The Thousands

According to Kathryn, the owner of Sparkle Cupcakery, Sydneysiders are far more sophisticated than New Yorkers. She would know. She used to run a bakery in downtown NYC, and was made to suffer straight chocolate and vanilla while dreaming of lychee and lavender. Sparkle’s Sydney cupcakes have a very unique flavour. Both store and cake are highly designed, with a colour coded dot system to separate the ‘lavender and honey’ from the ‘oriental flower’. You feel like you’re in a life-sized ‘join the dots’, where winners take the cake. Sparkle even designates certain cupcakes for certain times of the day, the ‘morning glory’ and the ‘afternoon delight’ make choosing just one a little easier.

**Now that you’ve chosen a cupcake (or two), you need a drink. There are all the expected options, including chai, but Sparkle also brews a fine green tea latte and dark hot chocolate. The cupcakery is licensed too, with a menu flooded with Moet & Chandon. Just imagine how sophisticated you’ll look… New York doesn’t know what it’s missing.