I had 2 mini cupcakes during my visit to London(Orea & Red Velvet). The icing was very good, but the cake was DRY in both cupcakes. I tried 2 Lola locations so that I could be fair in my assessment. I won’t eat here again.
Tiggi K.
Place rating: 5 London, United Kingdom
Love love love LOVE Lola’s cupcakes! I come here a lot with my friends and my grandma and I have weekly Lola’s visits! The cakes are scrumptious and the icing to cake ratio is pretty much perfect, not like those other bakeries where you have to scrape off the icing…(yes its a thing!) My favourites are coconut, oreo and good old vanilla! I also love getting birthday cakes here for friends, only just picked up one today for my best friend(giant cupcake design). You can usually pick one up if you’re in a hurry with no notice but to get exactly what you want you should definitely call up and order it in advance. It gets super busy sometimes so the only problem is you can’t get a seat sometimes so not great for groups about 3 – 4 really. One of my FAVOURITE places to go for a pick-me-up!
Mariana D.
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
I bought 4: Blueberry, pomegranate, green tea and passion fruit. I ate the green tea one on the train and it was very good. The flavor of the tea was very mild, though. Once at home, I ate the pomegranate one and it was better than the first one. It had some sort of fruit purée in the centre. I have yet to try the other two. So far, good cupcakes. The ones in America are incredible, though…
Santi D.
Place rating: 4 Lisson Grove, London, United Kingdom
Sweet treat for the soul! That’s how I describe my experience when I tasted their cupcakes. I’ve tried several flavors of them but the carrot cake is the best one so far. It’s not too sweet and both the cake and frosting melt in your mouth quickly that make you crave for some more. If you eat in, this place has very little room and limited tables. The cheesecake also tastes wonderful. I keep coming back here when I come to selfridges.
Kelly L.
Place rating: 1 Nipomo, CA
Frosting is excellent. Cake is disgusting. Literally threw away over half the cupcake.
Rachel J.
Place rating: 3 London, United Kingdom
Didn’t even try the cupcakes… I should have been shot! I went to Lola’s Cupcakes and got the cheesecake… its always a silly idea to go to a business that specialises in something and then get something else… it was very average! Scott’s in Mayfair is going to be hard to beat for a cheesecake! Net time I’ll actually get a cupcake!
Ambi H.
Place rating: 3 London, United Kingdom
I was walking about the Food Hall in Seflridges trying to find American Goldfish crackers and I saw the cupcake corner… I cannot resist a cupcake — I’m like a moth to flame. The cupcakes themselves are beautiful. I bought four.(yes I’m greedy, and no my fatazz didn’t eat them all the same day… jeez, quit looking at me like that) The cupcake of the month for February, whatever it was — that was delicious! If I only had that one, Lola’s would be 5⁄5. It had a raspberry, blackberry and blueberry on top of vanilla cream frosting with white chocolate flakes — helloooo hyperglycaemia! The actual cupcake was moist and scrumptious… oh, and it was filled with whipped cream! God knows how I’m not in a coma. However, the red velvet was dry and I wasn’t feeling the cream cheese frosting. The cookies and cream one was dry as well. The blueberry cupcake was pretty good, it had blueberry jam in the centre. Overall, they’re not the best cupcakes ever. It’s a bit hiss and miss.
Josie C.
Place rating: 3 San Francisco, CA
I’d recommend having a mini cupcake picnic with these flavors: peanut butter, banana, Oreo, chocolate milk, chocolate, and vanilla. The mini cupcakes have a good amount of frosting to mix with the dryness of the cakes.
Nava N.
Place rating: 2 Horsham, United Kingdom
Mehhhhhhhhh sums it up. Got an English Custard(I think that’s what it was called. Tried to verify the flavor name through the website, but there are no flavors with«custard» in the name) cupcake. Dry, dense cake. Frosting was mega-thick and cloying. Long story short, I scooped the custard out the middle and threw the rest away.
Chloe J.
