A cute bakery along famed Portobello Rd. No seating inside but more of a grab & go place. Find everything from cupcakes, cookies, to full cakes for purchase. They have a variety of cupcake flavors with colorful frosting. Noticed at least one vegan option. There is no restroom or Wi-Fi. The red velvet cupcake was soft but not super moist and frosting had hardened a bit, but cute decoration. They sell coffee as well. read more

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Sweet little bakery right in the middle of Portobello Road London They have limited GF options but they are great read more

Thrill Is Gone Last time we've been in London we really fell in love with the amazing Cupcakes of the Hummingbird Bakery. A lot has happened since then. My wife kept baking cupcakes at home and got better and better. So we wondered how much we'll enjoy the Cupcakes this time around. Well.....not so much anymore. We bought a Red Valvet Cupcake and a Vanilla Cupcake. Looked good, nicely presented! But after eating them, well....with a little bit of practice you can achieve the same thing at home and and even be better. They are not bad, don't get me wrong.... but we didn't enjoy them as much anymore. Staff was not friendly too this time. It was busy - understandable. We walked in with English Pound Bills from Northern Ireland....which belongs to England. Our money was not accepted. Ok, we could live with that. But the way we got turned down was just plain rude. Hey guys....we didn't try to pay with counterfeit or Monopoly Money. It's real english pounds friends. Maybe you should get around in the world a bit and learn something. If you do not bake yourself or maybe are not that great at it (like me - thankfully my wife has a better hand at baking) it's surely still a good place to get some good cupcakes. But for us it doesn't do it anymore. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - The Bakery on Portobello - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

I made it to Portobello Road early Saturday morning and of course being from LA had no clue where to grab a latte from. I noticed a few folks walking around with these pink cups with hummingbirds on them and very quickly caught on, this must be a good option. Now let me hurry up and find them! Not long after spotting their cups, low and behold I was at their doorstep and discovering not only do they serve coffee but they have a TON of cupcakes. I had to have one for breakfast and opted for their Classic Red Velvet. It was delish! Perfectly moist, perfectly sweet and held up well in my bag for a few hours before enjoying it. I noticed a bunch of places in London I went to for coffee didn't offer Almond Milk, only soy so as much as I did not want to ingest soy, I ordered a soy latte as their dairy free option. It was great but I really wish places would offer other non soy, dairy free options considering how horrible soy is for you. Great, yummy cupcakes! Very much look forward to returning and trying other flavors in the near future. Great customer service and a discount on your coffee if you bring your own mug. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

I had a rhubarb and custard cupcake and an Americano. The coffee was excellent. I say that as a coffee snob. The cupcake was dense and not what I expected. Granted it wasn't as sweet as cupcakes I've had in America, but I could overlook that had it been more moist and light. The frosting is not terribly sweet. It was just ok. The frosting tasted homemade. Just wish it was sweeter. The rhubarb filling was good. All in all, I'm glad I tried a cupcake here. I don't understand the hype. Would come back for the coffee. This location is on the busy Portobello Road. If you come on Saturday, be prepared for the crowd from the famous Portobello market. There's no seating inside. You can stand and eat inside or eat right outside the shop. It's pretty busy inside the cozy bakery. read more

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I fell in love first with cupcakes because of Hummingbird Bakery. In Europe, I know! Their cupcakes are perfect and not so sweet! Hummingbird Bakery is a cute-as-a-button shop, (the size of the actual shop is slightly bigger than a button), you can find your cupcakes heaven even in London! Hummingbird is a boutique style cupcake shop. Cupcakes are known to increase levels of happiness and fulfill sweet cravings. Their cupcakes and ingredients are aked fresh daily, they use quality natural ingredients including, French Valrhona chocolate, the finest Madagascar Bourbon and Tahitian vanilla extract, and organic fruit preserves. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - With a cup of Ice green tea from Starbucks, perfect! - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

