Treasure in the Black Bottom

A hole in the middle where I shot straight to the good stuff

In the adorable world of cupcakes, black bottom almost always disappoints. The cake is too dry. It's not chocolaty enough. And the cream cheese -- the main reason we choose black bottom -- consists of a hard, scant blop that barely extends below the cake's surface.

But, on a stunning day in San Francisco when bare shoulders bare their pallor and you can't spot a cardigan for miles, I taste the black bottom that reminds me why I don't give up pursuing them.

Cupcake Cove is barely a shop. It has no tables or chairs, but it does have a counter and a rotating selection of standard flavors along with a few creative options like guava with passion fruit and pineapple. Those aren't available today, and I'm not in the mood for frosting anyway. With my dark (horse) choice boxed in one of those molded plastic cupcake containers that are ubiquitous at cupcake shops, I head outside to taste.

I plunge my fork through the center intending to scoop all the cream cheese filling in one bite, but to my shock, there's too much for one bite. There's too much for two bites.  Not only is the cream cheese plentiful, but it's actually creamy.  Pierced with chocolate chips, the filling rubs against a layer of under-baked pudding-ish cake.  The top is a little overcooked, but the rest is moist. I don't really care about the cake, though. I only want the bottom -- the cream cheese -- an excellent version that like a hot day in San Francisco, is as rare as it is rewarding.


Cupcake Cove
200 Pine Street (Battery and Sansome)
4157729942