Cupcake War 5: Maya Delices VS Babycakes
Welcome to Bahrain Cupcake War Round 5
Man. If you knew when we actually had this round. You'd kill me.
Haha when I said I was getting good at being productive.
Teach me. Help me.
Before reading, get a better idea of how the score system works at the Cupcake War Introduction.
IT'S TIME TO REMEMBER WHAT THESE CUPCAKES TASTED LIKE!
The judges for Cupcake Round 5 are:
Noor Nooruddin: Yes. Me.
Ali Haji: Yes. The boyfriend.
Zainab Abdulrahman: Married now. Wasn't married when we actually had this round.
Waleed Al Kooheji: I don't know how we dragged him into this.
Eman Al Awadhi: She's a sugar-lover this one. Poor thing thought this would be fun.
The Contestants and Their Cakes:
- Maya Delices: Of the famous Maya La Chocolaterie (obviously had to Google that spelling). You know, the one with all the chocolate. The fondue? You know it. Why am I still typing.
Cupcakes being judged: Vanilla Cupcake and Tiramisu Cupcake
- Babycakes: One of the more popular home-baking businesses.
Cupcakes being judged: Vanilla Cupcake and Blueberry Cupcake
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Maya Delices: Vanilla Cupcake
I love vanilla. It's not boring. It's delicious. What's wrong with you?
After the tasting, we rated the flavoras follows:
Noor: 6/10
Ali: 7/10
Zainab: 6.5/10
Waleed: 7/10
Eman: 5.5/10
Average: 6.4
Overall not bad, pretty average. The cake on its own, however, isn't sweet at all. The frosting is what makes this cupcake good, although there's a buttery aftertaste in the buttercream frosting. In terms of texture, the cake has a nice fluffiness but it's generally impractical as a vanilla cupcake.
Maya Delices: Tiramisu Cupcake
We love the funky flavors.
Noor: 5/10
Ali: 6/10
Zainab: 7.5/10
Waleed: 6/10
Eman: 5/10
Average: 5.9
Not too far of a performance from its colleague, the Vanilla. While the cupcake itself was agreed to be pretty bland, similar to the vanilla, the overall effect with the sweet frosting was well received. While some thought the frosting was too sweet for their taste, at least two of the judges agreed they would eat this again.
Overall: okay.
Okay. Competitor. Do your thing.
Babycakes: Vanilla Cupcake
Flavorratings:
Noor: 7/10
Ali: 7/10
Zainab: 7/10
Waleed: 6/10
Eman: 6/10
Average: 6.6
This one falls apart more easily than its competitor, and it's really sweet, which isn't a problem for some of us (cough, me, cough cough). Also, the B word came up (stands for Betty, of the Crocker clan). Not saying anything, but three judges noted the similarity in taste. JUST. SAYING. Overall, not a bad cupcake. Definitely a practical vanilla cupcake.
Babycakes: Blueberry Cupcake
Every funky flavor risk we've taken so far hasn't done well. We're just nervous, at this point.
Flavor:
Noor: 7/10
Ali: 5/10
Zainab: 7.5/10
Waleed: 5/10
Eman: 7/10
Average: 6.3
Boy is there a lot of sugar put into this baker's cupcakes. The cake for this blueberry cupcake is actually good on its own, the frosting honestly just tasted like sugar, it didn't match the cupcake. All the judges agreed the frosting is a no-no, even the sweet-toothed ones.
At this point, it all comes down to the extra points for both competitors.
Extra Point Winners:
- Appearance and Presentation (3 points):
Everyone except Noor: Maya Delices - They took an extra step with the pretty cupcake paper holder thingi, and most of the judges appreciated that. It gave them a charm.
Noor:Babycakes - No. I like a cupcake that looks like it was baked at home. Something about it makes it look more delicious. Fancy paper cupcake holders are just more obstacles for me to get to the cupcake.
- Accessibility (3 points):
Unanimous Winner: Maya Delices - Let's face it, an actual shop and website (with all the social media stuff of course) usually gets the accessibility points.
- Value for Money (2 points):
Noor, Ali, and Waleed: Maya Delices- Yes, Maya Delices is more expensive, but these three judges agreed that it's still a better value, especially considering we wouldn't be forced to buy a dozen of each flavor if we only want a few. It's not worth the waste, the accessibility and lack of limitations is what makes this value for money better.
Zainab and Eman:Babycakes - At the end of the day though, Babycakes is cheaper, and not everyone minds having to order a dozen of each flavor. Why else would you order cupcakes if you won't go all out?
- Menu and Variety (2 points):
Unanimous Winner:Babycakes - The biggest perk of being a home-business is that you have that flexibility and creativity to really do whatever you want, so Babycakes boasts a wider variety of cupcake flavors than its competitor.
Grand Totals:
WINNER: Maya Delices
Although, in terms of flavor, it was very close, Maya Delices managed to snatch most of the extra points and make its way ahead of Babycakes.
Congratulations to the winner of Cupcake War Round 5!!
Stay tuned for our next round!
You should try these cupcake places anyway:
Maya Delices: Official website with their social media info
Babycakes: Find them on Instagram
Tournament Bracket:
Had to do a lot of changes to remove excess (businesses that no longer exist, don't answer their phones or update their accounts, etc.)
Next: Sugar Bloom vs Jena Bakery
Thanks for reading! I WON'T TAKE FOREVER FOR THE NEXT ONE, I PROMISE.
