Review: More Cupcakes
By Anthony Todd in Food on Jul 7, 2009 6:00PM
As the number of fancy cupcake bakeries in the city grows ever larger, it gets harder and harder for new places to distinguish themselves. Innovative flavors, eye-catching designs and unique (or controversial, if you prefer) ingredients go a long way towards setting More Cupcakes apart from the crowd, and some of their offerings are a smashing success. Unfortunately, an often mediocre quality, unpleasant staff and high prices give us pause.
More Cupcakes is about as centrally located as a store can be, right off North Michigan and steps from 900 North and other shopping destinations. Located in the midst of high fashion boutiques and expensive apartments, their surroundings seem to have gone to their heads. On three separate visits, staff seemed bored, annoyed to serve us or just plain snobby. Not what you want when you're thinking of buying a $5 cupcake. We understand waiting behind customers who have placed special orders, but when employees seem angry that you aren't buying 50 cupcakes for a party, a business needs to rethink its customer service.
From the street, large racks of cupcakes beckon, topped with beautiful frostings and garnishes. On paper, More offers some of the most interesting flavors we have ever seen - who could say no to Salted Caramel, Cuba Libre, Chocolate Champagne, Strawberry Rhubarb and S'more? The cupcakes are topped with thick slabs of icing, rather than the pointed, piped tops of a more traditional cupcake. Unfortunately, the icing was often the best part, as the cake was dense and uninspiring in flavor - we understand using the same cake batter for many different flavors, but it should at least be good. Fillings were sometimes decadently wonderful (marshmallow creme for the S'more) and sometimes confusing and flavorless (some kind of dark gelée, possibly cola flavored, for the Cuba Libre)
The one thing at More we can unreservedly endorse is their line of savory cupcakes. This is what sets them apart from the competition, and all were excellent. Try the Bacon Maple, White Truffle Cheddar or Peach Bacon BBQ, all sure to make you swoon. Don't bother with the much-publicized Foie Gras cupcakes - while they are tasty and novel, they're not worth the price. In fact, beware of the prices on all savory cupcakes, which range from $4.25 - $5.25.
All in all, we'd say More might be worth a visit. Consider ordering your cupcakes in advance (they have an online form), order savory and specialty cupcakes, and avoid anything sweet or meant to resemble a cocktail. Stick to the things that no other cupcake store can do, or you'll find yourself wishing that you had better, rather than just More.
More Cupcakes is located at 1 E. Delaware Place.