Cupcake Chic

Where: Cupcake Chic, 727 E 1000 S, Orem

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Raspberry White Chocolate Cupcake, Coconut Mini Cupcake, Key Lime Pie Cupcake, & Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake


What It Cost: $8.09


What We Thought:

As we were on our way to see The Avengers at University Mall, I finally remembered to give this cupcake place a try! One thing I loved about Cupcake Chic was that since it is in kind of a hidden location, there was no wait and they still had tons of flavor options available. Though I still think The Cocoa Bean has my favorite cupcake, they seem to always run out of basically all of the flavors except vanilla and the "Better than Whatever" before 8 p.m. every time we go. So if you want to get a cupcake after dinner rather than before like a normal person, then Cupcake Chic is a fantastic place to go!

We ordered three cupcakes, and then I saw a little sign on their cupcake display that if you check in on Facebook, you can get a free mini cupcake! So naturally we did that, and for 3 and a half cupcakes, I think $8 is a pretty good deal here in Provo! I was pleasantly surprised at how much we actually enjoyed the cupcakes. The cupcakes are a bit more dense than other ones I've had, but I enjoyed the rich flavor and liked how it supported all of the loads of delicious frosting.

I think my favorite cupcake of all was the key lime pie cupcake - I'm a huge key lime pie fan, and this one had excellent flavor and a fun graham cracker crust on the bottom of the cupcake. We chose the coconut flavor for our free mini cupcake, which was light and scrumptious, and we also loved the little candycane in the strawberry lemonade cupcake.

What You Should Do: If you're in the mood for a cupcake and the Cocoa Bean only has vanilla left, I would definitely recommend making the quick trip up to Cupcake Chic! They have a great range of flavors, sweet and delectable frosting, great customer service, and you can even get a free mini cupcake - it really doesn't get much better than that.

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Les Madeleines Patisserie

Where: Les Madeleines Patisserie, 216 E 500 S, Salt Lake City

Who Went: Chelsey, Owen & Grandma

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Chocolate Éclair, Mango Jasmine Pâté de Fruit, Peach Charlotte, Meyer Lemon Tart, Hazelnut Buttons, Craquelin, 2 Mint Limeades


What It Cost: ~$15 for half of that...


What We Thought:


Dear Eliane Bakery,

I hate to say it, but I think I may have found a new favorite French bakery. Don't hate me, I'll still come visit you since it's all the way in Salt Lake, but they are just so cute and delicious!

My sister's roommate was getting married in Salt Lake, so after we dropped off her and my mother at the reception, we had an hour or so to kill in Salt Lake with my grandma. Where better to take her than a bakery? Nowhere, let me tell you. We got a little sampling of treats and then sat outside under the maple trees and enjoyed the lovely weather.

First up, the Peach Charlotte, which is made with peaches from the Salt Lake Farmers Market just down the road. Wow. This little fruit delight was absolutely heavenly. The light spongy cake was a little basket for a wonderful whipped and chilled peach filling. The peach flavor was so real and fresh and was absolutely divine with the soft cake exterior.

And as if that wasn't enough, we also partook of the most incredible Meyer Lemon Tart. I surely have mentioned this before, but I am a huge sucker for anything lemon flavored, and Meyer Lemons contribute this wonderfully unique and sweet lemon flavor that I. Die. For. It has a sweet and sturdy crust, and the filling tastes like real lemons, not weird pudding or something. It has a cool and creamy texture, and the meringue on time is indescribable. I love how it is lightly toasted and the whole thing together is officially my new favorite dessert.

Chocolate éclairs that actually taste like chocolate are always a favorite of ours, and this one did not disappoint. Although, of all the pastries we tried, I have to say that I think I actually prefer Eliane's chocolate éclair to this one. But there is absolutely no competition with that Meyer Lemon Tart!!

I've always been a macaron lover - the super cute double foot, the meringue-like texture, and the thin crisp crust on the exterior - and Les Madeleines does not disappoint here. These cookies are so delicate and hard to make, but I love them so much! It is hard to find a place that will sell you one for under $2, so when I saw these for $1.75 each, I had to get two. The hazelnut flavor was light and enjoyable, and they are just so dang cute...I can't help but loving them!

The craquelin was a unique buttery brioche pastry, with loads of crystalline sugar on top and a brown sugar & orange chewy center. Of all of the desserts we got, I probably would never order this one again, but Owen absolutely inhaled it, so to each his own, I guess!

We each got a refreshing fresh squeezed limeade, which was delightfully tart and a little fizzy - a perfect beverage for sitting outside and enjoying a nice spring day.

What You Should Do: You have to check it out! They have pretty limited hours - closed at 6 on most weekdays and at 4 on Saturdays, but they are absolutely worth the trip! I haven't even tried a majority of their desserts, but they each looked as amazing as the next. I think that for my birthday, I am just going to requests 5 of those little Meyer Lemon Tarts, and be happier than I can even explain. They also have a large lunch menu with a variety of sandwiches and other items, but really, how was I supposed to get something healthy with all of those cute little desserts staring me down?

