How to Buy a Birthday Cake

Birthday cakes have come a long way and show just as much personality as the birthday boy or girl does. There's even cake-making competitions with profound creations. Grocery store bakeries have put more emphasis into creating beautiful cakes, too. Read on to learn how to buy a birthday cake.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Figure out how many people will be eating the cake. Go to a bakery or grocery store at least a few days in advance.
2. Know that a round cake, approximately 8 to 10 inches, will feed eight to 12 people. A quarter sheet cake feeds 15 to 20 people. A half sheet cake is ideal for 30 to 40 people. A full sheet cake can serve up to 70 to 80 people.
3. Flip through a photo book to get a better idea of what kind of birthday cake the bakery offers.
4. Choose your design with the help of a bakery employee. You can get a simple cake with Happy Birthday written on it, or you can get a favorite character drawn, a picture scanned onto the cake or a three-dimensional cake.
5. Decide what flavor cake and icing you want. Some grocery stores have limited options, while bakeries can do dozens of flavors. Think of what the birthday person would like, whether it's chocolate, vanilla, carrot cake or pistachio.
6. Clearly state which cake you'd like and in which colors. Make sure the bakery writes down the name of the birthday boy or girl, with the correct spelling.
7. Set a pick up date of the day before or day of the birthday party.

Tips & Warnings

• Ask for the cost of the birthday cake up front so you're not surprised.
• If you're picking up a birthday cake at the last minute, check to see if the bakery can personalize it. If not, buy a tube of icing yourself.
• Don't forget to buy birthday candles.

Who Can Help:

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