Sweet Revenge in NYC

NYC eats well. The standard of eating here is so high that it overflows onto the streets, where some of the best food is to be had. But we pay through the nose for all this (and apparently, the sushi is killing us).

These places get hosed on costs day in and out, and they pass the expense on to us. Now, rents have gotten so out of hand that a stalwart like Tuscan Square is getting squeezed so hard that it's closing down. TS is reliably good but has always screamed 'overpriced' ($9 packaged sandwiches anyone?), and it appears no mark up is big enough to save this power lunch favorite at Rockefeller Center, despite its built-in clientele.

What's really out of hand, though, is all these goddamn cupcakes. The wholly unremarkable cupcakes from Magnolia have spread like demon seed and knockoff joints litter the cityscape. The latest growth of this cupcake kudzu is invading the old Vinyl Mania space on Carmine in the West Village, and though we wish them well, it always leaves us scratching our heads and wondering: Who is buying all these friggin' cupcakes, and why won't they stop?!