The Hummingbird Bakery currently has three stores in London hot-spots and somehow I'd missed the opening of their stores, so when they announced a special re-opening this week of their re-furbished Old Bromptom Road bakery with lots of cupcakes and an abundance of champagne, I was excited.
Despite appearances of constantly being in the middle of making some form of cake, I've never been that big a fan of buying cupcakes. The joy of baking your own cakes is that if it tastes terrible it's easy to pass of as part of the learning process, or just a jolly good bonding experience as you hurl batter down your front. Bakeries, meanwhile, I regard as full of beautiful cake that never quite lives up to how it looks.
This week, I have been proved wrong. Not only are the Hummingbird Bakery's stores, gorgeous - with windows that make me feel a bit like Charlie Bucket staring up, the store's a little mix of quaint, with pastel pink retro tiles - but the cake tastes awesome too. The specialty we loved were red velvet cupcakes. Everyone seemed to love these the most. They're traditionally something I associate with America, and Tarek Malouf and team they pull off the classic recipe in a strange lightweight, yet moist softness you often find missing in a lot of cupcakeries.
"There's no cupcake in the world like a Hummingbird cupcake," says a happy customer's review, and I'm unlikely to disagree.
It's obviously a trendy thing I've been missing out on because as we headed out, taking our goodybag of cake to meet (read: idly show off) to friends, a few Londites all pointed and declared undying love for the shop.
Cost-wise, they're surprisingly not too outrageous given how delicious they are. Announcing this shouldn't be a rarity, but after too many mediocre cupcakes it's brilliant to be able to recommend something that's genuinely good: cakes with substance! They make a break from cakes solely functioning as some fashion accessory and these taste like someone who loves cake has made them. They also sell glasses of milk, which is simply lovely.
The Hummingbird Bakery has a wonderful book with a giant mix of beautiful cakes, filled with beautiful photos. I'd be tempted to make my own but I'd be more temped to pop into the store, just to have a look mind you.. But finally, a way to eat cakes that are as tasty as they look!
All photos © BitchBuzz.com