Bonkers Cupcakes Offers Build Your Own Cupcakes in Fairfield CT

Build your own cupcakes? Yes please.

We really feel like we hit the jackpot,” says Kris Stevens, owner and operator of Bonkers Cupcakes in Downtown Fairfield. “We absolutely love making these things, and being able to sell them is truly amazing.”

In the Fall of 2021, Stevens, a Fairfield resident and former software professional, began preparing for the opening of the town’s newest bakery. “I was really bad at being retired,” he quips, continuing, “my son and I had always enjoyed baking, so we decided that it would be a great idea to open this place.”

Bonkers offers a variety of cake flavor options, and gives customers the ability to select a cake flavor and then top it with their favorite frosting. Sure they have all the cake classics like chocolate, vanilla, and red velvet, as well as more creative choices like banana. To complement these flavors, Bonkers has a large selection of both Italian and American buttercream frostings. Stevens points out that Italian buttercream, which is much softer and not as overly sweet as American buttercream, is preferred both by himself and many customers. The notable frosting flavors include coconut, raspberry, salted caramel, and even coffee.

Bonkers also sells a number of other baked goods. On weekends, Stevens bakes two different kinds of pies. One of these varieties is Bonkers’s hand pies, which, as Stevens explains, “generally are fruit pies that are kind of like a big pop tart.” Stevens fills puff pastry crusts with various fruit flavors, which include strawberry rhubarb, blueberry, and apple. “We also make cream pies,” he continues, “which are cup-shaped pie crusts filled with things like chocolate cream, banana cream, or lemon meringue.”

“We definitely have factions that are here for the pie,” notes Stevens. “One night we had a tray full of apple pie, and a guy came in to buy one. Twenty minutes later, he came back and bought them all, saying ‘I’d rather they were in my freezer than in other people’s.’”

“Right now,” Stevens shares, “The trifles are extremely popular, especially because they’re very spring-y.” These dishes consist of layers of sponge cake, strawberries, and whipped cream packed together to form a sweet and dense dessert.

Right now, Bonkers opens at noon, but Stevens has plans to open earlier and start serving muffins and beverages. “I roast my own coffee,” Stevens tells me, “and I do it because, when you buy coffee beans from really small producers, the stuff that you get is worlds better than what you can get from the big market.”

This meticulous selection of ingredients is an integral part of Bonkers’s excellence. “We’re really fussy about the ingredients for a couple of reasons,” shares Stevens. The first and most obvious reason for this fussiness is that Bonkers’s kitchen is completely nut-free, which necessitates the careful avoidance of stealth nuts. The more deliberate of these reasons, however, is that, as Stevens explains, “we’re trying to buy the highest quality stuff we can get — you just can’t make something really great from low-quality ingredients.” Accordingly, Bonkers mostly uses high-end food purveyors, such as Baldor Specialty Foods and The Chefs’ Warehouse, in sourcing their ingredients. Some essential yet difficult-to-obtain components are sourced personally by Stevens. He gives me the example of a particular coconut powder made only in Singapore that has “such a uniquely strong and pleasant taste,” which he often “scours the world looking for.” 

I tasted a banana cupcake with chocolate Italian buttercream, a chocolate cupcake with coffee Italian buttercream, a vanilla cupcake with salted caramel Italian buttercream, and a red velvet cupcake with cream cheese American buttercream. Of the four, all have impressively soft yet dense cake with no hints of dryness or rigidity. Perfectly avoiding the downfall of others, these cakes are packed with intense flavor that perfectly complement their frostings.

I was also happy to confirm Stevens’s musings on Italian buttercream, as Bonkers’s all retain an incredible fluffiness and airiness without forming any crispy outside layer. Additionally, the limited use of sugar in the Italian buttercreams allows for both an unparalleled creaminess and a richness of flavor not outdone by sweetness.

The taste of the banana cupcake delightfully mirrors that of a well-made banana bread, with a sweet aftertaste that is well matched by the wonderfully rich chocolate frosting. 

Next, the chocolate cake tastes similarly rich, yet not enough to overpower the unique coffee buttercream. My favorite variety of frosting that I tried, this Italian buttercream unsurprisingly tastes just like high quality coffee ice cream. The frosting perfectly balances an enjoyable sweetness with the noteworthy coffee flavor.

Bonkers’s vanilla cupcakes is perhaps the strongest and most flavorful one I’ve ever tried, and it perfectly matches the light and sweet salted caramel frosting. Notably, this cupcake is topped with a caramel drizzle, which adds an extra dimension of sweetness that pairs well with the other flavors.

For all that I’ve been praising Stevens’s Italian buttercream, his American buttercream is still among the best I’ve tried. Specifically, the cream cheese frosting is incredibly sweet without sacrificing any of its flavor, allowing it to perfectly bring out the taste of the red velvet cupcake.

Finally, I tasted one of the strawberry trifles and was blown away by its ability to combine three distinct flavors into such a delightful dessert. The vanilla cake retains its strength and is matched with intensely sweet strawberries and super light and flavorful whipped cream.

After opening in March, Bonkers has found a welcoming group of supporters. “The people have been great,” says Stevens. “Everyone is amazingly friendly, and the Town of Fairfield itself has been just fantastic with us.” And this fanbase is incredibly diverse, Stevens has found, consisting of “people of all stripes.” “It’s a lot of people getting cupcakes for parties, a lot of working people coming by, a bunch of kids coming from nearby dance schools, and that’s just the start of it.”

Go check them out at 1618 Post Road in Fairfield. Order ahead of time on their web site, or go explore your options in store.

Bonkers is very happy to help you make your next party or event special. Wholesale pricing is available for orders of 100 or more cupcakes.

Bonkers Cupcakes 1618 Post Road, Fairfield 475-988-7367