Chalk Farm

May 04, 2014

I'd seen Chalk Farm in the basement of Paragon before, when it first opened shop a little over a year ago. Because I'd never really seen much traffic at the shop, I was surprised to discover that they'd sold out most of their wares by mid afternoon on a weekend. Apparently, Chalk Farm has garnered a bit of a cult following from its early days as an online retailer, and decided to open a brick-and-mortar shop.

With a gazillion cupcake shops out there, how does Chalk Farm differentiate itself, one may ask. While they may not be as quirky as Fluff Bakery, or as commercial as Twelve Cupcakes, the confections at Chalk Farm have a classic, simple and straightforward, homespun appeal. It's the single strand of south sea pearls to the diamonds and sapphires out there.

In addition to a decidedly limited range of cupcakes on sale everyday, they offer an even more decidedly limited range of cakes. But, cakes are where Chalk Farm really shines. For a complete range of their available cakes, go online to order, or else call the shop to reserve your preferred confectionery.

The Red Velvet Cupcake ($4.20) has a delicate tangy cream cheese frosted over a moist dense base. Nice but I still prefer Fluff Bakery's version.

The Macadamia & Salted Caramel Cupcake ($4.20) was outstanding. Smooth creamy salty smoky caramel over a buttery base and a whole macadamia, I loved every bit of it.

The Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Cupcake ($4.20) was unbashedly rich and sweet. Chocoholics will love this.

Ah, the piece de resistance, the Hazelnut Cake ($7 per slice) was just dreamy. A crumbly, buttery cake iced with smooth hazelnut spread and topped with a bunch of candied hazelnuts, this alone, is reason enough for me to return for more.