Magnolia Bakery

Having been featured in Sex and the City, Saturday Night Live, and The Devil Wears Prada, I'd been hungering  to go to this bakery long before I ever came to the City. So, of course, the first place I drug my husband to when we first got to Manhattan was the deliciously charming Magnolia Bakery. And I was delightfully pleased and even more impressed than I had imagined. Walking through the front door is like taking a step back in time. The vintage decor is reminder of a 1950's inspired kitchen, with antique lace curtains, old-fashioned Kitchen Aid mixers, and the wafting smells of good old-fashioned homemade baked goods. Opening in the summer of 1996 on a corner in Greenwich Village, this famous bakery began as a cozy little place to grab a cup of coffee and a sweet little snack. Today it is a full service bakery offering freshly made, hand crafted desserts including cakes, pies, pudding, brownies and bars, cookies, mini cheesecakes (the red velvet one is to die for), and even breakfast goods. But they are famously known for their cupcakes which are made from scratch in small batches from only the very finest of ingredients. And they frost them right in front of you in an amazing technique that looks as if it would take years to master. Magnolia Bakery has come a long way in a short amount of time without losing a beat of what makes it a stand-out old-time bakery. Since their first opening they have currently opened 5 more locations: 3 more in NYC, 1 in L.A. and 1 in Dubai. And it has become an iconic place for tourists to stop, lining up down the sidewalks waiting for a taste of their signature cupcakes. The NYC locations include the original one in Greenwich, one in the Upper West Side, Rockefeller Center, and Grand Central Terminal. I personally  have gone to each one of them, as I cannot resist walking by without stopping in for a cupcake. Whether you like chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, or something unique, you have to taste one of these because I promise you it can't be beat!