Cupcakes, cupcakes!

We have been on a cupcake quest for awhile. We've been trying various cupcakes around the city, and using a 5 star scale, giving them a cupcake quality rating and an ambience rating. While we've awarded a 5 star ambience rating to Hey Cupcake (you just can't beat a good airstream trailer), we haven't given out a 5 star quality rating until now. (I must mention that the final rating detirmination is made by the kiddo.) We've tried Quack's (love the idea of the lemon curd, but so big and heavy), Upper Crust (love the marble cupcake, but can't they please sweep the floor occasionally?), Sweetish Hill (hard to get a good read, since the frosting is sooooo cold and hard when it comes out of the case, but certainly tasty), Sugar Mama's (had them at a party, so we can't speak to the ambience), Whole Foods, Central Market, and HEB. But we have a new 5 star favorite, in both of ambience and quality...Walton's Fancy and Staple. The space is lovely, the background music choice is delightful, the staff is exceptionally friendly, the prices are reasonable, and the $9 cupcake sampler for 6 flavors was just too tempting. Every one we tried was fantastic, not too sweet, lovely, and distinctive. I think my favorite is the strawberry, but then there was the red velvet...

Now while I wholeheartedly endorse the Austin cupcake craze, I do miss Once Upon A Tart in Soho. A cupcake can only get so far when compared with a freshly made fruit tart.