Little Cupcake Bakeshop

Autumn is one of the best times of year to visit New York, as the leaves begin to change colour and fall in Central Park, cultural events are at a peak and the city begins to gear up for the holidays.

If the Big Apple is calling your name, here are a few musts for your New York ‘to do’ list…

The latest art shows

New exhibition Club 57: Film, Performance and Art in the East Village, 1978-1983 takes a nostalgic look at downtown Manhattan during the heyday of iconic music venue Club 57 on St Marks Place. Can you imagine living in New York at the time of Basquiat and Keith Haring, cheap rent and scuzzy dive bars filled with creatives? The exhibition runs at Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) from 31 October 2017 until 1 April 2018

Other notable openings to check out are Volez, Voguez, Voyagez – Louis Vuitton at the American Stock Exchange (27 October-7 January) and Ai Weiwei’s Good Fences Make Good Neighbors with 300 large-scale public artworks scattered across the city (now until 11 February).

Eat your way around the city

New York is officially food heaven, whether you’re in the mood for proper Italian pizza in Brooklyn, a Reuben and a knish at Katz’s Deli, sweet treats at the Little Cupcake Bakeshop or flavourful vegan food at by CHLOE. Last time I was in New York, I had a wedding dress to fit into, but if you’re on holiday just go for it and walk off the indulgences.

Hot new restaurants to look out for include Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s veggie-focused AbcV, Mexican eatery Atla by chef Enrique Olvera (previously Cosme), The Loyal from the people behind Narcissa, Old Rose replacing Cafe Gitane at The Jane Hotel and Emily West Village for clued-up pizza lovers.

Shop the season

Where should you be dropping your dollars in New York? Fashion insider Laure Hériard Dubreuil is opening a six-storey Soho outpost of her Miami concept store, The Webster this autumn. It includes a top floor VIP lounge, a pretty shoe salon and in-store hair salon from Parisian stylist David Mallett.

For something a little less high octane, look out for Williamsburg’s quirky PINTRILL, casual-cool United by Blue in Nolita, TAGS womenswear boutique via West Hollywood, the Upper East Side flagship store of Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen’s The Row and natural beauty store Credo on Soho’s fashionable Prince Street.

Holiday Markets

Is there anything more festive than wrapping up for the cold with a pumpkin spiced latte and hitting the holiday markets? American seasonal produce is at is finest and it’s the perfect chance to pick up unique gifts, do a bit of ice skating or spot stylish New Yorkers walking their pooches in the park.

The best ones to hit are Union Square Holiday Market, Columbus Circle Holiday Market and the Holiday Shops at Winter Village at Bryant Park with Public Fare pop-up cafe by Danny Meyer.

Take a Tour

What better way to see New York City than to take a tour with an expert? On Location Tours offer the most brilliant Sex and the City and Gossip Girl tours (including scheduled stops for Magnolia Bakery cupcakes and Cosmos at Steve and Aiden’s bar) and you can even try a Slice of Brooklyn pizza tour or uncover hip hop spots in The Bronx with a guide.

For more New York inspiration, Netflights.com have compiled a list of things that happen in a real New York minute. Are you tempted to take a trip?

This post is in collaboration with Netflights.com

Some images courtesy of The Row, Louis Vuitton and Bryant Park

While staying at The Nolitan in downtown New York, we were drawn to the Little Cupcake Bakeshop and popped in for an afternoon treat.

Established in 2005 in Brooklyn by four brothers, Little Cupcake Bakeshop is a cupcake shop with a difference. It’s the world’s first carbon neutral bakery, built using green materials including recycled denim insulation. All packaging is biodegradable and the cupcake shop is entirely wind-powered.

On the corner of Mott and Prince Street in SoHo, Little Cupcake Bakehouse is quaint and classic American with a homely, family atmosphere inside. It’s also a bit of a celeb hotspot – Gisele Bundchen was shot scoffing their Red Velvet cupcakes by Terry Richardson, Zac Efron filmed Are We Officially Dating? just outside and Jessica Biel, Lake Bell and Amanda Bynes have stopped by for cupcakes.

The cake counter is full of colourful baked goods including beautifully-finished cupcakes, towering three layer cakes, pies, cookies and puddings. The bakeshop’s signature cupcakes are appropriately named Mott Street and Coney Island and the blueberry-flavoured Blue Velvet cupcake is a speciality.

For me, it had to be a cupcake, so I chose The Dreaming Princess – almond cupcake, raspberry jam, buttercream frosting, meringue and toasted almonds. The cupcake was super sweet and piled high with two kinds of frosting – the most decadent cake ever. The sponge was light and a little drier than what I’ve come to expect from New York cupcakes, but the smooth meringue made up for it.

Steven’s Rice Crispy Treat was a massive, chewy cube of cereal fused together with thick, stringy marshmallow. It was delicious, satisfying and difficult to finish. We both washed them down with a Organic Oregon Chai Latte with honey, spices and vanilla. Unsurprisingly, the chai lattes were very sweet and spicy, so unless you have exceptionally high sugar tolerance, perhaps accompany the cakes with an illy coffee or a Harney & Sons tea.

Little Cupcake Bakeshop might not be the home of the best cupcakes in the city (Magnolia Bakery really does lives up to the hype), but it’s a delightful place to stop and refuel if you’re shopping downtown or enjoying a lazy afternoon.

Above all, an awesome fact about Little Cupcake Bakehouse is that it features in a hilarious deleted scene from Girls. Hannah applies for a job there but she isn’t quite pink and perky enough to join the (fictionally) nutty Bakeshop team.

For more information, visit: www.littlecupcakebakeshop.com

All photos by Chérie City

Chérie City

Top 5 Things to Do in New York in Autumn

The latest art shows

Eat your way around the city

Shop the season

Holiday Markets

Take a Tour

Little Cupcake Bakeshop Nolita, New York