Cakes

Every cake on this list is built from scratch in our own kitchen: sponge and pastry baked in the morning, mousses and creams set the same day, finishing done by hand before the cake goes into the case. Nothing arrives frozen and nothing sits for a week.

Cakes come in three sizes — 6" serves six to eight, 8" serves ten to twelve, 10" serves sixteen to twenty. The classics are always here: tiramisu, lemon mousse, triple chocolate mousse, white chocolate raspberry, carrot cake, cheesecake and the St. Honoré. Seasonal cakes come and go with the fruit.

Same-day cakes are usually available from the case. For a specific flavour, size or a message piped on top, three days' notice is enough; tiered and hand-decorated work needs a little longer.

Choosing a cake

If you are ordering for a group and cannot decide, start with the room rather than the flavour. A mousse cake — lemon, white chocolate raspberry, triple chocolate — is the safe choice after a long dinner, because it eats light. A carrot cake or a cheesecake suits an afternoon party where the cake is the meal. Tiramisu is the one people ask for by name.

Sizes and portions

A 6" cake gives six to eight normal slices, an 8" gives ten to twelve, and a 10" gives sixteen to twenty. Cut smaller for a dessert table where other sweets are on offer. If the cake is being served after a full meal, one size down is usually right.

Writing and decoration

A piped message is included at no extra cost — tell us the wording when you order and keep it short enough to fit the top. Fresh fruit, chocolate plaques and simple piped borders are done in-house. For sugar flowers, tiers and modelled work, give us at least a week and we will talk through what is realistic.

Getting it home

Cakes travel flat, in a box, on a level surface — the footwell of a car beats a seat. Keep it cool on the way and refrigerate it as soon as you arrive. Take the cake out of the fridge twenty minutes before serving; a cold mousse tastes of very little, and the same cake at room temperature tastes of everything that went into it.