How many cake bakers did you try?

Pixieliddle23

So my fiance and I had our first cake tasting a couple weeks ago and the cakes were really good, the only downside that I didn't really like too much about the place was that the baker didn't really make different flavored cakes, it was either some type of chocolate, yellow, or white and the only flavoring that changed was the buttercream flavor.  The only reason we had tried this place was because it is the same place we're looking into for catering.  We were originally looking at another bakery that had some cakes that sounded so delicious like a chocolate coconut cake with a caramel filling and I keep thinking about this place and I really want to try it.  Did you try more than one bakery for a cake?  And if we do decide to go with the different place than the one with our potential caterer then how do we let them know without things being awkward since we are probably going to hire the caterers?  Any help would be greatly appreciated!  

cmp1986

We only tried one, but that's because they had everything we were looking for. I think you should def. see what else is out there. You can hire whom ever you please. If your caterer tries to push a cake baker on you then that should be a red flag. Just mention (if they bring it up) that you are looking at other cake bakers that will fit your needs better. If the caterer makes things awkward then he/she isn't being very professional. If he/she does begin to act that way maybe you need to look for both a new cake baker and caterer. HTH!

Allycat11

We tried 2.  1 of them we were pretty set on but knew they were pricey (because someone else held the budget we were not sure this was okay).  We tried the other just for a comparison....and  well there was no comparison.  We booked with the place we thought we would because they did fall within the budget.  I am happy we tried two because I am queen of "What ifs?" when it comes to anything wedding related.

Kimberly0402

My mom and I (both teachers, so we are home for the summer) went on a "Secret Shopping" mission. We went to 4 different bakeries and bought cupcakes. We immediately picked the one that we both liked and then I brought home a cupcake from each place for my fiance to do a "blind taste test" he immediately picked the cupcake that we both liked.

After dealing with the florists (2 hours appts each) we were drained and didn't wantto sit through appointments when we knew that the cake was horrible and it was a waste of time. We are setting up our appointment for our chosen bakery this week!

Magdala9

We visited two.  The second one was perfect for us so we cancelled our appointment at the third one.

031107

I went with the 1st bakery we tried.  But, had that bakery not been able to work with what we wanted we would have tried another place.  Plus, the bakery offered over 30 different cake flavors/fillings.  I would not have gone with them if the only options were yellow, chocolate, marble...

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

We didn't try any, because we knew we wanted to work with a baker we had used before. But it's your wedding. We met with 4 photographers. Meet with however many vendors you need to until you find a good match.

hellosunshine12

we only did one cake tasting & we knew that we wanted to use this bakery, I think that if you are not sure about the bakery that you have talked to, you should definitely look else where, I doubt anything would be said but, maybe you could say that a family member surprised you by gifting your cake to you...I wouldn't worry to much about that though

sammiebree85

We did two. The first was a jerk. The second was much better -- we've had her cakes many times before and knew it would be yummy.

The secret shopper thing is genius.

Ljacks87

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_many-cake-bakers-did-try?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:23Discussion:239b8354-5a73-4aa3-ae81-53a043a69fc6Post:26a5e1af-de5d-4524-8d15-47e2f2d6729f">Re: How many cake bakers did you try?</a>:
[QUOTE]My mom and I (both teachers, so we are home for the summer) went on a "Secret Shopping" mission. We went to 4 different bakeries and bought cupcakes. We immediately picked the one that we both liked and then I brought home a cupcake from each place for my fiance to do a "blind taste test" he immediately picked the cupcake that we both liked. After dealing with the florists (2 hours appts each) we were drained and didn't wantto sit through appointments when we knew that the cake was horrible and it was a waste of time. We are setting up our appointment for our chosen bakery this week!
Posted by Kimberly0402[/QUOTE]

That sounds like the best way to choose the baker EVER! lol It must've been a fun day!

We only went to one because they were the venue's preferred vendor, and the cake was amazing. If you're not happy, definitely shop around. You can start by looking for bakeries on the internet (most post their wedding cake flavors) and call to get the price per piece. This way you can make appointments with a few promising places that meet your budget. Don't forget to research what you want it to look like and bring a picture for the baker to get a more accurate estimate at the taste testing.

WaterPig83

We only visited one, but I did a lot of research online first. We're having a DW, so we had to narrow things down before we went to visit. We ended up only meeting with one vendor for each aspect of our wedding. One photographer, one bakery, one florist, etc. Research and information gathering is key!