Saturday Night Live’s recent “Lazy Sunday” short film has given me an intense craving for cupcakes. The ones featured, from New York City’s Magnolia Bakery, brought to mind the following question: where can you find high-quality cupcakes in D.C.?

“I don’t think this cupcake thing is at its height,” a bakery owner told New York magazine this past fall. With our northern neighbor's Buttercup Bakery in the process of franchising nationally and Warren Brown’s outfit hogging the spotlight in a new cake-themed show, there's no question that this "cupcake thing" has yet to peak. And given that the frosted mini-cakes are featured everywhere from Urban Outfitters T-shirts to a ubiquitous SNL sketch, we're just not going to get that gooey sweetness out of our heads anytime soon.

Media enticements aside, what makes cupcakes so appealing is that the experience of eating them lets you revisit your childhood. Yet dainty pastel icing, funfetti, and palm-sized cuteness do not jibe with D.C.'s super-serious mentality. Perhaps that’s why you'll find so many conservative desserts served at restaurants around town -- desserts such as banana bread pudding, fallen chocolate soufflé, or Seven Deadly Sins. They have gravitas. They’re not whimsical nostalgic concoctions baked at shops that reference flowers. Nor do they have cupcakey names -- such as Sugar Sweet Sunshine -- that sound like children’s book titles.

Even though we realize that tasty 'cakes aren't so easy to score in this serious city, we have dutifully pursued your (and our) cakelust. Rather than phoning it in and simply suggesting Brown’s U Street mecca, we sought out alternatives -- especially because some Cakelove tasters have described Brown's cupcakes as “heavy,” “intense,” and “dry.” In contrast, cupcake aficionados describe perfection as “light and airy,” and “moist,” yet “flavorful.” Others prefer them “ooey-gooey” and “pink, with lots of sprinkles.”

With the aficionados' criteria in mind, DCist canvassed far and wide to bring you the following results:

Best Overall Cupcake: Le Cupcake

Le Cupcake's 'cakes are our favorite. Not only are they light and airy, they are sugary without being super-sweet. What's more, local cupcake maven Robyn Savage will even frost them as you like, swirls and sprinkles included. The catch? If you can't grab one of the few that make their way to Stacy's Coffee Parlor in Falls Church, you'll have to get them delivered and wait it out. And as a one-woman operation, she'll need some lead time because, hey, she's not Domino's. But we ask you: what could be better than cupcake delivery? A delivered two dozen will cost you $42. (703) 533-8989. Also sold at Stacy’s Coffee Parlor for $1.75 each. 709 West Broad Street. Falls Church, Va.

Best Everyday Cupcake: Reeves Bakery

Reeves has been a Washington institution since 1886, with the likes of President Truman and Lady Bird Johnson citing it as their go-to bakery in Washington. It’s no wonder that, after two fires, the Great Depression, the ‘60s riots, and a move, it’s still a District favorite. We also liked its old-fashioned kitchiness and the hospitality of the counter staff.

As for the cupcakes, DCist enjoyed Reeves because its cupcakes fulfilled most of the criteria. They’re lighter than a piece of cake, yet as moist and sugary sweet. The icing was also just right: not too much or too buttery. So as not to frighten the power-lunching clientele around Metro Center, Reeves doesn’t display too many pink cupcakes with sprinkles. But don’t let their conservative chocolate and vanilla appearance fool you. And at a reasonably priced $1 per cupcake, each bite is worth the pursuit of this goodness. 1306 G Street NW. (202) 628-6350.

Honorable Mention (and Best Cupcake Shop): Baked and Wired

Housed in a warm, inviting space next to the C&O Canal in Georgetown, Baked and Wired is DCist’s version of the perfect cupcake place. We’re so looking forward to our next stop-off to this quaint, authentic spot owned by Teresa Velazquez. We only wish it were open weekends to satisfy our Sunday pre-movie fix.

Wrapped in parchment paper, cupcakes are available in carrot with cream cheese icing, as well as in chocolate and white cake topped with butter cream. Though not sprinkled or aggressively pink, these cupcakes are a sophisticated version of what we remember from childhood. More dense and larger than Reeves, Baked and Wired’s chocolate 'cakes tasted closest to the real thing. Icing fans, this is your spot: plenty of butter and gooey-ness. Yet at $3.50 a pop, these cupcakes are also the most expensive of the lot. 1052 Thomas Jefferson Street NW. (202) 333-2500.

DCist also visited and/or sampled cupcakes from Chinatown's China Doll Restaurant's bakery, Cleveland Park's Wheatberry, Adams Morgan's Sticky Fingers, and the P Street Whole Foods.