Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/68592
STORE TOUR Georgetown Cupcakes District of Cake: Washington, D.C., Bakeries BY DINA CHENEY P olitics and pastries play starring roles in our nation's capital. With a selection of sweet shops new and old, D.C. boasts everything from burgeoning chains to quirky, one-off dessert spots. At most shops, you'll find media-savvy owners; several have penned cook- books and appeared on television. Whether their businesses make baked goods bizarre, artful or just plain delicious, D.C. takes the cake. Baked & Wired: Innovative All-American Treats For a town flooded with chains, Georgetown's 11-year-old Baked & Wired truly stands apart. With its sole location, the bakery aims to "focus on quality rather than production," as noted on its website. This quality translates to a continually changing selection of innova- tive, small-batch, all-American treats. "The bakers will make a few dozen cupcakes or a batch of brownies—20 rather than 120—at a time," says manager Emily Christensen. "They're constantly making smaller batches of baked goods so the ratios are the best." Cupcakes are wrapped in wax paper, and all treats are labeled with handmade signs. 132 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE ❘ specialtyfood.com Sweets tend to be cutely named twists on classics, such as the Phig Newton Bar, which features a spiced date filling in a home- made cookie crust. Indeed, the head baker, self-taught co-owner Teresa Velaquez (who runs Baked & Wired with husband, Tony) seems most inspired when dreaming up bars as well as cupcakes, the bakery's top sellers. Consider the Unporked Elvis (banana cake with peanut butter frosting, drizzled with chocolate), Flapjack (maple brown-butter cake with maple buttercream and candied bacon), and seasonal Smurfette (vanilla cake with blueberries and lemon buttercream). Hippie Crack is the bakery's version of gra- nola, starring coconut with four types of dried fruit. PHOTO: GEORGETOWN CUPCAKES