The crowded streets of Rockefeller Center, bustling with people in expensive suits on lunch break, surely seem a departure from Bleecker Street’s cobblestoned charm, but this scene is exactly what Magnolia Bakery needs to expand its customer base beyond Sex and the City-crazed tourists.

Magnolia Bakery opened its third location on Wednesday, Oct. 8 in Rockefeller Center. The new location carries on the bakery’s characteristic Mom’s kitchen feeling, with snow-white porcelain tiles and visible KitchenAid-mixed batter.

The cupcakes look like they came out of a cooking show. Lined up neatly on baking pans, after being individually frosted by white-apron-adorned bakers, the cupcakes themselves are almost more candy to the eye than they are to the taste buds.

Although handmade, the cake part of a classic chocolate cupcake is a little dry and bland. The various pastel-colored frostings are a delight to hard core sugar-lovers, but don’t have much to offer by way of subtlety. While these cupcakes are not life-changing, for $2.50 a piece, they are well-made, and the atmosphere of Magnolia is pleasant.

Magnolia’s clean and homey image that customers eat up as fast as the cupcakes themselves plays directly into the cupcake craze that has swept New York City in the years since the bakery’s appearance on Sex and the City. Ever since Sarah Jessica Parker first touted the tastiness of Magnolia’s frosting on homemade, bite-sized cakes, bakeries with their own take on this classic delicacy have been popping up all over Manhattan. Now, more established bakeries are looking to expand their reach by opening new stores.

The more recent—but also more eager to expand—Crumbs Bakery is in the midst of a national takeover. Starting in 2003 with a store on the Upper West Side, Crumbs now has eight locations: six in Manhattan and two in California. By the end of this year, Crumbs will have expanded to Connecticut, New Jersey, and Long Island, and by the end of next year will have 100 locations nationwide, according to Upper East Side store manager Billy Issah.

Despite this major business leap, Crumbs is dedicated to maintaining the quality of its product. All cupcakes will continue to be made on location, not mass-produced. Crumbs’ cupcakes taste a little better than Magnolia’s, and the store has a more extensive menu, relying on creativity to sell their product, with options such as the Fluffernutter Cupcake and the Turtle Cupcake. Crumbs cupcakes are also much bigger, for those looking for a real indulgence, and various options bring a combination of fillings, swirls, and sprinkles. But some brand-name-themed options such as the Twinkie and Oreo cupcakes contribute to the already unappealing corporate image of the store.

Magnolia doesn’t currently have the expansion ambition—or the funding—that Crumbs does. Owner Steven Abrams does not have any financial partners, and the new store came directly out of his pocket. But this could also be better for Magnolia’s image as a more local, Manhattan-based bakery.

With the popularity of Magnolia and Crumbs, plenty of small, independent bakeries are appearing all over the city, some with products that could define the future of the NYC cupcake scene. One of these up-and-comers is Batch Bakery in Greenwich Village, which offers a different take on the classic cupcake. With paint-splattered walls and retro chandelier lighting off used bathroom pipes, it has an edgier feel than its Mom’s kitchen counterparts, and one more in tune with the Village zeitgeist.

Batch’s cupcakes use buttercream frosting that doesn’t rely on massive amounts of sugar the way Magnolia’s frosting does, but instead has a perfect, smooth consistency. The cake part of the cupcake is much more moist than Magnolia’s slightly dry formula, and all their cupcakes are jelly-filled. Batch also offers innovative flavors such as its green tea and chocolate options, which give Crumbs’ flavors a run for their money.
For students looking to make the trek to the Village solely for a high quality cupcake, Batch is your best bet. Magnolia offers nostalgia, but Batch offers an edgy and delicious take on a classic product.

From Magnolia’s classy and classic start, to Crumbs’ corporate and candy-filled approach, to Batch’s creative and edgy alternative, New York City is teeming with options for the cupcake lover. But will demand for these mini-cakes keep the profitability of new products going for long?

“It’s something that I’ve always enjoyed,” said Pichet Ong, Batch’s owner. “It’s not a trend to me. If you look at the history of food, you can call everything a trend.”
Tomorrow, lick your lips for more cupcake-related stories.