Cupcake Royale- Capitol Hill, Ballard et. al.

ome have said the Seattle area is oversaturated with adorable little cupcake bakeries. To those people I say "You are the wrongest anyone has ever been," To even suggest there are too many cupcake spots in Seattle is kind of like saying there are too many stars in the sky or too many flowers in a garden. However, this doesn't mean you cant have a favorite cupcake establishment. For me, the clear winner in this fight is Cupcake Royale. Two words friendos- Salted Carmel. Readers of this blog will come to learn that salted anything brings a smile to my face, but taking incredibly moisty chocolate cupcakes, topping them with a rich, creamy caramel frosting then dusting the tops with sea salt brings a full body "OMG this is even better than I remembered!" smile forward. Jason has called it my happy place. There are several other reasons that CR wins the cupcake war for me. 1. Easily accessible- you can be almost anywhere in Seattle and only be moments away from cupcakey goodness. 2. Superior frosting. Some cupcake joints- I'm looking at you Trophy!- believe that greasy, thin frosting is acceptable. CR does not, and uses a high quality buttercream base for most flavors. 3. Rotating flavors. You can always count on CR to have their lemons, chocolates, vanillas and red velvets in order, but the real draw is the monthly specials. In honor of Elvis's birthday they had a Banana Chocolate cupcake. For St. Patricks day it was an Irish Whiskey Maple. Yesterday, I tried their new spring flavor, Lemon Mascarpone. That was a treat- lemon cake with a lemon mascarpone cheese frosting. A ray of sunshine in an otherwise windy, wet day. Thank you Cupcake Royale, for always being there when Jason feels the need to make ammends for something!
XO,

Julia

I am not really a sweets guy, I don't "do" candy bars, fancy chocolates or desert that often. I know that's hard to believe considering that two of the first three reviews are of  dessert places, and I am way more chubby than I should be. When Noodles told me about Cupcake Royal I was like "ahh whatever" its just another niche Seattle fad. To my surprise, I have to change my mind. Other than the occasional stupid soccer mom, old lady, or super hip Seattlite (that can't choose a flavor and refuses to read the sign that tells you what the cupcake of the month is), its quick easy and worth it. The different flavors and tastyness of the cakes and sweet, sweet frosting, make all the aggravation of getting to Ballard worth it. Besides the frosting, the thing that separates them from the rest of the pack, is the cupcake itself. Unlike the competition their cakes are not so thick, that it looks like they used way too much oil, or take themselves too seriously. I really like this place. Tasty, innovative, and all in all a good time. When you hit Captiol Hill, Ballard or anywhere near Cupcake Royal's home turf give it a chance you will not be disappointed.

I feel confident in saying that if I ever get caught with three prostitutes and a pocket full of syringes, I am confident that nothing will get me back into Noodles good graces like a cupcake from Cupcake Royale. I usually choose the flavor of the month as everyone likes something new once and while.

Take it sleazy
JP.