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Cocoa Bean Cupcake Café

Where: Cocoa Bean Cupcake Café, 1774 N University Parkway #20, Provo

Who Went: Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 3

What We Ordered: Luscious Lemon Blueberry Cupcake, Red Velvet Cupcake, Coconut Lime Cupcake, Better than Whatever Cupcake, Madagascar Vanilla Vanilla Cupcake, Marbled Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcake

What It Cost: ~5.50

What We Thought: 

As you may have guessed, I'm not super swept away with the whole cupcake trend. I usually find them way overpriced and smaller than I hoped, and generally uninspiring. However, sometimes you are just in the mood for a little treat that is cute and a little girly. And The Cocoa Bean definitely fits the bill. Of all the cupcake places I have visited, I feel like this cupcake shop has the best prices (still expensive, but worth it), the best sizes (the cupcake actually feels substantial, not tiny), and the most original flavor options (a rotating and seasonal menu). Of all the cupcakes I've had, I think my favorite has been the lemon blueberry and coconut lime, and I have to warn you - I did not find the "Better Than Whatever" to be better than any other cupcake...in fact, it was probably my least favorite flavor I've ever had. I have yet to taste their hot chocolate or other drink options, but I would definitely recommend getting the jumbo sized cupcakes. Oh yeah.

What You Should Do: If you're in the mood for a cupcake, go here above any other place. They always have lots of different options that rotate every day, and are the best priced/sized cupcake near BYU. If you're a cupcake addict, then make sure to get a punch card, and these can make fun little birthday gifts for friends or husbands you forgot to bake a birthday cake for (not saying that this ever happened...two people shouldn't eat a whole cake anyway!) 

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The Chocolate

Where: The Chocolate, 212 S State Street, Orem

Who Went: Chelsey & some girls at a bridal shower, then Chelsey & Owen

Number of Visits: 2

What We Ordered: Kitty Katrina cake, Cazookie with half peanut butter and half white chocolate macadamia nut, Cannoli

What It Cost: $16.00

What We Thought:


We decided to check out this dessert café after it was recommended to us on our Qualtrics survey - I had been there once before for a cute little bridal shower, but it was catered just with sugar and chocolate chip cookies, so I felt like I needed to try more options to get a better perspective.

We started out with the Kitty Katrina cake - one of their most popular options with what they proclaim to have "the best buttercream" frosting ever. As we were ordering, I thought to myself that it better darn be the best frosting I've ever had, because a little slice of cake cost almost $5! You have to pay even more if you want the traditional ice cream with your cake, so I said no thanks to a $1.79 scoop of ice cream, and went for the cake straight. The cake was good, moist and full of vanilla flavor. But was it worth the heavy price tag? No way. If I'm paying almost $5 for a little dessert, it better at least fill me up or be something incredible I would never make myself. Vanilla cake that doesn't even come with ice cream? Not good enough to me.

Then we got a cazookie -- an oven-heated, slightly uncooked and gooey cookie with vanilla bean ice cream on top. We chose to get half peanut butter cookie and half white chocolate macadamia nut (also as per recommendation). Though Owen found this to be way overpoweringly sweet, I think it was actually my favorite dish of the evening. At least you felt like it was satisfying, and it was certainly large enough for two people to share. I really like gooey cookies, so this was right up my alley. The macadamia nuts in the one half were a little too big, but at least I didn't feel like they were skimping out on anything there. If I was ever to go there again, I would probably just order this for two people, and get half peanut butter and half chocolate chip.

We also got a cannoli, which was Owen's favorite. A crunchy almond-flavored pastry with ricotta and chocolate chips inside, and some smashed pistachios on the ends. It was pretty good, tasted better chilled, and at least was something unique and fun. I thought that the chocolate chips inside were a little weird and disturbed the smooth texture of the filling, but Owen was a fan.

What You Should Do: If you're out of dessert places (like we almost are!) and want to try something new, I guess you could give it a try. They do have more options than your typical dessert place, but a surprising lack of chocolate things for a place called The Chocolate...I would recommend the Cazookie to share (though the Sasquatch at Brick Oven is a little cheaper and has a brownie inside too...mmmm), otherwise your dessert option could quickly add up to the same cost as dinner! Overall a cute location but too pricey and not entirely unique.

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Sweet Tooth Fairy

Where: Sweet Tooth Fairy, 1227 S University Avenue, Provo (across the street from Provo Towncenter Mall)

Who Went: Owen & Chelsey

Number of Visits: 1

What We Ordered: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cupcake & Raspberry Lemonade Cupcake

What It Cost: $5.02

What We Thought:

Oh the popular cupcake. How fun and cute and perfectly sized. Just enough sugary happiness for one. That was my mentality when I coerced Owen into taking me to The Sweet Tooth Fairy after a particularly excruciating midterm.

When we got to the cupcake shop, there was no one inside. We waited around in the awkwardly silent shop for a few minutes until the girl running the register finally came through the back door...oh sorry to interrupt, were you eating cupcakes back there? She kind of pouted while we looked at the different cupcake options...I guess it was like 8:30 but come on lady. A little customer service would have been nice. We made our choices as quickly as we could and then decided to get them to-go because we felt awkward just eating our two cupcakes alone in that shop. The individual carrying cases for the cupcakes were hands-down the best part of the whole cupcake experience.

The cupcakes were average -- a little dry and not really that creative. My raspberry cupcake was chewy and not moist at all, though I did like the tartness of the lemon frosting and the fact that you could actually see raspberry seeds in the cupcake itself. Plus, let's be honest - I like pink. Owen's was your typical pumpkin chocolate chip with cream cheese frosting. The only problem with this was that they were also average size -- three bites and they were gone. More than 80 cents a bite? I don't know if it's worth it.

What You Should Do: Give it a try. You'll probably get a more friendly typical bubbly-cupcake-selling-BYU-girl than I did, and that really would have helped the experience. Personally, I'm more of a Cocoa Bean cupcake fan, but if you happen to be craving a sweet treat and you have lots of cash and you're near the Provo Towncenter Mall, then go and try it. I think I may go back and try some of their macarons or cookies -- I hear the black & white cookie is pretty darn awesome.