To think a full refund should have been offered

[wowzawoo]

I picked up cake today for DC birthday party - looked gorgeous but it stunk of smoke! The house smelled too but I thought maybe the cake would be okay - but when I checked at home it really smelt strongly.

I messaged the lady and said I thought the cake was wonderful looking but I wouldn't eat it or serve it because of the smell of stale smoke and asked for a refund also said happy to return the cake to her.

She has apologised and said no one smoked around the cake, she said she would refund my money minus the deposit.

Now, I am okay with this because actually I feel sorry for her, clearly she doesn't know how bad her house smells and then in turn the cake. But really I feel she should have offered a full refund.

Aibu to think this? Every time I look at the cake I feel sorry for her and then doubt my thought that she was being unreasonable to, one sell a cake like that and two that she should have offered a full refund.

I am out of pocket because I have lost the deposit and had to go to a supermarket and buy another cake.

Seller sells through FB page and has five stars!

But food preparation has to meet hygiene standards Freudian, which includes no smoking.

If the OP saw that the seller has Hygiene certs, she should rightfully expect that to be covered.

I am not going to give anyone, let alone my toddler a tobacco cake.
Oh give over.

Fraudien - you said it wouldn't bother you. Would you have let any of your DC have any? (If you have DC) or DN?

Do you think I should have fed it to my 2 year old?

Derxa- so I assume you would happily feed your DC cake stinking if fags??

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I vividly remember a party when I was aged about 8, brought home cake wrapped up in a napkin. It absolutely stank of smoke, there was no way I could eat it! It had obviously been made whilst someone had been smoking in the kitchen.
Anyway, I am with you, OP, cakes can smell of smoke, and no, you should not have had to request a cake not to smell of smoke!!

I'm still struggling to imagine. She must be a chain smoker, for the cake to stink that much.

But of course you shouldn't need to ask! I'd assume someone making cakes was hygienic and non smoking. By default.

Derxa- so I assume you would happily feed your DC cake stinking if fags?? Yes but they're 27 and 28 and I don't believe the cake did stink. My aunt was a smoker and also an award winning embroider and cake maker. Strangely enough the things she made didn't stink of fags.

As a cake baker who did have my own business at home (gave up when my dad died and husband fucked off) I was required by the council to meet certain standards and they visited me to inspect my kitchen. Someone else I knew in a different area was selling cakes and claimed to be a hobby baker and therefore said she didn't need to let the council know she was operating a business. This meant she didn't need to adhere to any hygiene standards bar her own. My point being I would report to the council as doesn't sound like she has good hygiene standards at all and may not have even registered with them that she is running a business. No cake should smell of anything but cake. For example I had to have a separate hand washing sink, no pets in the kitchen, and couldn't have the washing machine operating whilst baking.

That's rank op...I would thank her for the refund but tell her you want the full deposit back or you'll not only leave your review all over fb but also report her to...whoever you report foody stuff to, H&S or something.

I swear to you the cake stunk. I swear !!!! My mum, my brother and my DP said the same.

I know what I smelt - why would I lie???

Skimmed through. I don't make cakes professionally but make a lot of my (very large) families cakes. I use fondant a lot and it definitely absorbs smells. I'm sure to always take the cake out of the kitchen and cover it when I'm cooking as if you cooked say, bacon, around it, it would definitely smell of it. So those who don't believe it could smell, it definitely could.

I know its not your fault to be out of pocket, not at all but I'd likely just leave it. I would have got some pictures of dd with the cake (still do this if you have it) but no, I wouldn't eat it. At least if you get some pictures its making that lost deposit kind of worth it by having the nice cake in pics

My car even smelt !!!!!

Yuk. Was the cake baked in someone's house? I would cut my losses. If you order a cake probably better to get it done by a professional organisation in future.

Good idea about the photos. She is in bed now but could do it tomorrow.

Cherish - next time I will be more careful

My grandma was a cake maker, she's almost 100 now so this was a long time ago. She didn't smoke but absolutely loads of people would smoke in the house while she made cakes. I remember eating cakes she made when I was young. I'm also am ex smoker and used to smoke in my home (before we had children). My friend doesn't smoke and swears our house never smelled lime smoke. I kept a very clean house but still am convinced it must have. She's adament it didn't and is the type of friend that would tell me. We've moved since and never smoked here so she definitely isnt saying it to spare feelings.

Anyway, my point is, I think people really are just much more sensitive to the smell of smoke now. You really can smell instantly when someone is a smoker and can smell it on furnishings etc more as we aren't as used to the smell.

OP you need to check out the scores on the doors website and check the cake seller is legal. From what you’ve said I can bet my boots she’s not registered with the council.

Also if she’s a smoker the smell could very well of been transferred to the fondant from her fingers.

If she’s rolled over and given you a refund and not argued it she must know she’s in the wrong.

Check if she’s legal then push for your deposit back. If she’s not get onto your local council.

Unfortunately there seems to be a lot of unlicensed cake makers on Facebook at the moment.

My DF is a smoker, he rarely smokes in his house anymore and mainly stands at the (open) back door.

But the house, from years and years of being previously smoked in by him and my DM still stinks.

Anything you touch transfers the smell.

I can fully see that even if no one smoked around the actual cake anything she used to make it which has been in the house with smoke previously (such as a rolling pin) would transfer the smell to the fondant (which btw is ridiculously absorbent!)

I can smell cigarette smoke on my clothes just from being in my DFs for 10 minutes, not sitting down or touching anything and him not even smoking during that time. I have never smoked but was brought up in a smokers house and until I moved out didn't realise how much I and all my belongings stank, you just don't smell it when you are accustomed to it.

Give her one last chance to take the cake back and refund your deposit. If she doesn't then leave a stinking review on her business Facebook page (assuming she has one) then put it down to bad experience.

It's very much a case of OPs word against the baker's

No, it isn't, because the baker is already refunding most of the cost.