New Kid on the Block: Mrs. Cupcake

Crave a cupcake with that pint of Guinness? Well, this is your lucky day: Mrs. Cupcake has set up shop in the rear of Eamonn’s, the Irish pub on Murray Street.

FiDi resident Gayle Aschenbrenner (above left) founded the brand in 2007, and she was doing events and what not—you may recall Mrs. Cupcake from last year’s Taste of Tribeca—while gearing up to open a shop. She had subleased the space from Eamonn’s when the baker she was working with left. In a serendipitous moment, a friend who lives above Eamonn’s introduced her to Lynn McClouchic (above right, who also lives in the building); McClouchic had recently decided to switch careers, from advertising to—you guessed it—baking.

The two, now partners, have created a lounge of sorts in the back of Eamonn’s, up a small set of stairs; there are cushy chairs and, draped on the walls, fabric that can be pulled back at night if patrons want to, say, play darts). The baked goods—made in Eamonn’s kitchen—currently include mini cupcakes, sandwich cookies (sugar cookies with buttercream frosting in the middle), and the very delicious cake balls (red velvet cake, made a bit dense with buttercream, dipped in chocolate). And everything—even the Green Mountain coffee—is $1. And if you hang around, you can get a free coffee refill.

They’ve worked with a local designer, JAK Design, who did the cute logo, and a local photographer, Christina Bhan. But their aspirations extend beyond the neighborhood. Aschenbrenner says that she’ll be able to partner Mrs. Cupcake with her executive search and global outsourcing business: They’ll be offering treats in business-card boxes, and the giver can put his or her own card on the outside.

This week is the soft opening, and next week Mrs. Cupcake will be closed, preparing for the grand opening on Feb. 28—at which point the shop’s hours will be 8:30 to 4 p.m. And starting on St. Patrick’s Day, Mrs. Cupcake will have an express window on Murray (see the photo at top).

As for Eamonn’s, it’s a chance to monetize space that goes unused during the day. But won’t having Mrs. Cupcake in the house affect dessert sales? “I never really sold much dessert anyway,” says owner Brendan Sexton.

Mrs. Cupcake is at 41 Murray, between W. Broadway and Church, 646-580-9696; mrscupcake.net.

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