Prices are okay, but the cupcakes were smaller (compared to the gourmet cupcake bakeries in the States) than I expected. I love Portobello Road. Such a cute area to shop and explore. I was surprised by how overhyped the cafe was... 1. The queue was huge. 2. The only 2-3 servers were chatting with their friends who were monopolizing an entire counter. If you know how small the cafe is (and how long aforementioned queue is), you WILL realize how annoying this is. 3. THERE IS NO SPACE TO SIT. Tables are dirty. 4. I asked for a fork and the server pulled one out of the sink. Can you say ew? Now, if you are a local resident, then I'd say you should try the other cupcakeries in Londontown. If you are a tourist from the States, skip it and go straight back to the US to service your cupcake obsession. Magnolia in NY... Sprinkles in LA... just go home, kids! I heard that Americans started hummingbird. So it makes me happy that Americans are spreading the cupcake love... I just wish their bakery was run better, despite the cute decorations. Now with all that said, the cupcakes WERE good. I tried the red velvet (the most popular). The cupcake was moist. The cream cheese frosting was delicious. My friend loved her chocolate one and bought another to bring home. Also, they get an extra star because when I sent in a complaint letter they responded promptly and professionally. I will have to give it another go before I change my opinion of the bakery... read more

A super cute spot with lots of good looking baked goods. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to eat EVERYTHING in the store, but I did get a delicious cookies and cream cupcake. The frosting was absolutely perfect, the cake was really good too but maybe just a touch on the dry side. That didn't stop me from devouring it rather quickly though. My husband really enjoyed his red velvet cupcake as well. The store itself was small with no chairs or tables, but it was very clean and the staff was friendly. They have quite a few hot and cold beverages to choose from. I actually got a glass of milk and it really hit the spot after that deliciously sweet cupcake! read more

Hummingbird Bakery is like coming home and realizing that you walked into the wrong house but not giving a shit because you're being fed delicious homemade cupcakes that nobody in your crappy house ever bothered to make for you. Their icing was the selling point for me- it has that minimalist sugar-and-a-drop-of-food-dye taste that doesn't overpower the entire thing and ruin it. The place is small as heck and always packed but it's worth it. read more

I'd heard so much about Humming Bird bakery, that I was quite excited to take my sister there. A friend had served me a lemon cake from them for tea once and it was nice, but I wanted to see the place for myself. The location is tiny, but I've been to tinier cafes/bakeries. They had quite a few options on offer and fresh bakes seemed to be constantly coming out of the kitchen. We tried the Brooklyn Blackout as both me and my sister are chocoholics and we chose this over the nutella cupcake, because we had gorged on nutella for world nutella day on Friday. We didn't even bother boxing it, just asked for a napkin, so we could eat it outside. The cake was dry and heavy. Even the icing could not provide enough moisture. We have eaten much better cake in so many places, this didn't even merit an average rating. we definitely didn't understand the hype for these overpriced cupcakes. Even Costa's makes better chcolate cake. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

Yum! The first time I stumbled across this place was back in 2007. My friends and I were on holiday in London and we wanted to explore the Portobello Road Market. Since that experience, I've gone back here almost every time I've been back in London. The cupcakes are moist and delicious and they offer a "cupcake of the day" as well. I tried a nutella cupcake once, which was so good; perfectly chocolate-y and nutty and garnished with a crunchy hazelnut. I've also tried carrot cake (yum), red velvet (yum), and a regular white cupcake (yum). I don't think you can go wrong with whatever you order. It gets busy and there's usually a relatively long line, but it moves quickly. The decor is adorable and sweet (v. girly and cutesy) and the staff is really friendly. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - nutella cupcake (far), carrot cupcake (close) - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

I believe in cupcakes. And, I believe in a lot of cupcakes. I first tried out Hummingbird Bakery in 2010. I got hooked right away. It was a call from home. These cupcakes coin themselves after American cupcakes. Believe me, they are right up there with some of the best that I've had in DC and NYC. The Portobello location has limited seating during the week, and none during the weekend. They often get so busy on the weekend, they sell the popular flavors outside! Only other problem with the Portobello location are the limited opening hours. Try the red velvet first! Then go for some of the hand decorated ones...it's worth the extra pound. All of the other baked goods they sell are well-done as well (brownies, etc.). They offer a wide range of gluten free products. read more

