Gary's Patisserie — Local services in Vancouver

For the past few years, Gary’s Patisserie has been a personal favourite for a lot of my friends, and I have also personally sampled his cakes myself (mango rose and pandan). This year, I saw that Gary’s Patisserie had a special cake offering for Chinese New Year so I decided to give his 6” ‘Pot of Gold’ chestnut cake (+$10 filling) a shot to celebrate with my family. Pick-up was a seamless process given it was Chinese New Year eve. I anticipated that it would be a busy day for them, but I didn’t think it would jeopardize the quality of the cake. For a cake that cost almost $80 for a 6inch (competing against bakeries like Salty Sugar / Remi's/ Miss Lina's etc), the cake fell short of my expectations. The buttercream was extremely stiff and cracked the moment it was cut to serve (we also waited a bit room temperature thinking that was the culprit). The sponge cake was extremely dense and streaky – not the light and airy sponge cake texture I’ve had before from Gary’s . Everyone in my family did not have one positive thing to say about the cake. This leaves me wondering whether Gary's has the capacity to operate orders on busier days and upkeep quality control as the cake tasted sloppy and rushed. Hoping to give them the benefit of the doubt, I sent them a personal email inquiring about what happened, but apparently they don’t answer emails throughout the day. For this type of cake and price - you're better off going to Maxim's or Saint Germain for half the price and consistency.

Response to owner Feb 11 @ 0219 Hi Gary, thank you for enlightening me into the intricate world of cake craftmanship. Undoubtedly, you had a busy day with orders and I understand it is more crucial than addressing a customer’s concern for an email that was sent at 1059pm. Just to clarify, I gave you the benefit of the doubt and waited a whole day for any type of response. I'm sure these shortcomings will be ironed out in due time, just like the smooth consistency of your much-loved buttercream that you strongly stand by. Variety is, after all, the spice of life, and who wouldn't want to explore the vast world of cakes beyond the boundaries of...

How did I never know this place existed?! Been living in New West for 44 years, taking the SkyTrain through Burnaby thousands of times, and somehow completely missed a bakery with MY NAME ON IT. Sarah had to point it out during one of our weekend trips to Metrotown - "Dad, look, it's your bakery!"

At first I thought it was some kind of cosmic joke. After three failed marriages and a lifetime of mediocre birthday cakes from Safeway, the universe finally provides me with a personalized patisserie. The irony wasn't lost on me.

Decided to order the "Longevity Chinese Peach Cake" because at 69, longevity seems like a practical investment. Went with the 6-inch size for $90 - seemed reasonable for what's essentially a personalized good luck charm. The staff didn't even blink when I explained that my name was actually Gary and this felt like destiny.

The cake was genuinely impressive - delicate peach flavor that wasn't overpowering, beautiful presentation that looked exactly like the menu photo (rare in my experience). The sponge was light and airy, not dense like those grocery store disasters I've endured at office birthday parties for 36 years.

But the real revelation was seeing "Gary's" in elegant script on a storefront. For someone whose name has appeared on divorce papers more often than birthday cards, this felt oddly validating. Took about fifteen photos to send to Sarah, who replied "Dad, you know it's not actually named after you, right?"

Obviously I know that. But after discovering this place exists just a thirty minute drive across town, I'm seriously considering making this my regular birthday cake supplier. The durian option intrigues me too - if I'm going to have a namesake bakery, might as well explore the more adventurous offerings.

The fact that it's been here all along makes me wonder what else I've missed in my own neighborhood. Going to start paying more attention during my SkyTrain rides instead of just reading hockey stats on my phone.

Five stars for excellent cakes and the existential joy of finding your name on a...

Update: I received a message from Gary on instagram. He realized it was bad planning and apologized. He also promised that he will make improvements in his planing going forward. I will give them another chance and order from their website directly.

Original review: They had BOGO promotion for a few days on fantuan, and I tried to order yesterday. The deal was supposed to be from 2-5pm, but I was only able to see the deal at around 2:30, I took a while to decide what to order, and asked others if they wanted anything. When I was ready to order, they were showing as busy and I was unable to order, that was around 3:15 or 3:30. I waited around in the car because I was in the area, checking once every 10-15 minutes or so, but nope, wasn't able to order. They advertised the BOGO again on Instagram today, and specifically stated they have Mango cake as the free item today. I made an order at 2ish, and planned to pick up at 4pm. I got a call from fantuan customer service saying they don't have Mango anymore but I can order switch to getting something else. I said I would need some time to decide because I was really planning on getting the cakes for my husband. Not long after my order was just canceled. I connected with customer service on fantuan again, and they said I can re-order other flavours and they would still be able to do BOGO. But the store on fantuan just says they are closed for the day, when the BOGO event was supposed to be until 5pm. Extremely disappointed at their planning. If they don't have something, they really shouldn't advertise it. Wasted so much of my time...