AIBU to tell her her cakes tastes awful?

[HellomynameisIcklePickle]

I really hope she doesn't read this

I booked for a birthday cake to be made for my PFB's first birthday later in the year. Her cakes look amazing, and she told me she was away the week I needed it but her cakes last up to 10 days. I was a bit at this - as I want a chocolate one not a fruit cake.

I happened to see another cake I wanted for my husband's birthday that was last week - I asked her for a price and picked it up last week. It looked awesome, but tasted really really bad. My husband didn't mind it but it was not my cup of tea at all

How can I tell her I don't want a cake from her any more? I feel slightly obligated as I booked a slot and I think she charged me less for my DH's cake because she had a "big" one coming? I would like to tell her the truth - she is a professional and deserves to know why she is losing business.

But I don't know how to say it without pissing her off! We live in the same community, and it just feels like a personal insult.

I should say that my DH's cake was lemon and I want a chocolate one later so I can't say the flavour wasn't to my liking because I want a different cake

But if it just 'wasn't your cup of tea'
Or ....'slice of cake'
but your Dh thought it was ok....just literally down to different tastes/choices ....

How much notice would you be giving to cancel?

What was wrong with the taste?

If your DH liked it it's unfair to say there was anything wrong with it, it just wasn't to your taste, that's not to say she's losing business or makes bad cakes

Well yes I agree with pp however my dh would say old socks tasted ok

I would just keep on with the plan to get the 1st birthday cake from her and don't buy any more after that. Keeps the peace which would appear to be quite important in your situation.

Could you not ask to make or get your own and get her to decorate it.
Explaining thats its a secret family recipe for the cake

Winners all round

I've never ordered this kind of cake, but from what gather, it's not at all unusual for all the thought and energy to go into the design while the actual cake is dry, rather tasteless, and primarily there to act as a base for elaborate decoration...?

If you think the first cake was below par, cancel your order for the first birthday cake, definitely. Would you be forfeiting a deposit?

I think you need to be a bit more specific about what was wrong with it - was it dry? Was there too much lemon? Did you find it sickly or too stodgy? If you can tell her what you didn't like about the last cake, she can adapt the next one to suit your tastes a little more. Did anyone else have any?

I would just cancel your next cake and say cause it's your pfb you want to make it yourself. Then get on YouTube and start practising or get one elsewhere. I had similar as my fil always ordered my girl's cakes and they looked amazing but tasted rank. Last year I made my own cakes for everyone instead as I just couldn't face another rubbish cake. After the first couple of times I actually really enjoy it and my girls all love it as mum made it

I never said anything to a former friend of mine that her cakes were like having a mouth full of saw dust that tea will never quench. Poor deluded cow thought she was a great cook/baker as well, she cut every corner going and it showed.

I would never pay for a cake or any service from someone I knew rubbish at providing that service.

I agree that in my experience pretty cakes are rarely tasty.

Tasty cakes often don't have the required structural qualities - a stiffer, drier cake is easier to ice.

Are the children likely to care about the taste of the cake? Won't they just lick the icing off and then run away to play?

I think the idea of having this cake and no more sounds like a reasonable solution.

No deposit lost, the final design hadn't been sorted out so there hasn't been a price agreed.

She explained that it was a madeira cake - has to be to withstand shaping and the weight of icing etc. But I think I've even made a madeira cake once The texture was just not cake as I know it. Dry I could understand - icing forgives a lot of things. It was just, horrible (to me).

Maybe the chocolate one will be different, but how weird the first one has tasted has just confirmed that waiting a week to eat it will not be a good thing.

How do you know she's losing business, or do you mean just your business?

If it's the latter, that's just one Birthday cake because you didn't like the last one and your DH did.

No need to say anything at all, other than you don't need a cake for your DD anymore.

I would cancel. I make cakes, and the quality of the cake is equally important as the decoration for me.

I would be utterly mortified if the cake itself wasn't as glorious as the outside.

I made Old Trafford for a customer recently - a week after the event she messaged me to say it was still moist.

DoJo

It was sickly and stodgy. Like in order to combat being a dry cake it had been made to be slightly undercooked. It was dense and a bit grainy.

I made my own wedding cupcakes and I make cakes for a lot of birthdays. I am a perfectionist - they always look crap to me as I see every flaw and it was my treat to have a beautifully put together cake for his birthday.

She probably uses a commercial cake mix rather than fresh ingredients, they often do. I would just cancel, you don't need a reason.

Do you think she uses margarine and granulated sugar OP? Sounds like she is cutting corners with cheap ingredients, as well as undercooking the cake.

Just cancel.

I am relatively inept when it comes to 'large scale' baking and anything crafty...but I recently made my Son's birthday cake using a vanilla pod pound cake recipe I found online, homemade buttercream, seedless raspberry jam and Renshaws fondant icing. It took me the best part of 12 hours but it looked and tasted incredible and naturally I felt a great sense of achievement when everybody from family, friends, OH and DS told me it was the best cake they'd tasted in years.

I can link you to the recipe I used OP...and if I can do it, anybody can!!

Don't piss money up the wall on shit cake OP. YANBU.

I often find this with celebration cakes. They look fantastic but not enough effort put in to how they taste.

Get in contact if you're in London, I'm happy to do it!

My mum once arranged a cake to be made for my birthday (can't remember which one but maybe I was eight or nine - it looked lovely but I still remember it tasted horrid). I would rather have had one of my mum's with the hamfisted icing and smarties that tasted delicious than that cake. I still dream about her mile-a-minute sponge.

I'd say that you should make the cake yourself and cancel the order and mention that you found it a little dry.