Buttercup Bake Shop Inc

The sister bakery of the world-famous Magnolia Bakery, this is the much more relaxed, less complicated half. No waiting in ridiculous lines and dealing with harried staff for the very same treats and nearly the same menu. I'm not sure why this isn't as heavily trafficked as Magnolia, perhaps it's the location in Midtown East, far from the appeal of the "Village". Or perhaps it's Magnolia's iconic status appointed by its cameos on "Sex and the City" and "Saturday Night Live". Not that I'm complaining - I've transferred to Buttercup with my love of their cupcakes (of course) and their out-of-this-world banana pudding - made up of real bananas, nilla wafers, and the pudding. As someone who remembers being able to sit down in Magnolia with a slice of their cheesecake, before they removed all seating to accommodate the hordes, I'm gladly chilling at Buttercup. There, I'm eating the same cupcake that someone else is enjoying downtown, standing in the freezing cold of Bleecker Street. more

Look, I am a fan of the cupcake in general and there are MANY good cupcakes in New York (including the ones I can make in my house when I am not being lazy or want to prevent myself from eating a whole batch). What I like about Buttercup: the friendly staff, the little cafe tables that I sit at with my coffee-cupcake-book combination and the BANANA PUDDING. (Oh, and I used to live in the neighborhood, so it was convenient.) The pudding will knock your socks off. It is so darn good you might find yourself craving it. I am not even a huge pudding person, but the combination of creamy goodness & 'nilla wafers is too much to resist. more

but the cupcakes are overrated. the worst part is i read an article about the owner/founder of this shop in ny magazine and listening to her you'd think she invented the cupcake. and she brags about how good the profit margins are in this stuff. worst part is i've mixed up dunkin hines mixes that i swear taste better. that said, if my room got filled with their banana pudding and i had to eat my way out i'd be psyched more

buttercup is ok. i live in the neighborhood, but i wish i lived in the west village. they have alot of overlap with magnolia but not as much variety as i would like. theres a ton of cupcakes but i find them dry. the trifle and banana pudding are world class but i'd be nice if they chucked some peanut butter pie or icebox cakes out there once in a while too... more

i discovered this place when a friend brought these treats to a dinner party and have been addicted to their vanilla cupcakes heaped with icing ever since. my mouth is watering just writing the review. if you get a chance -- go after 6:00 pm for half price deals on their muffins. you can eat your treat in with coffee too! more

the cup cakes are to die for. it really doesn't matter which flavor cupcake you purchase as they are all amazing. The frosting actually tastes the same despite it being chocolate, vanilla, or whatever. the biggest differentiatign characteristic is the cake, which is either vanilla or chocolate. hgot and get a box. they rule. the bannana pudding is good too!! more