Monmouth County Cupcake Manhunt - Ye Olde Pie Shoppe

I recently posted about my fixation with cupcakes and was on the lookout for cupcake bakeries in Monmouth County. While I haven't yet come across a cupcake-specific bakery, I have sampled some yummy cupcakes at general bakeries along the way.

Here is my first installment in the Monmouth County Cupcake Manhunt.

Location #1 - Ye Olde Pie Shoppe

I've been frequenting the bakery for years. I used to live in Little Silver, right across from this bakery, and my parents still live there. Needless to say we've purchased many pies and cakes from here for many different occasions.

On this particular day, for my cupcake manhunt, I purchased 4 different cupcakes on my son's 2nd birthday.

Here we have, from top left to right, a Cream Dream (chocolate cake with a layer of glazed ice with whipped cream and topped with chocolate chips), a Black Beauty (chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting), and 2 Original Vanilla (1 vanilla cake with chocolate fudge icing and 1 vanilla cake with white buttercream icing).

The 2 Original Vanilla cupcakes were nothing better than any supermarket-purchased cupcakes. Very sweet frosting and average yellow cake. Not bad, very nice taste, but nothing spectacular either.

I was incredibly excited to taste the Black Beauty because, a. I love chocolate, and b. I love cream cheese frosting. I hate to say it, but this cupcake was a big letdown. There was something not good about the cream cheese frosting. Maybe not sweet enough. It just didn't work for me.

The most delicious cupcake was the Cream Dream - to die for!! Love, love, love this cupcake. I can still taste it. Any chocolate lover will absolutely love this cupcake.

Overall, I paid $13 for 4 cupcakes and thoroughly enjoyed only one. Pretty expensive and only mildly overjoyed.