Poshdeluxe

recently, posh deluxe and several other Food Operatives decided to investigate a new culinary development near the UT campus. this mission was so vital, in fact, that it required a team of SEVEN extensively trained, highly skilled agents.

i’m talking, of course, about the new cupcake shop in austin, polkadots.

i think it’s obvious by now to everyone that reads this blog that i have a v. passionate (some might say obsessive) relationship with cupcakes. therefore, i considered it my duty to investigate this new source of tasty business and then share the results of my mission with you, because OBVIOUSLY you need this type of research in order to go on with eating cupcakes, i.e. living yr life. given the importance of this investigation, i want to provide you with as much information as possible, so i have posted full reports below from all of the agents on my team.

i’m incredibly thankful for this talented group of operatives, because i discovered that polkadots offers WAY too much deliciousness for one person to handle.

exhibit A: my bailey’s irish cream cupcake and a carton of wholesome milk.

and now, agents, let us proceed with the deliciousness debriefing!

the posh report:

ok, first off, i’ll admit that i’m not a huge frosting fan (except when it comes to fudge or cream cheese. NOM). so the frosting, while light and soft and NOTHING like that sugary grocery store crap, was a little too much for me. i think most people would enjoy it, though, esp. cos the delicious scent of bailey’s wafted from the airy folds of frosting. the cake itself was EXCELLENT– moist, cake-y and full of tasty irish cream flavor. most of all, it wasn’t *too* sweet, which is one of my Major Cupcake Rules. this cupcake + ice cold milk + a porch + a sunny afternoon = best way to gain calories ever.

the selina report:

my pumpkin cupcake was deeelish! The pumpkin had a good touch of spice to it and was super moist! The cream cheese frosting perfectly complimented the flavor of the pumpkin, was a good amount in proportion to the cake, and wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet…just the way I like it.

the erica g. report:

When I go to a new place I always get the standards so that I can easily compare (much easier to compare apples to apples). I went with the classic vanilla cake with chocolate icing. Polkadots put their own twist on the cupcake by adding the chocolate crumb topping and two gummy worms to give it the ‘mud’ look, and it really worked out. The vanilla cake had the perfect amount of moistness that is necessary in a cupcake, not too dry. The icing was a nice smooth consistency, not overly sugary but of the right creaminess texture. The chocolate crumbs on top just added that extra chocolate zest that I didn’t even know I needed. The gummy worms were a delicious surprise at the end of a perfect cupcake. Outstanding job Polkadots!!

the erica f. report:

Not surprisingly to those who know me and my lack of decision-making skills, I had a hard time deciding on which cupcake to try because they all sounded so yummy. I decided on Triple Chocolate because there was only one left, so it seemed like a sign from the cupcake gods just for me. When I got it, I hoped that triple chocolate meant that there was a special chocolatey surprise in the middle, but then when I looked more closely I realized that the three chocolates were probably the cupcake, the frosting, and the decorations on top. I was okay with that. Once I took a bite, though, I realized that it should have been called Quadruple Chocolate, because there was indeed a dense, dark, gooey chocolate center! And it was delicious.

the teresa report:

The coconut cupcake was delightful with some toasted goodness on top.  The strawberry icing was the kind that you would love as a child, but maybe not so much as an adult.  Regardless, the extra spongy cake made you want to say “heaven” outloud.  Would I eat another one?  Yes?  Do I want to try them all?  Of course.

the amber report:

For a gal that’s really not into sweets (gasp, yes we do exist) the yummy cinnamon cupcake from Polkdots was enough to sway me. Though the cinnamon cupcake lacks a ‘fru-fru’ and colorful exterior, its soft, moist and cinnamony taste has me craving more! Polkdots has made a believer out of me.

the hilary report:

My lemon cupcake’s icing was airy and had just a hint of sweet-tart lemony flavor. It successfully avoided that revoltingly crusty and sugary consistency that grocery-store cupcake icing has. Quality, people. Quality. Overall, my cupcake was tasty, but what really makes Polkadots a stand-out is the story of its owner (I’m counting on Sarah to cover the details of the human-interest angle) and the unique and independent flavor behind the business itself.

thank you, agents, for yr excellent detective work and analyzation. you have saved countless lives from death by lack of good cupcakes.

as hilary mentioned, the lovely owner of polkadots came out to the porch to introduce herself. here’s a shot of her and her husband:

don’t you want to buy cupcakes from them? yes, yes you do.

apparently, we were the largest group thus far to grace the porch of polkadots, so the owner lady (i have sadly forgotten her name, lost in the mist of a sugar haze) brought us some free cookies. agents don’t accept bribes, obviously, but we ate them in the name of Research (our academic conclusion? YUM).

she then proceeded to tell us, in the most earnest, charming way possible, that polkadots represented the achievement of her life’s dream! she graduated from UT a few years ago with a degree in engineering, worked for a while and then decided to risk it all by taking some culinary classes then opening up her own cupcake cafe.

i don’t think i have to tell you that she totally had the right crowd for this kind of story. all of us listened with rapt attention, nodding and smiling and throwing in the occasional, “you are AMAZING!” by the end, i felt like this woman was the commencement speaker for our graduation from Dream College.

based on the careful investigation of myself and my highly professional team of agents, i urge each and every one of you in the austin area to give polkadots a try. not only will you be rewarded with some tasty business in yr tummy, you will also be supporting one v. lovely lady’s dream!!! it’s like, the best of both worlds!! deliciousness and the human struggle for meaning!

and don’t worry about thanking us. this is what we do, because we’re professionals.

LINKS

the new harry potter movie (EEEEE) apparently has some “trainspotting” moments. uh… did i skip a page in the book?

and, in more HP scandal, ginny weasley is dating shia labeouf?!! WHAAA? there is *obviously* some kind of potion involved…

i now present to you, the best barbie i have ever seen. hint: if mattel makes a barbie version of this movie, I AM WATCHING THE PANTS OUT OF IT.

i remember, as a kid, discovering that the live action “alice in wonderland” TV movie was actually the most terrifying thing i’d ever seen (possibly inspiring my most fearsome nightmare, the trembling pig lady). now i realize that i had every right to be scared out of my pants.

vulture’s undertaken the vital task of uncovering the Big Hit Song of the Summer, a.k.a. “the next umbrella.” so far, i’m totally voting for estelle. have you guys heard her whole album? totes my summer jam.

then again, i just heard this HUEY LEWIS (yes, for REAL) song for “pineapple express” and, oh man, it’s awesome.

you know how the shuffle function on yr ipod or itunes doesn’t really, like, work? well, NPR asked a mathematician (with a charming accent!) to explain how “random” isn’t actually ever random.

as if our government’s torture methods weren’t bad enough, now we find out that they were totally plagiarized! gah! we can’t even be original in our methods of inflicting pain!

fashion week continues with the fabulousness known as christian lacroix.

future sarah gift ideas to be found here (thanks, randy!).