Scandal and the City

Maria and I try to hit new restaurants every time we make it to New York, and this past visit was quite productive. (Yes, if you're paying attention, Maria joined me in NYC mid-week... right after the tragic Volvo/Jetta incident.)

This time out we had a fantastic experience for lunch at Bouley and excellent dinners at Il Buco and Blue Ribbon Bakery (Rate-A-Restaurant reviews to come; thanx to Gothamist's Jen Chung for pointers.)

Then there are our usuals: Pommes Frites in the East Village (tip: dip your frites with the Sweet Mango Chutney Mayo, Hawaiian Pineapple Mustard or Rosemary Garlic Mayo; sadly, we had to skip Pommes Frites this time); Tamarind on 22nd (go to the tea shop next door and order one of the wraps); of course, Katz's Deli for pastrami; and, new this year -- thanks to Lisa for the tip -- Beard Papa (near her Upper West Side apartment) for freshly made cream puffs. Yes, you heard me. Cream puffs. Diet be damned. You get to eat all this when you walk around town all day.

But, of course, in a class all its own:

Magnolia Bakery's cupcakes!

It's a tradition: We usually hit Magnolia on a Sunday afternoon, right before heading to the airport. This year, we brought along Michelle, Emmie (visiting from LA too) and Marisol and Matt; it was Marisol's and Matt's first experience with the Cupcakes That Prove There Is A God. (Which we've made at home before, once with stellar results, once not so much. Another tip: Don't use skim milk. Trust us.)

As we devoured the sweet, sweet, literally sweet treats in the park across the street, along came a large, commercial bus. Michelle quickly figured out it was the Sex & the City Tour, which, yes, takes tourists around town to sites made famous on the HBO comedy.

Michelle had once taken the tour, when a friend was in town. (The "Sex" girls once made it to Magnolia -- hence the stop.) She revealed the fraud: Tourgoers are handed out cupcakes on the stop, which they hint are from Magnolia.

But these, sir, are not Magnolia cupcakes.

According to Michelle, who asked the tour leader whuzzz-up, they sheepishly admitted that Magnolia refused to take part in the tour.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the Sex & The City tour is handing out FAUX CUPCAKES and passing them off as from Magnolia!

Not shocked? That would be like passing by an In 'N' Out Burger while on a tour of Los Angeles... and then being handed a Whopper.

Indeed, we watched the tourists disembark the bus, stare across the street at Magnolia... and then get handed a cupcake from the tour leader's own bag. Oh, the humanity!