I'm not a terribly huge sweets fan, I'll admit- however I was bowled over by Hummingbird. During a stroll on Portobello one afternoon I stopped by Hummingbird, enticed by their cute sign and inviting window, to pick out some cupcakes for my friend who was so graciously letting me stay with her in Central London during my visit to the city. I promptly picked out two cupcakes- a red velvet and a chocolate one of some sort, and they packed them up in a cute little box for me to take home. I left them for my friend, she devoured one but left the red velvet one for me so of course I HAD to eat it :) It was amazing! Fresh, sweet, delicious- the frosting was great and not dried out, and it tasted homemade, not out of the box- so totally worth the price. I would love to go back next time I'm in London and pick up more- this time maybe just for myself :) read more

I bought half a dozen cupcakes as a gift a while ago and have been lusting after one for myself ever since. The shop is beautiful and draws in large crowds, particularly on Saturdays. I am lucky enough to work in the area, so passed by for a mid-week afternoon treat a couple of weeks ago. What a disappointment! My only explanation would be that they sold me old stock as the cakes themselves were dry and not very tasty while the icing just tasted of old butter - just like when you forget to put the butter dish back in the fridge on a hot day. Yuck! I just hope the ones I gave away were more tasty ... I feel thoroughly ripped off at £2 a pop. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

I am quite the avid fan of the cupcakes here (admittedly cupcakes in general are my absolute weakness when it comes to the sweet stuff). I haven't even been interesting and venture out to try their delicious looking cakes such as the chocolate devil's food cake, red devils cake or their pies. No, I tend to walk past them and go straight for the cupcake section. My favourite: the yellow vanilla sponge topped with vanilla butter-cream icing. Delish! The icing is so mouth wateringly rich and sweet that after the initial craving to want to eat out the shop, I can only handle one of these little bites of heaven. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

Hummindbird bakery is so cute and looks so good you could eat the bakery itself. It is also the epitome of the yuppification of cakes and also just most of London in general. For once though, I will not let that bother me too much and will just enjoy the cheap thrill which is colorful cupcakes To be fair they do taste amazing, the icing is rich and creamy (buttercream?) and the cake itself is moist and spongy. Once you have stuffed it all in your mouth (there is no point eating them slowly or attempting to be graceful) you get that sickly satisfaction of a suger fix and you feel like you could probably stomach another one; trust me you can't. They do other cakes too which also look delicious but to be honest I have never tried. It is the visual pleasure of the cupcakes which drags me towards them and ultimately makes me pay a silly price to eat them. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

The Hummingbird sells medium-sized cupcakes that are overly dense, doughy and consequently overrated given their 4-pound price tag (sitting in is more expensive than take-out). The shop itself is also really small and cramped. Tl;dr - overpriced cupcakes at Portobello Road. read more

The Hummingbird Bakery - Rainbow cake slice 6£ - Bakeries Near Me - London, XGL

Delicious cupcakes! We had the lemon, Nutella, and chocolate cheesecake ones. The lemon was my favorite because it was light and summery. The themes were delicious too though I thought it could've used some more cheesecake inside since I was sharing the cupcake. A must stop in the Camden area! read more

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Notting Hill's most famous bakery on Portobello. And there's a very good reason for it to be famous -they really have the yummiest cupcakes and pies. The red velvet cupcakes here are deliciously divine. Incredibly moist and the cream cheese frosting is just right. Good place to stop and get a sugar fix if you are in the area and browing round the stalls and Portobello Market. read more

Let me preface this review by saying that I am typically a CUPCAKE HATER because I view the faddish baked good as nothing more than an overpriced, over-frosted, meagerly-portioned piece of regular cake. HOWEVER I had the red velvet cupcake from here last weekend and it was marvelous. Perrrrrfect blend of sweet and bitter from the cocoa AND delicious butter roux icing. Ahyuk. Dear cupcake bandwagon, where do I hop on? Be warned: 1) my friend tried the carrot cupcake and declared it to be non-worthy 2) apparently there is usually a line out the door of this place, which could put a damper on getting your cupcake fix read more

