremes.
Daniels in Brighton
By The Beer Guy
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 7:57am
They have yummy cupcakes, for around a buck. Their Half Moons are the best bet, though.
No worries, Petsi Pies still kicks ass
By anon
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 9:59am
Somerville still has Petsi Pies on Beacon St. They make a variety of kick ass pastries; cupcakes, pies, crumb cakes, things with names I'm unfamiliar with. I do my laundry next door and grab a coffee and something sweet and moist while waiting for the dryer to finish, it really makes laundry day a lot more fun.
Lyndell's!
By Jaimie
Thu, 08/07/2014 - 3:23pm
Lyndell's in Somerville has amazing cupcakes, half-moons, and other various baked goods! Since they're also super reasonably priced, I never see the need to go anywhere else :)
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