Oakleaf Cakes Bake Shop
My quest for the best cupcake in Boston continued this week at Oakleaf Cakes Bake Shop downtown.
My sister came with me on my expedition. We tried the seasonal pumpkin spice cupcake with maple buttercream (I can’t resist the call of pumpkin!) and a traditional red velvet cupcake.
some of the treats available at Oakleaf Cakes
They were festively decorated with a little fondant pumpkin on top of the pumpkin spice cupcake and a spider web drawn in chocolate on the red velvet cupcake.
pumpkin spice cupcake
My first bite of the pumpkin spice cake was great. The cake had a punch of pumpkin and spice flavors with the maple prominent in the frosting. The frosting was very light and fluffy, and although I liked the maple flavor, I’m just not a huge fan of buttercream.
red velvet cupcake
The red velvet cupcake was a disappointment. The cake was dry and very crumbly. The cream cheese frosting had decent flavor, but was not as soft as the frosting on the pumpkin spice cupcake. Granted, they are different types of frosting, but I love cream cheese frosting and I make it often. It can be better. Red velvet is one of my favorite cupcake flavors, but I won’t be looking to Oakleaf for my fix in the future.
One thing I do like about Oakleaf is that they make everything from scratch on site. That’s quite an accomplishment, especially the way things are today when so many places get product shipped in, and it is something I appreciate as a consumer. I want something unique and that homemade touch can bring things to another level.
Oakleaf also does some pretty cool custom cakes. Some of the designs are displayed in the front window and around the store.
Custom cakes displayed in the window
The atmosphere inside is nice, with a few small tables around in front of the pastry case and coffee bar. Oakleaf Cakes also offers cake-decorating classes.
Overall, Oakleaf Cakes fell short for me. There is no shortage of bakeries in Boston, so my search will continue.
Photos by Jessica McWeeney.
jess writes 