Cupcake Quest: Starbucks

This post is part of the Cupcake Quest series on Fork it over, Boston!

Ah, the elusive Starbucks cupcake. I've spotted it on several occasions when I was not yet cupcake questing, so I never tried it. Then, when the cravings started to hit at work, my co-workers and I desperately battled crowds at our nearby Starbucks hoping to find it. It was never there.

Finally, on a Sunday morning at the Somerville Avenue Starbucks near Porter Square, there it was, looking adorable with its delicate pink frosting and tiny white sprinkles. The thing about Starbucks pastries, though, is that they always look a whole lot better than they taste. I have never found an exception to this rule.

Chocolate (coffee?) cupcake with strawberry (coffee?) frosting at Starbucks (Porter Square)

The frosting-to-cake ratio was standard and the frosting had a smooth, light texture, but the taste left something to be desired. Not only did it have a fake strawberry flavor, but it also had a hint of coffee. I'm not sure whether coffee was an intended flavor or just a side effect of being immersed in the atmosphere of the coffee shop, but strawberry and coffee just don't go well together. Strawberry and chocolate, yes. Strawberry and coffee, yuck. No.

The cake was reasonably moist, but again, a weird coffee flavor contaminated the chocolate. In many cases, that's a good flavor combination, but for some reason, this just didn't work. It tasted too chemical-like.

The Verdict: As far as I'm concerned, the elusive Starbucks cupcake can remain in hiding. If I happen to spot the red velvet version, though, I'll definitely give that a try.