Sweet Surrender

The thing about calling your business "Kickass" is that it begs the inevitable question: Does it, really? From where we're standing, owner Sara Ross delivers, oh, a decent spanking. Her Davis Square cupcakery emanates a spunky charm, and many of her creations are downright lip-smacking. But some just fail to connect.

Made with top-shelf ingredients such as Valrhona chocolate, the goods don't come cheap-$2.75 apiece adds up to a whopping $33 a dozen. The chocolate offerings are our favorites, with a rich, fluffy texture and bittersweet chocolate or vanilla buttercream frosting. The vanilla cakes, though, are disturbingly sandy and some have sadly sunken tops. And a sad cupcake is just...sad.

But there are other delights. Ross offers daily specials, including Tuesday's banana cream, a pleasantly messy bomb of vanilla custard, fresh whipped cream, graham cracker bits, and ripe banana. Then there's the deep-fried cupcake: a cream-filled vanilla cake dipped in sweet batter, fried, and drizzled with chocolate. It's a fine invention, but if you indulge, be prepared to do some ass kicking of your own-at the gym.

378 Highland Ave., Somerville, 617-628-2877, kickasscupcakes.com.