Dogs of the South End

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HARRIET is an English Pointer/carrot cupcake with cream cheese frosting who would not look at the camera.

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SIMON is a German Shorthaired Pointer/chocolate cupcake with butterceam frosting who was not aware of the camera.

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MADISON is a Labrador/vanilla cupcake with buttercream frosting who couldn’t get enough of the camera.

Harriet, Simon and Madison are already well-known in the area, each having their own cupcake alter egos at the South End Buttery, my favorite neighborhood coffee shop. When we sold our house in the burbs and moved here nearly 2 years ago, we spent our first weekend as city dwellers hanging out at the Buttery, drinking iced coffee, eating cupcakes and reading the last installment of Harry Potter. It was a perfect, PERFECT summer’s afternoon. The bakery sits at the end of Union Park, with its English layout of 1860 bow-front row houses enclosing a small park gurgling with water fountains. I sat there that summer pinching myself between mouthfuls of cupcake (the Simon is Dan’s favorite, Madison is mine). Because after we were done eating, all we’d have to do to get home was to walk. No cars, no traffic, no rushing to catch the commuter train. Just a short, leisurely walk past the fountains, the brick row house after brick house, the front steps of which are each flanked by lovely wrought-iron curliques.

I love living here.

FYI here is a short NY Times piece from 2006 about the South End. There’s a fly-by mention of the Buttery, with Simon  misidentified as a chocolate Lab. I did the same thing, oops! It’s just short of a glowing article because of the unnecessary snark. But whatever. The author’s secretly jealous that she doesn’t live here ;)