Someone has gotten too big for their boots and I'm looking at you Hummingbird. Yeah you. With the best-selling cookbook. You have people queuing out the door, selling those sweet treats faster than you could make them, getting so much press and then what happened? Meh.. that's what happened. You got complacent. I queued and chose from carrot cake, red velvet or vanilla. Is that it? No more flavours on a Saturday? For £2 a cupcake, I want peanut butter, coffee, something different! If you need recipe ideas I know a book you can get. Regardless, I took a bite of red velvet expecting cupcake nirvana. There was none. It was bland and boring, a waste of calories. Go back to the kitchen Hummingbird. read more

Tried their most famous red velvet cupcake and a latte, and I did not like it :( The cupcake has excessive sugar loaded vanilla icing on top, and it was quite gross. I'm sure there're better cupcakes in London. The sponge cake underneath was also kind of dry. I had to scope away all the icing to eat this cupcake and it was honestly, quite gross. My latte however, was decent so it keeps me happy. They only take credit card over £5. read more

NOT a huge fan. Color me crazy but I think there are better cupcakes in town. I know this is one of the original spots for gourmet cupcakes but their competition is rapidly catching up. Fortnum does a great cupcake that is slightly more expensive. My big beef with Hummingbird's cupcake is the excessive amount of icing on the cupcakes. I like icing, don't get me wrong. However, if you are going to use such huge volumes of icing on the cupcakes, tone down the sugar and intensity so I don't get a toothache every time get near a Hummingbird Red Velvet cupcake! read more

Made another visit a few days ago and their cupcakes are by far the freshest of all the places I visited during this trip. Frosting was good, cake was moist and they had a variety of flavors available. This is very much like a delicious sprinkles cupcake but not quite as big. The perfect portion. The shop itself is adorable and being right on Portobello Rd, the location can't be beat. You're in the area already so why not pop in for a cupcake love? read more

I'm obsessed with oreos. Really, I have a problem. That's why I never buy them because I eat all of them. Anyway, they've got an oreo cupcake and it tastes just like oreo. It's delicious and amazing and I almost bought another one. But my husband wouldn't let me. good choice. ANYWAY, this place is totally cool and I saw the guy making the rainbow cake in the back. SUPER COOL! I've still gotta try it. But, that cupcake, man, it was so moist and perfect and oreo. Love! read more

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I've lived my life trying to learn the perfect way to eat a cupcake. No matter how I strive, I always run into the same heart wrenching problem - a disproportionately small amount of frosting. Do you have the same issue? Well fear no more my friend, at long last the religion of baking has provided a solution: The Hummingbird Bakery. Living in London, I'd heard rumors about this bakery's glory, but I was afraid to believe them as true. Yes, I was in living in denial! One day, I set out on a mission to explore my faith and see, once and for all, if these cupcakes were really the little, prophetic pieces of holiness that they were made out to be. I was greeted by the friendly face of a messenger at the cafe's counter. Glory! I step forth, quivering with uncertainty. After a trying moment, I ordered a chocolate 'bling bling" cupcake. I took this relic gently in my hands and carried it out to the street. Immediately, I took that leap of faith. YES, I took it! I bit into the cupcake. I chewed. I swallowed. HALLELUJAH! It was delicious. My faith in the cupcake was tested and my faith was restored! The ingredients were fine, and the frosting was slabbed on in a veritable blizzard of delight. I ate, never faltering once in my new-found faith, smiling with every frosting-covered bite. PRAISE BE THE CUPCAKE! read more

Two years on, and I'm forced to change my review for Hummingbird. While, a few years ago, it was amazing, the quality of the cupcakes has seriously gone way down in recent years- the icing is too sweet and heavy, the cupcakes are too dry...something just doesn't add up- it's not the Hummingbird that used to be. The cakes, however, are still delicious. read more

