Cupcakes have become all the rage among hipsters and urban dwellers. Maybe they hearken back to a simpler era or to childhood delight, or maybe they represent some marvel of engineering—compressing a buttery, cakey confection to such a small handheld form. Maybe they’re just an ongoing fad to add to the list that now includes specialty muffin and donut shops. In any case, cupcakes have instead become the battlefield for a turf war in metro Washington, D.C., that would make these other patisseries blush. Home to a half dozen cupcakeries, the invasion of the larger chain cupcakerie Sprinkles led to sugary pandemonium and retaliation by local small business owners afraid that the commerciality of the L.A.-based Sprinkles brand would vacate the novelty and popularity of the local cupcake offerings.
Jana Erwin describes how the introduction of the chain has led to local community backlash in an ongoing series she calls Sprinklegate.
In the latest episode, the store offered free samples of its delectable snacks at lunchtime through its mobile food truck, but local shop owners were hell-bent on sabotaging the efforts. The elusive mobile truck would appear only for moments before its wares had been fully depleted, the only clue being the momentary warning from its Twitter feed. How perfect to capture the postmodern nonsense of it all!
Read more about Sprinklegate.
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