Cupcake Royale employee Samantha Pease serves up the 'cupcake of the month': strawberry 66, with 66% local ingredients. Photo by Angelo Carosio

The sweet toothed residents of Capitol Hill will have yet another temptation starting Wednesday when “Seattle’s best cupcake” winner Cupcake Royale opens the doors to a new café at 11th and Pike.

In celebration of the opening the bakery is giving away a free mini “strawberry 66″ cupcake to anyone who comes by and simply says a phrase.

“We’re giving away our cupcake of the month for free [Wednesday],” said Carolyn Sueno, the PR manager for the opening. “All you have to do is come in and say ‘legalize frostitution!’ You won’t get one if you don’t.”

Chocolate batter is scooped into a baking tray in the new "state of the art" Cupcake Royale bakery. Photo by Angelo Carosio

The new Capitol Hill Cupcake Royale location is pink, shiny and has a beautiful stained glass cupcake that greets visitors as they walk in the door. The shop serves all kinds of cupcakes, from classic frosted vanilla and chocolate to more adventurous flavors like mint, lavender and lemon drop.  Vérité coffee is also available.

In addition to the new store, the bakery has recently revamped their cupcake recipe to be, according to promotional material, “more moisty-er!” Pastry chef Sue McCown has overseen the process of perfecting the new recipe, and she definitely thinks that the new cupcakes are an improvement.

“It’s yummy!” McCown said in an interview with Eat All About It. “If I may say so myself.”

The baking perfectionist made hundreds of batches of cupcakes in recent months, helping Royale owner Jody Hall in her mission to create a moister, more delicious cupcake. Eat All About It  gave an inside preview of the baking process in a recent post:

McCown kept careful field notes on the results of changing the recipe’s leavening by a fraction, or substituting dried buttermilk for fresh, or altering the order in which ingredients were mixed. Struggling with one crumbly impasse, she would wake up in the middle of the night, debating what to try next. Her landlord, hearing this, told her “It’s just a cupcake!”

“No,” she said. “It’s not just a cupcake. It’s a really good cupcake.”

Is it actually more than just a cupcake? My strawberry cupcake was indeed more moist than the Cupcake Royale that I’m used to, and it feels richer and more satisfying. I’ve always thought that the frosting was a little too much, but the amount seems to fit better with the new recipe. Overall, I’m impressed, and only time will tell if this new recipe is indeed better at keeping overnight than the old one was (shelf life is one of the main reasons the recipe was tweaked).

Try the new recipe and check out the new store for yourself Wednesday.

Rancho Bravo Tacos has opened in the old KFC building. Photo by Angelo Carosio

Since the unfortunate demise of Taco Bell, it’s been hard to find a good burrito on the hill under $5. Taco Del Mar never tastes quite as good as you want it to, Tacos Guaymas is way too expensive and also not that good, and Bimbos is pretty excellent but doesn’t allow minors in, even during the day. Last week a new contender opened for business in the old KFC building across from Cal Anderson park on Pine, and Rancho Bravo Tacos seems to understand what people want in a burrito: cheap, big, and delicious.

Although it is pretty much a taco truck in the space of a restaurant and it shows, the place still provides fast service and pretty good eats. The menu is fairly small, composed of several burritos and taco choices as well as some bowls, tortas, and tamales. I had the “Rancho Burrito”, which came with meat, beans, cheese, rice, onions, and cilantro for only $4.25. You can also opt for the $4.75 “Bravo Burrito” which adds tomatoes, grilled onion, and sour cream to the mix. Tacos with your choice of meat are $2.

The menu. Photo by Angelo Carosio

It seems like with the recession going on cheap food is going to thrive since people obviously want to eat out, but want to avoid spending tons of money. Rancho Bravo is pretty much the only burrito place on Capitol Hill with most of its food under $5, so here’s to hoping it stays around for quite a while.

As for my burrito, it was pretty good. While definitely better than Tacos Guaymas or Taco Del Mar, there were a few things that could have made it better. The chicken used was breaded, which was a bit of a surprise since that’s not very common for a burrito, and they didn’t heat the burrito together so the cheese wasn’t melted at all and actually kind of cold. These are small concessions, however, given the price of the place.

Next time a nice Carne Asada taco sounds really good.

Diners at Barrio are seated among over 350 candles. Photo credit: Clara Ganey

This article originally appeared in the January 21, 2009 issue of The Spectator

From the front, new Capitol Hill Mexican joint “Barrio” keeps a low profile. Dark, tinted glass runs along the sidewalk, and it’s quite easy to walk right by the place without even realizing what’s there. From the side however, it’s a different story.

The simple black “Barrio” written on the wall stands in stark contrast to grandiose 8-foot tall wooden doors covering the entire entrance. Like something from a medieval castle, the huge doors swing open to reveal a dark, candlelit restaurant that will challenge anyone’s expectations of Mexican food.

Diners are seated among over 350 candles, some arranged in a huge wall bisecting the room, others in circular towers floating above the tables and booths. There’s not a light bulb in sight, and the waiters have to pass out small flashlights for easier menu reading. The smells wafting around are not those of lard and greasy meat but instead those of hand-made tortillas and zesty spices.

The word “barrio” in Spanish means “neighborhood,” which also describes the philosophy the owners and managers have about the restaurant’s food, drinks and atmosphere. Barrio’s Web site calls the restaurant an “approachable and inviting representation of modern Mexico.” It’s a place that avoids the usual tex-mex fare of places like Tacos Guaymas and La Cocina and instead opts for something more authentic, an example of what an upscale restaurant would be in a place like Mexico City.

“You’re not going to find refried beans here,” said Leigha Bone, one of Barrio’s managers. “We’re into fresh, local ingredients incorporated into traditional Mexican food.”

Barrio’s diverse menu contains everything from fresh chips and salsa to grilled ribeye steak and braised short ribs. While it might seem like a bit much to wade through at first, the waiters won’t hesitate to suggest things or explain any of the eatery’s many options in greater detail. The prices also vary: go during happy hour for $2 tacos and $5 margaritas, or opt for the more expensive dinner menu, where entrées range from $10 to $20, and drinks from $5 to $10.

Well worth the money, the dishes succeed in tinting traditionally Mexican food with a Northwest flare and flavor. The food is familiar but simultaneously exotic, combining the usual fare with exciting twists. The coconut rice served with the tacos and some other dishes has a noticeable sweetness that works extremely well, and the tacos themselves are full of juicy meat of all varieties. The marinade on the steak lends a spiciness to it that is reminiscent of the best fajitas. Also on the must-try list are their chips, which are handmade on-site in three different varieties: corn, yucca, and plantain and served with the diner’s choice of two salsas.

The cocktail menu is also extensive, containing the usuals like margaritas and piña coladas, and also lesser-known cocktails such as the “sangre de agave,” which contains both rum and tequila and is rounded off with lime juice and cassis. Just like on the food menu, there’s something for everyone, and the bartenders serve the drinks on the stiff side.

According to their Web site, Barrio’s vision is that of community, a place that “thrives off the street energy and relaxed locale of the neighborhoods we are pleased to call our Barrio.” The restaurant embodies those principles nicely, as the prices are very approachable for food of such high quality and the atmosphere makes it perfect for that special occasion or event when one wants to eat good food but still be able to relax while doing so.

Barrio is located on 12th Avenue between Pike and Madison. A second Barrio is scheduled to open in Bellevue later this year.