The original. The best. I have this whole thing about London establishments that expand and become complete and utter shit. I will continue to site Gourmet Burger Kitchen as the biggest offender. What they are now compared to what they used to be is shocking and sad. Hummingbird could very easily have fallen into this trap but they still continue to create - what I consider to be - the most perfect cupcakes known to man. They get it right, soup to nuts. My deal with cupcakes is this: you'e either fucking up the cake or the frosting. It's rare that anyone ever nails both. And never to this degree. Menu item after menu item, Hummingbird delivers. And then they went and rocked the brownie too. Oh, and the Whoopie Pie. I swear to god, when they released a cookbook I expected these assholes to fuck up six ways to Sunday - taking their eye off the ball, other priorities, etc. but they are unbelievably consistent. Never a disappointing experience. And that's saying a lot cause most people get it wrong ONCE in a while. Even me. read more

Since the lines are always so damn long and the inside always so crowded, I always take Hummingbird's to go and gorge myself at a pub with some beer. The concept of "fancy" or "trendy" cupcakes, of all things, makes no f'ing sense to me, but neither does Paris Hilton or socks with sandals. But I'll give it to Hummingbird. The bakery is adorable, and the presentation of their goods is luring. Everything is so colorful and rainbows and unicorn you might think you're on a lucky charms type acid trip. I did raise my eyebrow at paying almost £3 for a cupcake, but ya know, it's pretty damn good. The red velvet (staple, fo sho), nutella, double chocolate cupcakes and refridgerator bar all tickled my fancy and then some, but it's not something I'd go to on a weekly basis. Maybe just those days where I feel like I really deserve a well dressed sugar/butter bomb. Never bothered to buy slices of their cake because I really can't be bothered to spend the money. But this place will put you in a good mood for a couple hours... although I felt like the Oreo cupcake I had at Selfridges is comparable -- but the price isn't that different. read more

I live a few streets away from Hummingbird Bakery and I have to say, their cupcakes are seriously like crack - addictive, moreish and easy to develop a habit of. The thing about Hummingbird is that it's ALWAYS jammed on the weekend. If you go then, expect to queue for at least 15 - 20 minutes, don't expect the greatest service in the world and don't even try to sit down and eat your goodies there. They've got a small seating area out front which is always full, even when it's freezing outside and because they're so busy, the staff don't get to clean it as often as they would probably like. But you're not going there to sit in, are you? You're going there for the amazing cupcakes and cakes! The red velvet and carrot cupcakes are both winners - the cream cheese frosting takes the edge off all the sweetness and prevents you from going into a sugar coma. If you really must sit down, walk down to Westbourne Grove and sit down on the benches near Wild at Heart. I've become a recent fan of the chocolate devil's food cake and if you're a chocolate lover, you should definitely give this one a shot, as they decorate the top of the cake with pieces of milk and white chocolate and the sponge is incredibly moist, as are all of their cakes / cupcakes. If you have a big sweet tooth, I'd recommend the vanilla cupcake. Not my favourite, as I find them to be just too sweet for me with too much frosting on the top. Every time I have one of these, I'm guaranteed to get very hyper about 20 minutes later. My absolute favourite is the frosted brownie. They're quite heavy handed with the walnuts in the brownie, which is a VERY GOOD THING and they top the brownie off with a chocolate cream cheese frosting, which makes the whole thing an utter decadence. read more

I must have loved everything I ate in the UK. I stopped by here for a black bottom cupcake. Chocolate on the bottom, cheesecake in the middle, and a cream cheese frosting on top. I thought the cheesecake plus cream cheese would be overwhelming, but I thought it was a very nice blend A bit expensive at 3£ though. My friend was not as big a fan of her red velvet whoopie pie read more

I'm a CUPCAKE MONSTER! GRRRR. I absolutely love LOVE love cupcakes.... but who doesn't? While my parents and I were walking down Portobello Road we came across this cupcake shop and I was SOOOOOO EXCITED! The cupcake cake was moist and the was a good ratio of frosting to cake, the only comment I would make is that the icing was a little TOO sweet! But it was still great. I got the classic kind with vanilla cake and pink icing! And they were really nice... next time I'll have one with a coffee and it will be perfect! WHOOOO HOOOO FOR CUPCAKES! read more