Place rating: 3 London, United Kingdom
The cupcakes look so promising, but I was really not impressed by them– and I’ve tried them many times, always hoping that maybe this time they’ll be good. So dry, and so bland. The cakes however, are a different story. The Giant Cupcake cake is not only delicious, but also beautiful and makes for the perfect birthday cake. So, overall, the cupcakes get 2 stars, but the cakes get 5 stars.
Cat B.
Place rating: 2 Paris, France
Tried Lola’s Cupcakes for the 2nd time today after being unimpressed on my last trip. Bought a box of 8 mini cupcakes from their Selfridge’s point of sale. Was a bit annoyed that on the order of 8, the salesgirl messed up 3 cupcakes(I didn’t notice until I was home that I didn’t get a strawberry, ended up with 3 vanilla cupcakes &1 chocolate instead of 2 and 2, and the red velvet was not the specific decoration I had requested). I really didn’t care for any of the cupcakes with a chocolate or vanilla base — way too dry and pound cakey in flavor. The red velvet was just ok though the frosting was way too sweet. The carrot cake was decent. The peanut butter cupcake was interesting though again frosting was way too sweet. I really like Lola’s from an aesthetic standpoint but for the taste, there are much better cupcakes out there in London.
Modern
Place rating: 1 London, United Kingdom
I’m very into cupcakes, grew up in California, and know what American cupcakes are supposed to taste like. These aren’t it. I had a red velvet from here, and the ‘frosting’ tasted like plastic cheese. It was so revolting that I spit it out. Luckily the staff were very sweet and gave me a different cupcake as they felt so bad. Even the replacement tasted disgusting(a bland though sparkly Vanilla cupcake), but I felt guilted into eating it because they’d replaced the previous yucky excuse for a cupcake. They are decorated beautifully, so if you want cupcakes for merely decorative purposes(a Christmas tree ornament? I jest) then maybe these are the ones for you. Otherwise I suggest going somewhere the cupcakes actually taste good, like Hummingbird, Buttercup, or Primrose. I’m still looking forward to the day when Crumbs and Magnolia make their way over from the states
Melizza R.
Place rating: 4 Seattle, WA
I’m sat right now eating a Pimms cupcake, delivered to me for my birthday. One thing I hate is a dry cupcake and these are far from it. Even though London loves Hummingbird, I stay away because I find their cupcakes to lack creativity, flavor and moisture. Lola’s cupcakes were the complete opposite. I opened the box to find 6 gorgeous cupcakes: rocky road, red velvet, vanilla and Pimms. They definitely pulled off the wow factor, which is so important when everyone and their mom is selling cupcakes and you want your product to stick out. These cupcakes aren’t just pretty, they taste nice and moist. And that says a lot because moist cupcakes are rare in these parts. A great gift received and enjoyed. Still enjoying… Yum!
Kara M.
Place rating: 1 Palo Alto, CA
One word: DRY. Like Sahara Desert dry. Like I-just-ate-sand dry. If you can take the frosting off the cupcake like it’s the lid off of a coffee cup(meaning it stays together in one big chunk), you know your cupcake has been refrigerated(or is old… as in several days old). And Lola’s claims they made my cupcakes first thing this morning. Given I make cupcakes as a [serious] hobby I’ll let you in on a secret… one of the big rules in cupcake(or cake in general for that matter) storage is that you don’t put them in the refrigerator(not even in an airtight container)…it dries them out and kills the flavor. Leave the icing in the fridge until the cuppies are ready to be eaten, then frost & serve. Anyway, I got a 4-pack to share with some co-workers: Vanilla, Chocolate, Red Velvet(tasted nothing like RV by the way) and Oreo cookie. I was excited to share what is hailed as «the best cupcake in London.» Every single cupcake was dry as a bone and the frosting was not buttery creamy as it should be but stale and too sugary. The little Oreo atop the over-sugary frosting was mushy. I could squish it with my fingers… ew. They reminded me of the cheap cupcakes you get at the grocery stores in the U.S. I should have only purchased 1 mini cupcake to try before buying a pack. Lesson learned. FYI, I also tried cupcakes from 3 other bakeries(Hummingbird, Ella’s in Covent Garden and Candy Cakes)…all of them were dry and uninspiring, save for Hummingbird being the closest to a decent cupcake compared to the rest. Honestly, if you’re going to charge £2.50+ for a cupcake it must be better than I(or anyone) can make at home. It looks like the cupcake craze hit London with an amateur fury coupled with an expensive price tag. Making a good cupcake is one thing… making hundreds of cupcakes that can hold up to a store’s demand(or lack of) and maintain quality is quite another and I don’t think many of these ‘amazing’ cupcakeries have figured that out yet. If I were you, I’d skip Lola’s(and Ellas and Candy Cakes(the worst) and at best go to Hummingbird if you must). As for me I’ll stick with the cupcakes in the U.S. and leave my sweet tooth to Pierre Hermes over here.
