The Cake Bake Shop by Gwendolyn Rogers — Restaurant in Indianapolis

I stumbled upon this place after doing a Google search for a bakery. I was originally looking for a cake for my husband's birthday, but we decided to celebrate in person instead due to the raving reviews. We booked our reservation a few days ahead of time and were immediately seated once we arrived which is a huge relief with a toddler. The shop was very hectic which was expected based off the previous warnings from other reviewers; even before an hour until close (9:00 PM reservation on Friday night). We sat next to the window that faces the street. I enjoyed the privacy in such a small space and the hostess was able to squeeze in a high chair at our table. It was adorable! After getting settled, the 3 of us (son, husband, myself) were able to bask in the decorations. This place truly looks magical - almost like a realm of Alice in Wonderland. I absolutely loved the atmosphere and appreciate the work that went into it. From the chair pillows to the hues of pink flowers, it is really a sight that you have to see in person!

At every restaurant I go to, I inspect the cutlery. It was cleaned "ok", I was expecting a tad bit more cleanliness based off the froufrou atmosphere. The white linen napkins were great. The water glass was a bit dirty with a "taste of water spots". There were also water spots on the fork and cake knife; and my knife had a chip in the blade. My impression slightly faded, but we were there for the cake just like everyone else. The water was presented at the table in a shared glass bottle; which I liked the European touch. I was not a fan of the water because of the taste and temperature; but after eating half of a cake serving, you are going to need it! We ordered Gwendolyn’s Famous Earl’s Court Chocolate Cake (As Seen On Food Network), Tiramisu Cake, Raspberry Champagne Cake, and Mixed Berry Cheesecake. For drinks, my husband had the sweet tea and my son had the lemonade. I personally had the Elderflower & Grapefruit Mimosa which is a European (and British Royal) favorite. It was fitting for the atmosphere! Our total cost for our visit was $76 which included an $8+ tip. Let me tell you why it was worth every penny.

When I first laid eyes on the Mint Chocolate Chip Cake online, I knew that I was in for a special treat in person. If this single cake was good enough for Oprah, then surely the bakery as a whole was good enough for me. When the cakes made their entrance to the table, they were plated well and portioned right for the price. All of the desserts except for the Tiramisu cake was for my husband (which I deeply regret). I bit into my cake and it immediately made me emotional. You can taste the hard work, pride, and every bit of special that goes into these cakes! I have never liked buttercream but this place has made me a believer. It was worth every penny. With another glass of champagne, I dare say that each bite of cake would have been tear-jerking. The desserts are also toddler-approved as I heard a lot of "Mmm, yummy!" that night. I am still going through withdrawals 2 days later over these desserts and am envious that I did not purchase anything to-go like my husband did. I got to sneak a bite of the chocolate and raspberry cakes, and both were an experience to try! Having this experience is so bittersweet because now I need to budget a visit at least once a month. I almost had a heart attack seeing a PB&J for $5.50! The prices are high but you really have to think about the experience and quality that you will receive. No matter what, I can say with confidence that Gwendolyn's cakes are the best that I have ever had in my entire life. I am...

UPDATE: Went back and reordered the Chicken Velvet Soup, and was pleasantly surprised to receive and very large bowl full of soup and a big chunk of bread. Cake was super moist and delicious and service was greatly improved. Five stars for this visit!

Day 2 of your Carmel location and overall experience was okay/good but not great. Don’t get me wrong, the place is beautiful, the cake and food are delicious, but there are a lot of things that need work and tweaking to make this place great and worth the money. First: customer service is lacking.... I know there were probably a lot of new hires for this location and it will take time to get everything running smoothly, but after my table of 5 was seated, we waited.... and waited... until finally one of us had to hunt down a waiter who had no clue who was supposed to wait on us, and we were handed off to an already overwhelmed waiter.... who spent the entire time telling us he was brand new and had no idea if anything that we wanted to order was available. I asked for a cocktail recommendation: he had no clue what was good- even told me so. Meanwhile all the Instagram stars were made sure to be helped. For example, I asked for a slice of the pink birthday cake to go (to take home to hubby) and he said he’d have to check if they even had it. My friend asked for another cake slice to go as well and she got the same response. For a newly opened cake store, considering you’re going to be very busy these first few weeks, not having cake readily available should NOT be a happening. Plus you’ve been working on opening this place for a long time.... was the staff not prepared? Second: let’s talk about the price of your food. I get that this place is specialty and fancy and you’ve got to make up for the millions you’ve poured into making this place sparkle, but when I order the chicken velvet soup with a half baguette, I am not expecting to receive what is barely a cup of soup and two small slices of baguette bread all for $13. $13 for a cup of soup??? $13 for barely anything? The prices alone are enough to make me want to never come back, but I’m willing to dish out the money if portion sizes are at least worth the money! Instead I’m left with empty pockets and wishing I had more food. And sure I’ll fill up on cake.... but it’s the principle of the matter. This is America, not France. I want my money’s worth. Overall, I’m sure I’ll be back someday.... but not until this place gets their act together, makes sure to give customers the experience that they are paying for, and will have to take care to not get ripped off while...

Went here for a friend’s birthday party. I arrived before my party and was greeted kindly by the hostess, Martha. She saw that my party had not previously put in a reservation but did her best to make sure that there would be a table available once our entire party arrived. The food was so delicious! I ordered the half sandwich and half pasta option and thoroughly enjoyed it. Our group was seated outside and we loved the decorations. I also ordered the carrot cake which I really enjoyed. Due to unexpected busyness, Martha ended up ringing us out in order to speed up the process (it was a Tuesday which is typically a more relaxed day but a convention was in town so our waitress had a great number of tables to look after). And as Martha handed our cards/receipts back mine was last, and without even looking she remembered my name from earlier in the evening. I was very impressed by her memory and her devotion to making the night as enjoyable as possible for us. To be honest, the food and experience were lovely, but it was Martha the hostess that left the most lasting impression on me afterwards. I work as a server in the catering industry and I found her kindness and attention to detail extremely impressive.

Also it bears mention that our waitress, who did make a couple tiny mistakes, did phenomenal for waiting approximately half of the tables inside and half of the tables outside. I don’t know that I could have done a better job myself. If I were waiting that many tables I am sure I would have forgotten much more than one drink order, and I don’t know that I would have had the forethought to then bring that drink order out in a to-go container so that it was more convenient to leave with since it had come out later than anticipated. Once our table realized that she was waiting on so many people at once we realized how prompt she actually had been in getting back to us. It was not her fault they were uncharacteristically busy on a weeknight. And bearing that in mind her service was actually very impressive.

I had a wonderful time at The Cake Bake Shop getting to celebrate an old friend, and I would definitely recommend it as a great place to enjoy food and dessert and spend an...