In my somewhat vindictive, must-taste-all-competition driven quest to taste any cupcake I come upon, almost every experience has been reaffirming of the fact that I'm the superior baker. Magnolia, Sprinkles, dozens of smaller shops and High Street bakeries... usually the cake isn't worth eating, much less often is it impressive. But the cupcake I bought at the Portobello Market on a whim was hands down the best cupcake I've ever purchased. I had the black bottom with cream cheese frosting. The cake was wonderfully textured, but most importantly, this is one of very few chocolate cupcakes that actually taste like chocolate. It was a great flavor. The frosting was also very well done, and over all it was a fabulous cake. Only 4 stars because I think they're ridiculously overpriced. A dozen mini cupcakes is £16 and a dozen regular are £24, according to the website. (By the way, you get three mini cupcakes for every single cupcake when it comes to batter... do the math on that.) My single cake at the market was £2.50. At least in my little experience, you're getting a good cake out of the ridiculous price you pay for the brand. You could be worse off! read more

I'm a big fan of cupcakes (cakes, period) but I almost feel apologetic about NOT being a fan of Hummingbird ones! 3 times I tried (Nutella, chocolate, red velvet), 3 times my stomach felt funny. No, it's not because I'm not used to eating self-indulging gourmand products (i live for those), but these are just not my perfect cupcakes, contrary to many people here. For me, the frosting is way too buttery/creamy and that takes over the flavour. It's too rich and I just don't feel good afterwards. Maybe if I go by it again, I'll take just take a mini cupcake. But a mini cupcake is not a "proper cupcake"... Next! read more

Yummy yummy cupcakes! My favs are the red velvet signature cupcakes. Always a huge queue on the weekends from the market crowds. If you arrive late on a Saturday you will be stuck with whatever they have left over. On weekdays it is pretty dead. Also great to treat colleagues and friends with a dozen for birthdays and special occasions. Call and order ahead! Be warned. You will be on a straight up sugar high after you consume one of these cupcakes. I usually have to scrape about half the frosting off because it makes me feel so damned guilty! read more

Simply Wonderful. The specials are not to miss, my personal favorite is the Cookies & Cream, though nearly all are a good substitute. Not to mention their cakes to order with hand decorations and their large enough to feed twice the estimates they give you. The Carrot Cake is a brilliant unusual birthday cake. They aren't cheap but great as a treat, just a shame I live a block away, it makes that once in a while more like once a week :/ read more

I m not a huge fan of cupcakes but every time i go there, i am so happy just by staring at the cupcakes at Hummingbird. The cupcakes are so colorful BUT unappetizing. I used to love the signature red velvet cupcake, however the amount of icing that being used is unbearable! TOO MUCH SUGAR! TOO SWEET! And the sponge cake at the bottom is quite dry. Well, to be very honest, there's better cupcake shops in London. read more

Very tiny shop with range of cupcakes that are adorable to look at and taste great as well. Yes they are heavy and really sweet but it's not a food you eat every day so as a treat it's really nice. What I absolutely adore is their design though, from their colours to the packaging boxes which are so handy and cute. They also make seasonal cupcakes with little figures for Christmas, Halloween and other holidays. Really, really great coffee too. read more

Let me be frank and say that I am no natural fan off cupcakes. I've always found them a tad too posh and irritatingly 'over-promising, under-delivering' - even the famous magnolia cupcakes i New York. That is of course until I tasted one of these deliciously yummy Hummingbird cupcakes. OMG! Just one piece of advice: go for the red velvet! Instant love, you will never be the same person again. read more

This is my second London hummingbird Bakery to visit. I think their cupcakes rock!! The cupcakes are moist, flavorable, and they are beautiful. It is hard to select one flavor! Hummingbird Bakery offers a wide range of fun flavors. The associates are super friendly and they are lots of fun. This location isn't large and there was a bottle-neck of incoming and outgoing customers. The cakes are gorgeous. www.hummingbirdbakery.com read more