Reviewing TLC's "DC Cupcakes" in the Nation's Capitol

On Friday, July 16th, TLC debuts its new six part reality TV show about the booming Georgetown cupcakery. The trendy DC hot spot is always bustling with activity. It certainly makes for good TV, but is it any more impressive than the other DC cupcakeries that don't have a 30 minute wait?

Georgetown Cupcake was opened by sisters, Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, and while their success is definitely impressive, their quaint M street locale ultimately falls short of it. Perhaps I'm biased by the fact that I think the cupcake craze is terribly overrated. Maybe it's because cupcakes are something Betty Crocker has bestowed upon all of us the ability to make in large quantities. Even still, I've been impressed by a few of the overpriced treats here and there.

So I had high hopes for the famed Georgetown Cupcake and I was even willing to wait in a line that wrapped around the block. The place can't be faulted for its own popularity and despite the fact that it was annoying having to wait, it does run pretty smoothly. Employees are outside with menus that include the cupcakes of the day and detailed descriptions of each one. Another neat business tactic they employ is using their Twitter to announce the secret flavor of the day. If you ask for it by name, you get it for free. However, they only give away 100 of them, and considering they probably get about 100 customers every 15 minutes, it doesn't last very long.

When you finally get inside, everything looks scrumptious. Though they boast a large array of interesting flavors, it seemed like everything they had was some variation of vanilla or chocolate or a combination of the two. I went with a Chocolate2 cupcake which is described as a valrhona chocolate cupcake with a whipped callebaut chocolate frosting topped with a fondant flower. It was extremely rich and a tad bitter for my taste and the tiny flower was the best part.

The cupcake wasn't anything you couldn't find over at Hello Cupcake in Dupont Circle or Red Velvet Cupcakery in Penn Quarter. So if you're itching for a sweet treat, make a quick trip to one of those less popular venues. The experience will be about the same without having to wait in line.

With the premiere of the show, the cupcakery is only going to get more popular and less worth visiting as a result. If you absolutely must go, going on a weekday in the middle of the day is likely to be less of a timekiller than any other time they are open. Evenings and weekends are the absolute worst. If it weren't for the fact that I'm definitely going back for a Salted Caramel cupcake, I would proclaim that they would never see me there again. What can I say? I'll try anything twice.