Crumbs Bake Shop: Tysons' Corner Mall, VA

Crumbs
Taste (1"): $24.95 12 cupcake pack
Classic (2.5"): $4.50
Signature (4"): $5.50
Colossal (6.5"): $42 serves 6-8 people

There are few things in life that can't be remedied with a little retail therapy, and Tysons' Corner Mall has many choices to satisfy any shopalcoholic's inner most desires. Yet now Tysons' offers us another indulgent pleasure in the form of its' very own Crumbs Bake Shop. Now it is possible to give yourself a break from trying to find the most flattering pair of skinny jeans, and just eat a cupcake! Crumbs is famous for being the largest cupcake chain store in the nation, as well as, serving up some an assortment of cupcake sizes (from the colossal to little taste cupcakes).

Milkshake Cupcake

The store itself isn't the most appealing of cupcake shops. It is definitely designed for a mall where customers can easily walk up, see the cupcakes, pick one, and get on with shopping. Reminded us more of a Mrs Field's Cookie Vender than a cupcakery. However, we at Cupcake Correspondents were definitely impressed by the variety of cupcake flavors available, and they all looked absolutely yummy. So after a minute or two of deciding we settled on the classic sized Milkshake and Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes.


The Milkshake cupcake is a marble blend of chocolate and vanilla cake filled with a vanilla cream cheese frosting mixed with chocolate cookie crumbs, and finally topped with a swirl of chocolate and vanilla cream cheese frosting dusted with chocolate cookie crumbs. Wow! That is by far the longest description of a cupcake we have done so far! As good as it sounds it did not live up to our expectations. The cake was slightly dry and flavorless, and the cream cheese frosting was good but didn't save the cupcake.

Peanut Butter Cupcake

The Peanut Butter Cup cupcake was better than the Milkshake, and was a chocolate cake filled and topped with peanut butter buttercream frosting and decorated with peanut butter cup wedges and crushed peanuts and chocolate pieces. The chocolate cake still lacked a rich chocolate flavor and was dry like the Milkshake cake, but the peanut butter buttercream was yummy with a good balance of "peanutty taste" without being overpowering.

All in all we didn't much care of Crumbs, but we will give them a pass until we actually make it out to a shop were the baking is done in house. We figured that the cakes probably dried out during shipping to the shop location. Also this is probably the most expensive cupcakery we have been too.

We are looking forward to Crumbs opening up an all gluten free bake shop! We will let you know when one is expected in our area.


Gluten Free : Not Available at this location
Sugar Free: Not Available
Vegan: Not Available

Cupcake Atmosphere: 2 out of 5 (the shop is definitely designed for a quick visit while shopping, but it was a bit impersonally and poorly designed)
Flavor Selection: 5 out of 5 (anything you can think of or crave they have on hand, and in any size)
Customer Service: 2 out of 5 (we had very little interaction with the one person on staff, which is surprising since we were the only ones there)

Overall Quality: 2.5 out of 5 (we won't be going to this location again... there are other cupcakeries that will satisfy our craves better that are worth the drive)