I judge cupcakes on two criteria: (1) the quality of the frosting and (2) the moisture of the cake. Both of these factors, of course, sum up to a greater whole. It's hard to talk about the whole without dissecting it into its components. But if you don't feel like reading my whole spiel, I'll just sum up the whole in 2 words: pretty good!
I had the Oreo cupcake. 'Twas recommended by a dear friend of mine who raves about Sweet Daddy Cupcakes like every time we hang out. So there was some considerable hype going into this. Also doesn't help that Sweet Daddy cupcakes were featured on Food Network's hit show Cupcake Wars. Already the stakes are high!
So (1) the quality of the frosting. The frosting for the Oreo cupcake was actually quite delicious. It was unique in that it had almost a granular gravel quality to it since it was permeated with the microscopic crumbs of crushed Oreo cookies. But at the same time, it was still frosting as a whole and very creamy and alluring. Awesomeness.
(2) The moisture of the cake. This is where the cupcake falls short of excellence. The cake itself was moist inside but the outer layers were actually kinda dry. Maybe the batch I ate wasn't very fresh or maybe that's just the way it is. I don't know. But that's just how it got served and I wasn't thrilled about it.
Another note. The cupcakes here are actually quite big and a little tall. For me, a perfect bite of cupcake should extend from the top where the frosting is all the way to the bottom. And this aspect of design allows for good cake to frosting ratio. It's not a breaking factor but it's something to note for those of you with smaller mouths!
In the end, my favorite cupcake store remains the super-famous Sprinkles Cupcakes. But Sweet Daddy's is not a bad alternative either if you're in the neighborhood!