Cupcakes at Finnerty’s? Sure, Why Not?

Friday night I met up with some friends in the Union Square/East Village area. They decided on Finnerty’s at 14^th and 2^nd, and by the time I arrived they were already friendly with the bartender. It’s a shame that I can’t remember his name, but if you’re interested, it’s his headshot that’s taped to the ceiling of the bar, much to his dismay. Kudos to Abi for making the connection.

Anyway, the bar was pretty empty for a Friday night, but it eventually started to pick up steam as the night went on. The beers were moderately priced and they had a decent selection on tap. It was a fine Irish bar, but not terribly memorable. What I did like was the size, there was a long bar, several tables in the front and a little room in the back with three dart boards and Buck Hunter (I lost a $1 to the machine, but the bar back was kind enough to replace it without a problem).

My friends and I had a lot of fun playing with the darts, and it was nice to do something while drinking the night away. And a little competition never hurt anyone, especially when you win (ahem). But the delicious surprise of the night were definitely the cupcakes.

Our friendly bartender was so kind as to share his two remaining cupcakes with us from his birthday. Sure, it’s a little strange to be offered free treats when you’re at a bar (especially when they’re not from the bar), and it’s stranger still to take him up on the offer…but we did. And I’m rather glad because those cupcakes were amazing! There was one chocolate and one red velvet cupcake from Chikalicious, a dessert spot that I’ve been meaning to try. Even though they were at least a day old, they were moist, a nice smaller and more manageable size and the frosting was sweet and perfectly balanced the cake. I much preferred these cupcakes to those at Eleni’s in Chelsea Market and I’m quite excited about going back to try the rest of the flavors.

All in all, not a bad night. No specials per se, but being friendly was enough to score us a free dessert!