Cake walk

Angel B’s
For the creative cake enthusiast
407 W. Patterson DrIVE
www.angelb-s.com
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In calling itself “a galleria of cakes,” Angel B’s alludes to the sheer quantity of different cakes prepared at this little bakery. Twenty varieties of dessert cakes are available, and specialty cupcakes are baked in small batches throughout the day.

The real specialty here, however, is the celebration cake, and Angel B’s prides itself on its flexibility with customization and time crunches. Customers can choose from 10 “Premium” and “Ultra Premium” cake flavors, such as crème caramel, orange or mocha, and any flavor of fruit. Chef Mark Brethauer said many of these custom-decorated cakes can be ready within 24 hours.

“We get many calls in the morning for an afternoon cake,” Brethauer said. “We don’t stockpile cakes in the freezer. We actually bake our cakes per order and prepare fresh cake batters daily.”


Sweet B Design
For the design-happy on a budget
www.sweetestb.com
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Customers at Sweet B Design can have their cake and eat it too: Brooke Eads, co-founder of Sweet B, said they specifically try to cater to those on a budget.
“We don’t believe in overcharging someone just because a customer asks for a custom cake that large retailers can’t supply,” Eads said.

Still, reduced prices do not necessarily mean reduced options. Seasonal flavors and off-the-menu flavor requests are available along with classics like yellow, chocolate and red velvet.

Though it does not have a physical storefront, Sweet B also offers digital photography and handmade keepsakes — seemingly random varieties that Eads said stem from the owners’ histories in fine arts and event planning.

“We want potential customers to know that you don’t have to spend an outrageous amount on custom pieces, whether it’s a cake or a keepsake,” Eads said.


BLU Boy Chocolate Café and Cakery
For the epicurean locovore
112 E. Kirkwood Ave.
www.bluboychocolate.com
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BLU Boy Chocolate Café and Cakery’s mantra could be summed up as serving European flavor, Bloomington style. The owners have studied with New York City cake designers, German pastry chefs and Belgian chocolatiers between them, but the focus is local; they use ingredients from the Bloomington area whenever possible, listing the sources of many of their ingredients online.

Co-owner David Fletcher said he believes what sets BLU Boy apart, however, is the adherence to creating all products in-house, avoiding any pre-made mixes or icing.

“We really wanted to have products that have kind of a crafted quality to them,”
Fletcher said.

Fletcher siad BLU Boy’s products use less sugar and tend to be less sweet than those of other bakeries. But as the name of the shop implies, BLU Boy has one cake flavor Fletcher said cannot be missed: dark chocolate.

“It is really for the chocolate lover,” Fletcher said. “And not for the chocolate faint of heart.”


My Campus Cakes
For the long-distance (cake) lover
www.mycampuscakes.com
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MyCampusCakes.com was established in 2010 by Kelley School of Business students Jon Bradford and Matt Brown and has since expanded to serve nine university campuses across the country.

Though the menu is simple, offering basic flavor, such as white, yellow, chocolate and marble with chocolate, buttercream or whipped frosting, the appeal in MyCampusCakes.com is that cakes are ordered online from anywhere in the country and hand-delivered to students’ campus residences the day they are prepared.

The idea originated when the cakes Bradford’s mother sent him for his birthday would arrive “crushed,” even after an expensive shipping process. MyCampusCakes.com specializes in birthdays, delivering cakes with lit candles, balloons and a birthday song but also caters to other special student events.

“Valentine's Day is coming up. We expect that will be a pretty busy time for us,” Bradford said. “There’s get-well cakes, good-luck cakes, congratulations cakes — we’ve sent cakes definitely for a lot of different occasions.”


Sugar & Spice
For the Campus Access Card
Indiana Memorial Union
812-855-8810
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The IMU’s in-house sweet shop might be best known for its decorative sugar cookies and seasonal cupcakes available on the fly, but it also specializes in custom celebration and dessert cakes. All items are special orders, and national and on-campus deliveries are available.

The bright display “cakes” in the windows show what the bakers at Sugar & Spice can do with tiers and rolled fondant for special occasions, all while keeping the shop’s mantra of “more sugar, more spice, more local and more organic.”

One item unique to Sugar & Spice is the Herman B Wells cake, described by supervisor Jordan Baxter as “a light, refreshing fresh strawberry and/or banana with whipped cream layered cake.” The “Wells cake” comes from a family recipe that Wells himself gave to the IMU so that it could be prepared and served at his inauguration as University president in 1938.

Cakes cannot typically be ordered online or in-shop. With a phone call and three days' notice, cakes can be completely customized and can feature seasonal flavors, such as rocky road or carrot.


The Cake and the Caterer
For the extravagant event cake
216 S. College Ave.
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The Cake and the Caterer now operates through KRC Catering and specializes in cakes for weddings and other large events. Cakes are available in 30 different specialty flavors, such as champagne, cinnamon roll and white chocolate, and are priced “per serving.” The bakers at the Cake and the Caterer specialize in using rolled fondant to create crisp, “classic” wedding cakes.


Scholar’s Inn Bakehouse
For the no-frills cake that will fill you up
3002 E. Third St., 125 N. College Ave.
www.scholarsInn.com
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The Bakehouse franchise of the Scholar’s Inn network keeps it simple with six specialty dessert cakes, including the best-selling “Black and Tan” chocolate sour-cream cake.

Owner Lyle Feigenbaum stresses that the cakes at the Bakehouse “are not high-end cakes.” The bakery gave up its focus on creating the elaborately decorated cakes presented in other cakeries after it found that taste was often sacrificed.

“They’re not snooty cakes, they’re just cakes for everyone,” Feigenbaum said. “Our recipes are certainly not simple. But the fact is that the cakes just have to taste delicious.”

This basic approach is what Feigenbaum said he believes sets Scholar’s Inn Bakehouse apart — and he said Bloomington diners have taken note.

“What we like to do is offer great tasting cakes that everyone can relate to and everyone enjoys,” he said. “That’s the secret to our success, I guess.”