Gray A.
Yelp
This place is so lovely.
The other day one of my co-workers was lamenting the travails of planning for another co-worker's birthday, as she is unable to eat gluten (like, the real kind of not being able to eat gluten, the kind where your body will mutiny if you do -- think Celiac disease, not 2015 trend) and it has been difficult to find well-made cupcakes in the city that also happen to be free of gluten. During this conversation, my colleague just very casually mentioned "the bakery on 12th Street" and then continued on with the rest of her sentence, as if that were an okay thing to do, and hold up, wait, stop. I waved my hands around and said, "Wait, wait, wait... There's a bakery on 12th Street?"
So naturally, the Bakers Lounge played a notable role in my next day off, because I, too, have been searching for local cupcakes that are comparable to Georgetown Cupcake in the yum factor but more -- let's say -- accessible? than Georgetown Cupcake. Early afternoon on Saturday I walked in to this chipper little place on the corner of 12th and Evarts, and I was immediately greeted by the owner. She tended to all of my annoying questions and requests very patiently and cheerfully. I ended up getting three cupcakes (coconut with buttercream frosting, vanilla with chocolate frosting, and the salted caramel one that a few other folks on here have mentioned), as well as a miniature sponge cake and a lemon bar. They were all divine. I think that the sponge cake was my ultimate favorite, although the coconut cupcake was a close runner-up. They were all so moist and flavorful without being overpoweringly sweet. Subtle and perfect.
The owner mentioned to me that she was sorry that she was unable to accommodate my colleagues' request for the custom-made gluten-free cupcakes, but that she had only very recently been successful at making a gluten-free cupcake that she was finally satisfied with, and it just so happened to be vanilla (my co-worker very specifically wanted chocolate, apparently). She explained that she did not feel comfortable yet in marketing new flavors, lest they not be perfect or up to par to our expectations. I understand, as I am sure that there's a very fine line with the nuances of how to make a good gluten-free cupcake -- certainly not something that I could accomplish! She was so nice about it, and it was very evident that she cares a lot about the quality of her desserts and her customers' satisfaction first and foremost.
It was ultimately a delicious, wonderful experience. I was almost tempted to go back today to get another sponge cake, among some other baked treats, but I didn't want her to think I was a weirdo for coming in two days in a row. Maybe I'll go tomorrow and say that my half-dozen purchased desserts are "um, for a friend." Definitely not for me to eat alone in my apartment.