Li J.
Place rating: 3 Los Angeles, CA
The mini cupcakes that I ordered were just okay. Frosting was good but the cake was a bit dry and stale. Cupcakes are beautiful, but again a bit stale. Likely wouldn’t return.
Nicole R.
Place rating: 2 Wood-Ridge, NJ
These aren’t inherently terrible cupcakes, however they were not the kinds I’ve grown to love. The decoration of them is thoughtful and cute, which is a plus(I’ve received cupcakes that looks like someone just slapped the frosting on the cake and threw it at you!). It’s relatively tasty, but in my opinion what I got was too sweet. I generally use chocolate cupcakes as my standard to grade a cupcakery off of, and the cupcake just was not chocolatey enough and a bit too sweet. Also, as earlier stated, the cake itself is very dry. It’s nice that they have regular and tiny sizes so if you want a treat but don’t want to be too naughty you can get a smaller bit, but the company needs to adjust its recipe.
Sarah O.
Place rating: 5 London, United Kingdom
My 6th circle of hell(not to be confused with Harrod’s, which is number NINE… please see my review of that for further details) is pedistrian shopper weekend at Oxford Street. They block off all the roads, there are millions upon millions of people crowding everywhere, pushing into you with prams, small children and shopping bags. It’s ridiculous. However, I BRAVED all of this to scramble my way into Selfridges, push over small children to get to Lola’s Cupcakes for a birthday present(okay…and for myself :) Lola’s are the best cupcakes ever, with an amazing selection and gorgeous colours. The edible glitter makes my soul happy. I HIGHLY reccommend the red velvet, you certainly won’t be sorry! Even if you have to go all Tom Cruise to get there, make Jason Bourne look like a wimp and weed through the tourists because I PROMISE they’re worth it!
Andrew M.
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
This is one of my favourite cupcake place in London. The price is a bit steep at around 2.25 squids but they are beautifully done. Visually, the rocky road cupcake can’t be equalled as the chocolate chunks and marshmallow covering the top seem to be restrained only by the chocolate laced over the top. When it comes to taste, my favourites are the red velvet which is moist and rich and overwhelms the senses with its delicate sweetness and deep red colour and the Gu cupcake which epitomises chocolate decadence. Sadly, the Gu cupcake is soon disappearing from this shop and will only be in the main Mayfair store. Note, this is located in Selfridges food hall so you won’t see it from the street.
Mimi R.
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
If you need a cupcake fix and you happen to be around Oxford St/Bond Street area, drop by Selfridges Food Hall and there you will find Lola’s Kitchen. Lola’s Kitchen is famous for their exquisite fresh cupcakes. From Oreo cupcakes to red velvet to standard size cupcakes to mini size cupcakes, they even sell giant size cup cake(on special order), you will crave for more. Newly refurbished, Lola’s Kitchen now has a seating area, for you to relax and lick that icing off your cupcake…(other’s who maybe be sitting nearby, might find it a little disturbing but who cares? cupcakes are yummy!).
Chiara P.
Place rating: 2 London, United Kingdom
was in selfridges and the cupcakes looked so pretty I had to try them. I got a rocky road and an oreo one(for comparative analysis purposes you understand!) but sadly it was towards the end of the day and they were both a bit dry and flavourless. Not the sweet treat I was anticipating. Hummingbird still clear winner for me!